Migration of income-support recipients from non-metropolitan NSW and SA into Sydney and Adelaide

This report investigates "the motivations of, and trade-offs made by approximately 50,000 income-support recipients who move annually from non-metropolitan areas to metropolitan cities...For 'work-ready' income-support recipients (the unemployed and single parent pensioners) finding affordable and appropriately located housing may influence their capacity to find work and their willingness to stay in cities where job opportunities are relatively high. For other categories of income-support recipients (disabled and aged pensioners) the availability of affordable and appropriate housing may influence the extent to which they are able to access metropolitan services and social support networks that are presumed to be significant factors in their relocating.Nancy Marshall, Ian Burnley, Peter Murphy and Graeme Hug

A holistic approach to studying social segregation in Australian cities

In this paper we are specifically concerned with research approaches to the growing societal divisions that have captured the attention of many urban scholars and policy makers. In this paper we argue that research on segregation has had an over-reliance on statistical measures of outcomes, which limits our understanding of segregation processes and impacts. A mixed method, multi-staged approach to research on residential segregation generates a more holistic picture of the processes and impacts of social segregation. We showcase a staged analysis of data from Sydney, Australia, using Vietnamese-Australians. The use of both statistical measures and field based insights enriches the understanding of segregation, and allows a more rounded basis for discussing policy responses and remedies

Constructing racism in Australia

There is a dearth of empirical evidence on the extent of racist attitudes, broadly defined, in Australia. A telephone survey of 5056 residents in Queensland and NSW examined attitudes to cultural difference, perceptions of the extent of racism, tolerance of specific groups, ideology of nation, perceptions of Anglo-Celtic cultural privilege, and belief in racialism, racial separatism and racial hierarchy. The research was conducted within a social constructivist understanding of racisms. Racist attitudes are positively associated with age, non-tertiary education, and to a slightly lesser extent with those who do not speak a language other than English, the Australia-born, and with males. Anti-Muslim sentiment is very strong, but there is also a persistence of some intolerance against Asian, Indigenous and Jewish Australians. Those who believe in racial hierarchy and separatism (old racisms) are a minority and are largely the same people who self-identify as being prejudiced. The 'new racisms' of cultural intolerance, denial of Anglo-privilege and narrow constructions of nation have a much stronger hold. Nonetheless, sociobiologically related understandings of race and nation remain linked to these new racisms. Narrow understandings of what constitutes a nation (and a community) are in tension with equally widely held liberal dispositions towards cultural diversity and dynamism. Encouragingly, most respondents recognise racism as a problem in Australian society and this is a solid basis for anti-racism initiatives

A Holistic Approach to Studying Segregation in Australian Cities

The State of Australian Cities (SOAC) national conferences have been held biennially since 2003 to support interdisciplinary policy-related urban research. This paper was presented at SOAC 3 held in Adelaide from 28 to 30 November 2007. SOAC 3 was jointly hosted by the University of South Australia, the University of Adelaide and Flinders University. Themes and Key Persons SOAC 3 focused on the contemporary form and structure of Australian cities. The conference proceedings were grouped into six key sub-themes, each the focus of one of more conference sessions: City Economy - economic change and labour market outcomes of globalisation, land use pressures, changing employment locations. Social City – including population, migration, immigration, polarisation, equity and disadvantage, housing issues, recreation. City Environment - sustainable development, management and performance, natural resource management, limits to growth, impacts of air, water, climate, energy consumption, natural resource uses, conservation, green space. City Structures – the emerging morphology of the city – inner suburbs, middle suburbs, the CBD, outer suburbs and the urban-rural fringe, the city region. City Governance – including taxation, provision of urban services, public policy formation, planning, urban government, citizenship and the democratic process. City Infrastructure – transport, mobility, accessibility, communications and IT, and other urban infrastructure provision. Paper Review Process Conference papers published from SOAC 3 were produced through a process of integrated peer review. There were originally 147 abstracts proposed, 143 were invited to submit papers and 107 papers were finally published

"We are a Family – It makes sense to live together": Multigenerational households in Sydney and Brisbane

The State of Australian Cities (SOAC) national conferences have been held biennially since 2003 to support interdisciplinary policy-related urban research. This paper was presented at SOAC 6, held in Sydney from 26-29 November 2013. SOAC 6was the largest conference to date, with over 180 papers published in collected proceedings. All papers presented at the SOAC 2013 have been subject to a double blind refereeing process and have been reviewed by at least two referees. In particular, the review process assessed each paper in terms of its policy relevance and the contribution to the conceptual or empirical understanding of Australian cities