A Story of Organized Crime: Constructing Criminality and Building Institutions

This is a narrative about the way in which a category of crime-to-be-combated is constructed through the discipline of criminology and the agents of discipline in criminal justice. The aim was to examine organized crime through the eyes of those whose job it is to fight it (and define it), and in doing so investigate the ways social problems surface as sites for state intervention. A genealogy of organized crime within criminological thought was completed, demonstrating that there are a range of different ways organized crime has been constructed within the social scientific discipline, and each of these were influenced by the social context, political winds and intellectual climate of the time. Following this first finding, in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with individuals who had worked at the apex of the policing of organized crime in Australia, in order to trace their understandings of organized crime across recent history. It was found that organized crime can be understood as an object of the discourse of the politics of law and order, the discourse of international securitization, new public management in policing business, and involves the forging of outlaw identities. Therefore, there are multiple meanings of organized crime that have arisen from an interconnected set of social, political, moral and bureaucratic discourses. The institutional response to organized crime, including law and policing, was subsequently examined. An extensive legislative framework has been enacted at multiple jurisdictional levels, and the problem of organized crime was found to be deserving of unique institutional powers and configurations to deal with it. The social problem of organized crime, as constituted by the discourses mapped out in this research, has led to a new generation of increasingly preemptive and punitive laws, and the creation of new state agencies with amplified powers. That is, the response to organized crime, with a focus on criminalization and enforcement, has been driven and shaped by the four discourses and the way in which the phenomenon is constructed within them. An appreciation of the nexus between the emergence of the social problem, and the formation of institutions in response to it, is important in developing a more complete understanding of the various dimensions of organized crime.

Regenerative sustainability for the built environment – from vision to reality: An introductory chapter

Regenerative sustainability is emerging as an alternative discourse around the transition from a ‘mechanistic’ to an ‘ecological’ or living systems worldview. This view helps us to re-conceptualize relationships among humans’ technological, ecological, economic, social and political systems. Through exploration of ‘net positive’ or ‘regenerative’ development lenses and the traditional sustainability literature, the conceptualization and approaches to achieve sustainable development and ecological modernization are expanded to articulate and to explore the evolving sustainability discourse, ‘regenerative sustainability’. This Special Volume of Journal of Cleaner Production (SV) is focused upon various dimensions of regenerative sustainability (e.g. regenerative design, regenerative development, and positive development) applied to the urban built environment at scales, which range from individual buildings, neighborhoods, and urban developments to integrated regional sustainable development. The main focus is on how these approaches and developments are evolving, how they can help us to prevent or adapt to climate change and how these approaches are likely to evolve in the next two to three decades. These approaches are addressed in four themes: (1) reviewing the theoretical development of the discourse of regenerative sustainability, its emerging principles and practices, (2) explaining how it can be measured and monitored, (3) providing encouraging practical pathways and examples of its implementation in multiple cultural and climatic contexts, and (4) mapping obstacles and enablers that must be addressed to help to ensure that more rapid progress is made in implementing the transitions towards an urban built environment that supports genuinely sustainable societies.

Burning questions: Exploring the impact of a natural disaster on community pharmacies

Background The past decade has seen a rapid change in the climate system with an increased risk of extreme weather events. On and following the 3rd of January 2013, Tasmania experienced three catastrophic bushfires, which led to the evacuation of several communities, the loss of many properties, and a financial cost of approximately AUD$80 million. Objective To explore the impacts of the 2012/2013 Tasmanian bushfires on community pharmacies. Method Qualitative research methods were undertaken, employing semi-structured telephone interviews with a purposive sample of seven Tasmanian pharmacists. The interviews were recorded and transcribed, and two different methods were used to analyse the text. The first method utilised Leximancer® text analytics software to provide a birds-eye view of the conceptual structure of the text. The second method involved manual, open and axial coding, conducted independently by the two researchers for inter-rater reliability, to identify key themes in the discourse. Results Two main themes were identified - ‘people’ and ‘supply’ - from which six key concepts were derived. The six concepts were ‘patients’, ‘pharmacists’, ‘local doctor’, ‘pharmacy operations’, ‘disaster management planning’, and ‘emergency supply regulation’. Conclusion This study identified challenges faced by community pharmacists during Tasmanian bushfires. Interviewees highlighted the need for both the Tasmanian State Government and the Australian Federal Government to recognise the important primary care role that community pharmacists play during natural disasters, and therefore involve pharmacists in disaster management planning. They called for greater support and guidance for community pharmacists from regulatory and other government bodies during these events. Their comments highlighted the need for a review of Tasmania’s 3-day emergency supply regulation that allows pharmacists to provide a three-day supply of a patient’s medication without a doctor’s prescription in an emergency situation.

Ordering within moral orders to manage classroom trouble

This paper demonstrates how classroom trouble warranting teacher intervention can stem from transgressions in different layers of the complex moral order regulating classroom interactions. The paper builds from Durkheim’s treatment of schooling as the institution responsible for the inculcation of a shared moral order, Bernstein’s distinction between the instructional and regulative discourses in any pedagogic setting, and the concept of verticality in the instructional discourse to illuminate how curricular knowledge might apply across different contexts. This paper proposes a similar vertical dimension of moral gravity in the regulative discourse, such that some moral expectations apply across any context, while others are highly contextualized. This paper then applies this frame to data from classroom observations conducted in prevocational pathways for 16 years olds created under Australia’s “earning or learning till 17” policy. This paper describes the variety of moral premises teachers invoked in different teacher/class combinations, according to their level of moral gravity to display the dominant use of highly contextualized moral premises seeking institutional compliance, and minimal use of broader moral frames for these students on the brink of entry to the adult world.

Designing rich information experiences to shape learning outcomes

Students in higher education typically learn to use information as part of their course of study, which is intended to support ongoing academic, personal and professional growth. Informing the development of effective information literacy education, this research uses a phenomenographic approach to investigate the experiences of a teacher and students engaged in lessons focused on exploring language and gender topics by tracing and analyzing their evolution through scholarly discourse. The findings suggest that the way learners use information influences content-focused learning outcomes, and reveal how teachers may enact lessons that enable students to learn to use information in ways that foster a specific understanding of the topic they are investigating.

From workplace to profession: New focus for the information literacy discourse

The present paper suggests articulating the general context of workplace in information literacy research. The paper considers distinguishing between information literacy research in workplaces and professions. Referring to the results of a phenomenographic enquiry into web professionals’ information literacy as an example, it is indicated that work-related information literacy in particular contexts and depending on the nature of the context, is experienced beyond physical workspaces and at professional level. This involves people interacting with each other and with information at a broader level in comparison to a physically bounded workspace. Regarding the example case discussed in the paper, virtuality is identified as the dominant feature of the profession that causes information literacy to be experienced at a professional level. It is anticipated that pursuing the direction proposed in the paper will result in a more segmented image of work-related information literacy.

Shaping urban consolidation debates: Social representations in Brisbane newspaper media

Recent international trends towards urban consolidation, intended to reduce outward urban sprawl by concentrating growth within existing neighbourhoods, can cause contention in cities. Understanding how the mass media represents urban consolidation can lead to more informed and democratic planning practices. This paper employs Social Representations Theory to identify and understand representations of urban consolidation in newspaper media. The theory recognises that the media is a key purveyor of public discourse and can reflect, shape or suppress ideas circulating in society. This novel approach has not previously been applied to understanding social representations of urban consolidation strategies in the mass media. The rapidly growing and changing city of Brisbane, Australia, is utilised as a case study. Brisbane is situated in South East Queensland, the fastest growing region in Australia, and is governed by regional and local planning policies that strongly support increased densities in existing urban areas. Findings from a quantitative textual analysis of 449 articles published in Brisbane newspapers between 2007 and 2014 reveal key clusters and classes of co-occurring words that represent dominant social representations apparent in the newspaper corpus. The paper provides two key conclusions. The first is that social representations occurring in mass media represent an important source of information about ‘common sense’ understandings and evaluations of urban consolidation debates. The second is that urban consolidation is represented as a ultifaceted issue, including interrelated themes of housing,sustainable population growth, investment strategies and the interplay between politics and planning

“Let’s see if you can see me”: Making connections with Google Earth™ in a preschool classroom

Bringing a social interaction approach to children’s geographies to investigate how children accomplish place in everyday lives, we draw on ethnomethodological and conversation analytic approaches that recognize children’s competence to manipulate their social and digital worlds. An investigation of preschool-aged children engaged with Google Earth™ shows how they both claimed and displayed technological understandings and practices such as maneuvering the mouse and screen, and referenced place through relationships with local landmarks and familiar settings such as their school. At times, the children’s competing agendas required orientation to each other’s ideas, and shared negotiation to come to resolution. A focus on children’s use of digital technologies as they make meaning of the world around them makes possible new understandings of place within the geographies of childhood and education.

Promoting innovation and development by rethinking the role of copyright limitations and exceptions in Vietnam

This thesis examines how Vietnamese copyright law should develop to promote innovation and development in the digital age. It focuses on the important role of limitations and exceptions to copyright in encouraging access to and reuse of copyright material. This research provide important recommendations for how the scope of copyright limitations and exceptions might be expanded by adopting fair use in order to embrace new opportunities provided by the digital economy. Furthermore, it suggests that Vietnam should extend the scope of some important provisions that provide privileges for education, libraries and people with disabilities.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership, Copyright Law and Education

There is much concern across the Pacific rim about the impact of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) upon public education. The secretive trade agreement involves a dozen nations across the Pacific, including Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States, and Indonesia may soon join. Although the text was finalised at the Atlanta talks in October 2015, the Agreement has not yet been made public. (The NTEU has joined with other unions and civil society organisations in calling for the agreement to be revealed to facilitate public debate before any decisions are made by Parliament.) So whilst we cannot examine all the text that may impact on public educations, WikiLeaks has published the final version of the Intellectual Property Chapter of the TPP. The Intellectual Property Chapter of the TPP alone, with its copyright term extension, limits on copyright exceptions, and enforcement measures, will have a significant impact for educators and public education.

Discourse on the centennial of Neve Shalome, Surinam, by Judah A. Devries

Digital image

The White Possessive : Property, Power and Indigenous Sovereignty

The White Possessive explores the links between race, sovereignty, and possession through themes of property: owning property, being property, and becoming propertyless. Focusing on the Australian Aboriginal context, Aileen Moreton-Robinson questions current race theory in the first world and its preoccupation with foregrounding slavery and migration. The nation, she argues, is socially and culturally constructed as a white possession. Moreton-Robinson reveals how the core values of Australian national identity continue to have roots in Britishness and colonization, built on the disavowal of Indigenous sovereignty. Whiteness studies are central to Moreton-Robinson’s reasoning, and she shows how blackness works as a white epistemological tool that bolsters the social production of whiteness—displacing Indigenous sovereignties and rendering them invisible in a civil rights discourse, sidestepping issues of settler colonialism. Throughout this critical examination Moreton-Robinson proposes a bold new agenda for critical Indigenous studies, one that involves deeper analysis of the prerogatives of white possession within the role of disciplines.

Literacy, security, governmentality: Defining spaces, managing populations – How has education become part of whole of government security strategy?

In this paper I conduct a Foucauldian discourse analysis of a political speech given by Brendon Nelson in 2006 when the Australian Minister for Defence in the Howard Coalition Government. The speech connects conceptualisations of terror, globalization, education and literacy as part of a whole of government security strategy. The analysis examines this speech as an example of a liberal way of governing the conduct of diverse and unpredictable populations. My analysis suggests that the apparatus of government has been strategically used in order to biopolitically contain the rise of complex social forces and protect a set of homogenous cultural values. The purposes of education and uses of literacy are seen as instruments for the inscription of a coded set of values understood to be synonymous with civil society.