RegNet Annual Report 2018
Welcome to the School of Regulation and Global Governance (RegNet).
The shifting political and economic sands that prevail throughout the world provide an important window of opportunity to collectively change the status quo towards a society where communities are able to live with dignity, in good health and in balance with nature. Rebalancing the global system depends on a collective vision, the agency of concerned citizens, and the ability to reimagine the use of regulatory powers. In a hyper-connected world, there are many partners who can work together to create hope and change; this is what we care about at RegNet. We are a group of scholars and practitioners united by our concerns for social justice, environmental sustainability and human wellbeing through questions of regulation and governance. We come from many disciplines including anthropology, criminology, international relations, law, political science, psychology, public health, public policy, and sociology. Researching or studying at RegNet is an opportunity to think big, ask important social questions, broaden horizons and make connections.
2018 was another successful year for RegNet. We won four highly competitive Australian Research Council (ARC) grants and two grants from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), amongst other awards. Three of our PhD students were awarded Australian Government Endeavour scholarships to enrich their research by spending time at an acclaimed university overseas.
Fourteen of RegNet’s existing projects are supported through funding from the Australian Research Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council. This year also saw the continuation of our exciting collaborative projects with DFAT on law and justice in the Philippines, and overcoming sorcery accusation related violence in Papua New Guinea. We also commenced a new project with DFAT on negotiating and reforming investment treaties in the Asia Pacific region. We always welcome new opportunities to collaborate with government, business and non-governmental organisations – please do get in touch.
This year we went through an intense and thorough review process with an external panel of high ranking academics. The process was important for us as a school to identify and celebrate our many strengths as well as areas for improvement and new opportunities. We were extremely proud to receive a glowing review from the panel which highlighted our interdisciplinarity, collegiality and the quality and impactfulness of our collective work. Another exciting activity during the year was the showcasing of our interdisciplinary outlook with our popular weekly seminar series, and particularly with our flagship Conversations series this year, Disruptions: Regulation & Governance. The series brought together researchers and practitioners to explore this theme of disruption and reflect on a range of contemporary regulatory and governance approaches dealing with health equity and public policy, energy policy, capitalism and institutions, and technology and trade in Asia and the Pacific.
In 2018 we launched our two new postgraduate programs: the Master of Criminology, Justice and Regulation and the Master of Public Policy in Regulation, both of which are taught in collaboration with experts from across ANU. RegNet’s long-running PhD program has continued to be hugely successful having generated many accomplished academics and practitioners. We celebrated five PhD graduands this year all of whom joined us from countries outside Australia.
People come from all over the world to study and undertake research at RegNet. Our students will benefit from exposure to our many visiting scholars from renowned universities, and from visiting practitioners working in key government agencies, NGOs and civil society groups in Australia and the Asia Pacific region.
Our 2018 Annual Report takes a quick tour through the enormous contributions our staff and students have made to the public debate around key policy and regulatory issues here in Australia, the Asia Pacific region and elsewhere. Thank you for your ongoing interest in the work of RegNet.
Professor Sharon Friel
Director, School of Regulation and Global Governance (RegNet)