A review of rationale for allocating costs and payments in producing and supplying public sector information PART A of 2 Parts – Chapters 1, 2 and 3) 13 March 2011 version

This work reviews the rationale and processes for raising revenue and allocating funds to perform information intensive activities that are pertinent to the work of democratic government. ‘Government of the people, by the people, for the people’ expresses an idea that democratic government has no higher authority than the people who agree to be bound by its rules. Democracy depends on continually learning how to develop understandings and agreements that can sustain voting majorities on which democratic law making and collective action depends. The objective expressed in constitutional terms is to deliver ‘peace, order and good government’. Meeting this objective requires a collective intellectual authority that can understand what is possible; and a collective moral authority to understand what ought to happen in practice. Facts of life determine that a society needs to retain its collective competence despite a continual turnover of its membership as people die but life goes on. Retaining this ‘collective competence’ in matters of self-government depends on each new generation: • acquiring a collective knowledge of how to produce goods and services needed to sustain a society and its capacity for self-government; • Learning how to defend society diplomatically and militarily in relation to external forces to prevent overthrow of its self-governing capacity; and • Learning how to defend society against divisive internal forces to preserve the authority of representative legislatures, allow peaceful dispute resolution and maintain social cohesion.

Bushfire sustainability : Strategies for reconciling bushfire and biodiversity with daily life

This exhibition and catalogue provides a visual record of student work exhibited at the Australian Institute of Architects offices in Brisbane from November 15 to 29, 2010. The exhibition features the final design outcomes of the inaugural Bushfire Sustainability unit conducted at QUT in semester two, 2010. The core objective of this unit was to develop our students’ skills in collaborative practice in design, research and presentation. The theme of ‘bushfire sustainability’ was chosen because living sustainably in bushfire prone landscapes presents a number of problems, the nature of which might only be resolved via multidisciplinary collaboration among the design disciplines. The students involved represent the disciplines of Interior Design, Landscape Architecture, Industrial Design, Architecture and Sustainability – all from within the School of Design at QUT. 55 students, mostly in their third year of study, worked in teams of five (one from each discipline) to design one of a number of homes in highly bushfire prone sites in either Western Australia or SE Queensland. This year level and the interdisciplinary mix are perhaps the best placed to resolve these problems: being unrestrained from the burdens of professional practice and technical overload they retain the potential for innovative, lateral thinking across the range of spatial scales and philosophical perspectives associated with inhabitation of bushfire prone landscapes. It is envisaged that, through the ‘vehicle’ of this design research, that the students’ work will contribute to understandings of how creative design disciplines might respond to this significant national problem, which hitherto has been attended to primarily by engineering and the sciences.

Wild weather hampers Brisbane’s popular CityCat services

The heavy rain falls that we have been experiencing have had their impact on the public transport system, especially the ferries. September 2010 was the Brisbane area’s wettest on record, and early to mid October has shaped up much the same. So much so that the South East Queensland’s main water storages, the Wivenhoe and Somerset Dams, which are fed by the Stanley and Brisbane Rivers’ upper catchments, have filled to capacity. SEQ Water consequently released the floodgates on the Wivenhoe Dam for the first time in almost a decade, with bipartisan support of State and Local Governments.

AITPM national newsletter president's report April 2010

Well, it has been Clem 7 month here in Brisbane and my impression is “so far, so good!” For those of you who know Brisbane, the four lane twin Clem Jones Tunnel (M7) is approximately 4.5km long, and connects Ipswich Road (A7) at the Princess Alexandra Hospital on the south side with Bowen Bridge Road (A3) at the Royal Brisbane Hospital on the north side. There are also south access ramps to the Pacific Motorway and east access ramps to Shafston Avenue (headed to/from Wynnum). Brisbanites have been enjoying a three week no-toll taste test, and I paced through it one evening with minimal fuss. The tunnel seems to have eased the congestion at the Stanley Street on-ramp to the Pacific Motorway quite a bit, and Ipswich Road – Main Street through the ‘Gabba. One must watch the signage carefully, but once we get used to the infrastructure, this will not likely be problematic. It will be interesting to see how traffic behaves when the system settles after tolling, which has likely commenced by the time you’re reading. I believe a passenger car toll is about $4.20 one way but saves about 24 signalised intersection pass-throughs.

Introduction : bringing back theory

In a report in the New York Times about a public symposium on the future of theory held at University of Chicago in 2002, staff writer Emily Eakin suggests that theory appears to have taken a back seat to more pressing current affairs – the Bush Administration, Al Qaeda, Iraq. Further, she reports that the symposium’s panel of high-profile theorists and scholars, including Homi Bhabha, Stanley Fish, Fredric Jameson, seemed reticent to offer their views on what is often touted as the demise or irrelevance of theory. The symposium and other commentaries on the topic of theory have prompted the view that the ‘Golden Age of Theory’ has passed and we are now in a ‘Post-Theory Age’. Given these pronouncements, we need to ask – Does theory matter any longer? Is it time for the obituary? Or are reports of the death of theory greatly exaggerated? The question remains whether to mourn or celebrate the demise of theory, and whether the body has in fact breathed its last. The title of this Introduction – ‘Bringing back theory’ – suggests a resurrection, or perhaps a haunting, as if the funeral has passed and, like Banquo’s ghost, theory returns to unsettle or disturb the celebration. It also suggests an entreaty, or perhaps a return performance. Rather than settle on one meaning, one interpretation, we are happy for all possibilities to coexist. The coexistence of different theories, different approaches, different interpretations also reflects the state of literary and cultural studies generally and children’s literature criticism in particular. No single theory or viewpoint predominates or vies for hegemony. Yet, one further question lingers – what is theory?

Organization and management of police

To understand the nature of police organisations and their management in an Australian context it is necessary to appreciate the recent history of policing at least in the last 30 years. In doing so an overall perspective is gained on the various reform efforts and organisational changes that have taken place in Australian policing. With this police reform perspective clearly in mind it then becomes possible to appreciate that the organization and management of the institution of policing in Australia is nested within the larger framework of ‘governance’. Hence, this notion of governance will be used as the key focal point around which to understand how police organizations manage their mission in the Australian context. Finally, the chapter discusses the inevitable ‘tension spaces’ that arise in policing and the need for police organizations to better manage such complexities.

The inherent challenges of knowledge transfer across countries and cultures

Purpose — The purpose of this chapter is to outline the findings of research into knowledge transfer across countries and culture and the implications of the findings for human resource practitioners. Methodology/approach — Use of a qualitative case study methodology approach was employed. Findings — The findings highlight the inherent difficulty of knowledge transfer and the broad range of factors that influence the knowledge transfer process and which are connected together in a complex and non-linear manner. Research implications — The research revealed insight into those managers most likely to be effective at knowledge transfer and what characteristics and experiences had supported this openness to knowledge from outside of their cultural context. The lessons from the research can be incorporated into the selection and development processes for expatriates. Originality value — The study affirmed the critical importance of face-to-face interaction in knowledge transfer. The research also resulted in the development of a practical model and tool, which pulls together the broad range of factors that impact on knowledge transfer.

Conference report: Lights, Camera, Action : Spotlight on Tourism in the New Millennium. 31st Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association Conference.

The 31st TTRA conference was held in California’s San Fernando Valley, home of Hollywood and Burbank’s movie and television studios. The twin themes of Hollywood and the new Millennium promised and delivered “something old, yet something new”. The meeting offered a historical summary, not only of the year in review but also of many features of travel research since the first literature in the field appeared in the 1970s. Also, the millennium theme set the scene for some stimulating and forward thinking discussions. The Hollywood location offered an opportunity to ponder on the value of the movie-induced tourism for Los Angeles, at a time when Hollywood Boulevard was in the midst of a much needed redevelopment programme. Hollywood Chamber of Commerce speaker Oscar Arslanian acknowledged that the face of the famous district had become tired, and that its ability to continue to attract visitors in the future lay in redeveloping its past heritage. In line with the Hollywood theme a feature of the conference was a series of six special sessions with “Stars of Travel Research”. These sessions featured: Clare Gunn, Stanley Plog, Charles Gouldner, John Hunt, Brent Ritchie, Geoffrey Crouch, Peter Williams, Douglas Frechtling, Turgut Var, Robert Christie-Mill, and John Crotts. Delegates were indeed privileged to hear from many of the pioneers of tourism research. Clare Gunn, Charles Goeldner, Turgut Var and Stanley Plog, for example, traced the history of different aspects of the tourism literature, and in line with the millennium theme, offered some thought provoking discussion on the future challenges facing tourism. These included; the commodotisation of airlines and destinations, airport and traffic congestion, environment sustainability responsibility and the looming burst of the baby-boomer bubble. Included in the conference proceedings are four papers presented by five of the “Stars”. Brent Ritchie and Geoffrey Crouch discuss the critical success factors for destinations, Clare Gunn shares his concerns about tourism being a smokestack industry, Doug Frechtling provides forecasts of outbound travel from 20 countries, and Charles Gouldner, who has attended all 31 TTRA conferences, reflects on the changes that have taken place in tourism research over 35 years...

VAMP3 regulates podosome organisation in macrophages and together with Stx4/SNAP23 mediates adhesion, cell spreading and persistent migration

The ability of cells to adhere, spread and migrate is essential to many physiological processes, particularly in the immune system where cells must traffic to sites of inflammation and injury. By altering the levels of individual components of the VAMP3/Stx4/SNAP23 complex we show here that this SNARE complex regulates efficient macrophage adhesion, spreading and migration on fibronectin. During cell spreading this complex mediates the polarised exocytosis of VAMP3- positive recycling endosome membrane into areas of membrane expansion, where VAMP3's surface partner Q-SNARE complex Stx4/SNAP23 was found to accumulate. Lowering the levels of VAMP3 in spreading cells resulted in a more rounded cell morphology and most cells were found to be devoid of the typical ring-like podosome superstructures seen normally in spreading cells. In migrating cells lowering VAMP3 levels disrupted the polarised localisation of podosome clusters. The reduced trafficking of recycling endosome membrane to sites of cell spreading and the disorganised podosome localisation in migrating macrophages greatly reduced their ability to persistently migrate on fibronectin. Thus, this important SNARE complex facilitates macrophage adhesion, spreading, and persistent macrophage migration on fibronectin through the delivery of VAMP3-positive membrane with its cargo to expand the plasma membrane and to participate in organising adhesive podosome structures.

Scandals, public inquiries and health professional regulation

Since 1980 there has been an increasing incidence of the use of public inquiries as a process through which scandals raising patient safety and health care quality concerns can be subject to highly public scrutiny. The use of public inquiries and their impact on the governance of health or social systems, especially around issues of patient or client safety, has been examined by a number of commentators (Butler and Drakeford 2003, Masso and Eager 2009, Stanley and Manthorpe 2004, Walshe and Higgins 2002) but public inquiries into scandals in the health system also raise a question about the impact of these inquiries on public perceptions about the adequacy of the various mechanisms for health professional regulation...

Re/presenting readings of the indigenous literary terrain

In this study I investigate the spectrum of authoring, publishing and everyday reading of three texts - My Place (Morgan 1987), Jandamarra and the Bunuba Resistance (Pedersen and Woorunmurra 1995) and Carpentaria (Wright 2006). I have addressed this study within the field of production and consumption, utilising amongst others the work of Edward Said (1978, 1983) and Stanley Fish (1980). I locate this work within the holism of Kombu-merri philosopher, Mary Graham's 'Aboriginal Inquiry' (2008), which promotes self-reflexivity and a concern for others as central tenets of such inquiry. I also locate this work within a postcolonial framework and in recognition of the dynamic nature of that phenomenon I use Aileen MoretonRobinson's (2003) adoption of the active verb, "postcolonising"(38). In apprehending selected texts through the people who make them and who make meaning from them - authors, publishers and everyday readers, I interviewed members of each cohort within a framework that recognises the exercise of agency in their respective practices as well as the socio-historical contexts to such textual practices. Although my research design can be applied to other critical arrangements of texts, my interest here lies principally in texts that incorporate the subjects of Indigenous worldview and Indigenous experience; and in texts that are Indigenous authored or Indigenous co-authored.