SELECTED PAST PROJECTS
‘In Our Language: Community Media & Migrants' Social Resilience in Times of Crisis’
Project team: Dr Monika Winarnita (University of Melbourne), Dr Enqi Weng, Prof. Pam Nilan, Dr Melathi Saldin (Deakin University), Dr Ashleigh Haw (University of Canberra).
Funding: The Alfred Deakin Institute ‘Mobility, Diversity and Multiculturalism’ Research Stream Funding
This research project aims to investigate the critical role that community language media play especially in times of crisis in garnering the trust of Australia’s culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities, with a focus on the Indonesian community. We interviewed media producers and key community members from the Indonesian community to understand how language-specific news reported the global pandemic and how government directives on containment measures are disseminated and received in the community through social media interaction.
Status: 1 paper published. Project completed.
‘Mapping social services in multicultural societies’
Chief Investigators: Distinguished Prof. Fethi Mansouri and A/Prof. Matteo Vergani (Deakin University)
Project team: Dr Enqi Weng (Research Fellow), Dr Praveena Rajkobal and Dr Rouven Link (Research Assistant)
Funding: Australian Research Council Linkage scheme
This research aims to investigate a shift in service delivery from community-specific to mainstream organisations, as informed by Australian state and federal government policies. Preliminary consultations with Partner Organisations (POs) Australian Muslim Women’s Centre for Human Rights, the Victorian Multicultural Commission and the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria in the service provision for Australia’s culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) clients suggests that this is the direction undertaken by Australian government, which is visible yet under-researched in terms of its consequences and impact on the wellbeing and socio-economic outlook of CALD communities (ECCV, 2011). In terms of service provision, we will focus on the areas of health, social (e.g. housing) and economic (e.g. employment and job training) in this research.
Status: Project completed. Website and all outputs: www.multiculturalsocialservices.com
‘Religious diversity in Australia: Strategies to maintain social cohesion’
Chief Investigators: Prof. Douglas Ezzy (University of Tasmania), Prof. Gary Bouma (Monash University), Prof. Greg Barton, Dr Anna Halafoff (Deakin University), Prof. Lori Beaman (University of Ottawa) and Prof. Robert Jackson (Stockholm University)
Project team: Dr Rebecca Banham, Dr Danielle Campbell (Research Fellows; University of Tasmania) and Dr Enqi Weng (Research Fellow; Deakin University).
Funding: Australian Research Council Linkage
The research aims to make Australia safer through identifying constructive responses to religious diversity. Incidents of discrimination and violence on the basis of religion are escalating. Programs that respond to religious diversity in local institutions are key to preventing social dislocation and violence. The project will identify strategies for responding to religious diversity in the institutions of education, policing, migration, and in legislation. It will evaluate the outcomes of these strategies in terms of their contribution to social cohesion and the prevention of violence. This will benefit communities and organisations by providing practical strategies they can immediately use to make Australia safer.
Status: Project completed.