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Equity & Social Justice

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Our work is underpinned by a commitment to enhancing social justice and inclusion through empowering individuals and their communities.

This theme focuses on the social dimensions of sustainable development. It is concerned with fostering transformative change that challenges structures of inequality and exclusion.

Gender and Just Transitions

The IGD is currently leading a project on 'just transitions' and its intersection with gender.

Just Transitions are a set of principles for addressing the world’s environmental and economic challenges, but what could a gender just transition look like?
Read more

Supported Initiatives

Determining children’s exposure to airborne pollution in the Pacific

DR ANDREW DANSIE

There are increasing rates of respiratory disease in Pacific communities, especially amongst children in Fiji and the Solomon Islands. In partnership with Fiji National University, University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology and the University of Oxford, UNSW has deployed air quality monitors to measure airborne particle concentrations. This data will be supplemented by data from school children who will wear personal air quality monitors. These measures will assist in determining concentrations of air pollutants within wet and dry seasons with implications. This work will inform policy responses to address respiratory issues in Fiji and the Solomon Islands.

National Human Rights Training and Capacity Building in Papua New Guinea

THE DIPLOMACY TRAINING PROGRAM

Working with civil society organisations, the United Nations and the University of Papua New Guinea, theÌýÌýis implementing a pilot program to train government officials with key international human rights, business and development frameworks. This program will address the negative impacts communities in Papua New Guinea experience as a result of business practice and will strengthen sector capacity in the region.

Controlling neglected tropical diseases in Fiji and the Solomon Islands

SCIENTIA PROFESSOR JOHN KALDOR

John and his team are working with national authorities to support research that assists in the control of neglected tropical diseases including scabies, trachoma, yaws and lymphatic filariasis in Fiji and Solomon Islands. The team is assisting to improve data collection to track disease occurrence andÌý to better control the diseases.

Reforming the Constitution for Peace in Myanmar

DR MELISSA CROUCH,ÌýPROFESSOR MARTIN KRYGIER, PROFESSOR THEUNIS ROUX

To assist Myanmar in making the transition from military rule to a democracy, Melissa and her team are working with Myanmar scholars and policy thinkers to consider how constitutional law and reform can achieve lasting peace. Together with Martin Krygier and Theunis Roux, Melissa has been helping train key legal stakeholders in Myanmar. In 2019, Melissa published herÌýbookÌýThe Constitution of MyanmarÌýin English and Burmese.

Partners in medical education in Myanmar

DR PETER HARRIS

Building on a new research partnership between the Kirby Institute and the University of Medicine 2 (UM2) in Myanmar, Peter and his team are working with UM2 academics to build local capacities in medical education and to co-develop a new medical curriculum. The next step is to implement both initiatives nationally, which will increase the quality of medical practitioner and ensure that high quality medical services can be provided across Myanmar.

Urban Planning and Informal Development in Yangon, Myanmar

DR JAYDE ROBERTS

Hlaingthayar is the largest informal settlement in Myanmar. It is currently facing displacement issues due to the New Yangon City development project. In partnership with local organisations Bedar Social Development Group and Another Development, Jayde is utilising an urban planning and participatory design process to address these issues. The team will focus on urbanism in Yangon through engaging young thinkers and activists in Myanmar to analyse laws and regulations on housing and urban development. The team is also making this information accessible to local communities through information dissemination and locally run workshops to improve local knowledge.

Improving Infectious Disease Management in Myanmar

THE KIRBY INSTITUTE

In partnership with clinicians from the University of Medicine 2 in Yangon, the Kirby InstituteÌýis evaluating how best to diagnose and treat tropical diseases in resource-limited settings. The focus is on simple, inexpensive interventions that demonstrably help patients and the communities they live in.

Sport for Change and Peace in Myanmar

DR ANNE BUNDE-BIROUSTE, DR TUN SHWE

Through Football United, Anne and Tun have brought together academia, development agencies and vulnerable communities to achieve positive social change through football. As a platform for mentoring and supporting local future leaders, Football United has established a community centre in Hpa-an to serve as a training site and regional hub for social activism.

Training university teachers in Uganda

PROFESSOR PREM RAMBURUTH

Prem leads a transformative academic development project at Gulu University in Uganda. The project involves the training of academic staff in higher education strategies to enhance the quality of learning and teaching at Gulu University.Ìý Prem, and UNSW colleagues Dr Alec Thornton and Vinoaj Vijeyakumaar, have delivered a number of professional development activities at Gulu University in recent years, including a ‘train the trainers’ course for lead teachers who will be enabled to upskill junior staff across disciplines, as well as research skills development and Moodle online teaching workshops.Ìý

Strengthening engagement with engineering education in Myanmar

DR IAIN SKINNER

In partnership with the University of Technology Sydney, Yangon Technological University and Myanmar Engineering Council, Iain is working to strengthen engineering teaching capacity at Yangon Technological University. This project builds on a series of workshops held to improve industry linkages with Myanmar engineering universities. Better engagement with industry will improve outcomes for practical learning and teaching outcomes.

Improving the health of women and children in Uganda

PROFESSOR ROBYN RICHMOND

Robyn and her team are helping advance the health of women and children in Northern Uganda.Ìý In partnership with Gulu University, they have surveyed women on reproductive health and domestic violence, published results, and together with Gulu and the Ugandan Women’s Health Initiative, they established new cancer screening services at local health centres. More recently, Robyn and her team have been exploring the benefits, challenges and possibilities of online teaching with their Gulu University counterparts.

Supporting the Next Generation of Optometrists in Uganda

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR ISABELLE JALBERT

In partnership with Makerere University, Uganda, and the Brian Holden Vision Institute, Isabelle alongside colleagues and students from the UNSW School of Optometry and Vision Science, are supporting the delivery of Makerere University’s Optometry program.

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