 | Dear ~~first_name~~,
The arrival of the winter brings bad news from about the HASS disciplines from every side. The most recent round of cuts to be foreshadowed is from Macquarie University, including 42 full-time equivalent academic roles in the Faculty of Arts, with deep cuts being proposed to ancient history, archaeology, creative arts, music, politics and international relations and sociology. This change in management plan comes on top of the cuts to languages announced last year. As CHASS President, I wrote to the Vice Chancellor, Professor Bruce Dowton, calling on the University not to proceed with these cuts, and pointing out that these represent core fields in HASS, long-standing areas of strength for Macquarie, and critical contributions to national education and research capacity in the humanities, arts and social sciences.
The proposed cuts, like those at the Australian Catholic University in 2023-24, have implications for the entire HASS sector in Australia – undermining our capacity to participate meaningfully in regional and global environments and the international reputation of Australian universities including their capacity for future international staff and student recruitment. We also pointed out that data about HASS graduate outcomes simply does not support Macquarie’s defence of these plans: ‘While we are preserving traditional humanities subjects such as history, philosophy and English literature, we are at the same time offering majors and courses that are focused on employability and meeting areas of student interest and demand.’ (Guardian, 13 June 2025). It is disturbing that this myth of the unemployable Arts graduate is still being perpetuated in high places.
HASS graduates will be critical to Australia’s future, working alongside graduates in other fields such as the sciences which are also to be cut. In a world where democracies are under dire threat and disinformation undermines public rationality, HASS graduates develop the skills to think critically, analyse complex information, communicate effectively, and build these capacities in others. The HASS disciplines also have a wider cultural role, in reminding us of what it means to be human in a world where AI provides both threats and opportunities for human betterment. The HASS disciplines will play a critical role in navigating these challenges.
More cuts are ahead, including at my own institution, the Australian National University. CHASS has a critical role to play in partnering with like-minded organisations such as the Australian Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, the Australian Academy of Humanities, and the Australasian Council of Deans of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (DASSH) is advocating for the HASS disciplines to university administrations, politicians and public.
Frank Bongiorno AM FRHistS FASSA FAHA
CHASS President
| The Paul Bourke Awards for Early Career Research
The Paul Bourke Awards for Early Career Research honour Australians in the early part of their career who have achieved excellence in scholarship in one or more fields of the social sciences.
Anyone can submit a nomination however each nomination must be supported by two Academy Fellows: one named as proposer and one as seconder. The proposer and seconder may choose to complete and submit the nomination, or it can be completed by someone else, including the nominee. The Nomination also requires:
- A nomination form setting out the case for the nominated scholar.
- The name, position and email address of two referees who have agreed to provide a referee’s report in support of the nomination by the due date. Referees should be scholars in the nominee’s field of study. Referees need not be Fellows of the Academy.
- A full CV for the nominee.
- Evidence of any claimed career interruptions.
Spark Grants
With the support of their sponsors, the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia is excited to announce a new grant program, commencing in 2025, that will award grants of up to $1,000 to “spark” new ideas and diverse Social Sciences Week events to reach more audiences across Australia (total program funding available is $10,000, excl GST).
Application deadline: June 30. Read on...
| | HASS Scholarships & Fellowships | 2026 Forrest Fellowships
The Forrest Fellowships aim to attract early-career researchers from around the world to work in Perth, Western Australia. Applicants should be leading their field of research and be driven by a desire to solve the world’s grand challenges.
The Fellowships are aimed at those who have completed their PhD in the last two years (conferred from 1 January 2023) or who will complete it in 2025.
| Congress
2025 Congress of HASS
CHASS
The University of Melbourne
Monday 24 - Friday 28 November 2025
SAVE THE DATE
Sociology in Action! Wellbeing, Policy, and Activism in Times of Crises and Change
TASA
The University of Melbourne
Monday 24 - Thursday 27 November 2025
CSAA Conference 2025
Cultural Studies Association of Australia
The University of Melbourne
Wednesday 26 - Friday 28 November 2025
Abstract Submission Deadline: July 25th.
The ANZAMEMS 15th Biennial Conference: ‘Possibilities’
ANZAMEMS
The University of Melbourne
Wednesday 3 - Friday 5 December 2025
Online Seminar
NEW: Automating Everyday Life
Newcastle Youth Studies Center
Wednesday 30 July 2025, 3pm
NEW: New Possibilities: Young People and Democratic Renewal
Newcastle Youth Studies Center
Wednesday 20 August 2025
NEW: The Political Dynamics of the Weird World of Wellness
Newcastle Youth Studies Center
Wednesday 24 September 2025
NEW: The Materialities of Inequality: Mould, Acid and Glitter
Newcastle Youth Studies Center
Wednesday 8 October 2025
NEW: The False Divide between Nature and Culture
Newcastle Youth Studies Center
Wednesday 5 November 2025
NEW: 'Your mum didn't take selfies': Youth and image cultures on social media
Newcastle Youth Studies Center
Wednesday 19 November 2025
Seminar
NEW: Habit’s Pathways: Guiding Repetition, Governing Conduct, Contested Interruptions
Australian National University
Monday 21 July 2025
| All of the below articles are available on open access:
Shiva Chandra, Alex Broom, Damien Ridge, Katherine Kenny, Michelle Peterie, Jennifer Broom, Bridget Haire, Lise Lafferty, Carla Treloar, Stephanie Raymond, Catriona Bradshaw, Tanya Applegate, Rebecca Guy, GBTQ+ safe sex entanglements: Finding the bacterial in the age of resistant STIs and prevention innovation, Social Science & Medicine, Volume 379, 2025, 118162, ISSN 0277-9536, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118162
Kerryn Drysdale, Nicola S Creagh, Claire Nightingale, Lisa J Whop, Angela Kelly-Hanku, Beyond words: operationalizing inclusive language in Australian cervical screening health promotion policy, Health Promotion International, Volume 40, Issue 3, June 2025, daaf058, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daaf058
Hamilton, S., Jones, L., Penny, M., Pell, C., Maslen, S., Michie, C., Mutch, R., O’Donnell, M., Shepherd, C. and Farrant, B. (2025), Culture, Connection and Care: The Role of Institutional Justice Capital for Enhancing the Wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children in Out-Of-Home Care. Aust J Soc Issues. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajs4.70011
Ryan, S., Charter, R., Ussher, J., Perich, T., Power, R., & Sperring, S. (2025). Navigating Menopause at Work: A Rapid Review and Narrative Synthesis of Psycho-Educational and Behavioral Interventions to Support Menopausal Women in the Workplace. Women’s Reproductive Health, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/23293691.2025.2495975
Wolfinger, E., Hanckel, B., & Huppatz, K. (2025). Anticipating gendered futures? Young adults’ financial practices in relationships and work-family plans. Journal of Gender Studies, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/09589236.2025.2513442
Strömbäck, J., Johansson, S., Broda, E., Espeland, E., & Ekström, H. (2025). Addressing a Blind Spot in Selective Exposure Research: Perceptions of Media Bias and Their Effects on Mainstream Media Use. A Mediation Analysis. The International Journal of Press/Politics. https://doi.org/10.1177/19401612251337814
Kerryn Drysdale, Deborah Lupton, Immuno-biographies of people living with blood-borne viruses: a timeline interview and narrative case study approach, SSM - Qualitative Research in Health, Volume 8, 2025, 100575, ISSN 2667-3215, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmqr.2025.100575
Jennifer Power, Ruby Grant, Tinonee Pym, Percy Gurtler, Kerryn Drysdale, Julie Mooney-Somers, Beyond dental dams: a critical review of recent research on lesbian, bisexual and queer women's sexual health, Social Science & Medicine, Volume 380, 2025, 118249, ISSN 0277-9536, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118249
Cabiles, B. S. (2025). Difficult funds of knowledge (DFoK) in educating for social justice: bringing ‘dark funds of knowledge’ and ‘difficult knowledge’ into conversation. Critical Studies in Education, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/17508487.2025.2514282
Cheng, J. E., O’Shea, M., Peel, N., Rashid, K., & Maxwell, H. (2025). A labour of love: Muslim women carving out belonging in blue spaces. International Review for the Sociology of Sport. https://doi.org/10.1177/10126902251342595
Tang, M. (2025). Gaining insights into employability capitals: experiences of Chinese international graduates in the Australian labor market. Higher Education Research & Development, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2025.2515215
Scarlett Smout, Nicola C. Newton, Siobhan O’Dean, Katrina E. Champion, Lauren A. Gardner, All things being equal? Longitudinal patterns of mental disorder symptoms and associations with key social determinants in a large cohort of Australian adolescents, Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 2025, 100243, ISSN 1326-0200, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anzjph.2025.100243
Patulny, R., & Petrolo, B. (2024). Are we softly constructing more inclusive males? An examination of men’s interpersonal emotion work for children and partners. Emotions and Society (published online ahead of print 2024). Retrieved Jun 25, 2025, from https://doi.org/10.1332/26316897Y2024D000000047
Winarnita, M., Yang, F., Saldin, M., Weng, E., Haw, A., Nilan, P., & Rastiya, A. (2025). Indonesian–Australian media during an infodemic: fostering trust and social resilience through translation as care. Media International Australia. https://doi.org/10.1177/1329878X251342620
| A new book called "Housing, Heritage and Urbanisation in the Middle East and North Africa", written by Lilia Makhloufi, explores the interconnection between housing, heritage and urbanisation. Bringing together architects, archaeologists, urban sociologists, urban designers, urban planners and landscape architects, this multi-authored and interdisciplinary volume presents diverse case studies from the Middle East and North Africa, shedding light on the past, present and future of residential spaces.
The full text can be accessed here. | | HASS Employment Opportunities |
NEW: Research Fellow, Research School of Social Sciences
Part Time
Australian National University
NEW: Lecturer - International and Political Studies
Full Time
University of New South Wales
NEW: Lecturer / Senior Lecturer / Associate Professor in Design (Education Focused)
Full Time
University of Sydney
NEW: Lecturer in Urbanism
Full Time
University of Sydney
NEW: Lecturer in Urbanism
Full Time
University of Sydney
NEW: Lecturer / Senior Lecturer / Associate
Full Time
University of Queensland
NEW: Lecturer (Anthropology)
Full Time
The University of Western Australia
NEW: Senior Research Fellow or Research Associate/Fellow
Full Time
University of Nottingham
| | Call For Abstracts | CRP-ARHRI Conference | The Western Sydney University Challenging Racism Project (CRP) and University of Melbourne Anti-Racism Hallmark Research Initiative (ARHRI) is holding a cross-disciplinary one-day conference on Friday, 7 November 2025 at Western Sydney University, Parramatta City campus. The conference will be free to attend.
This event will bring together researchers and practitioners who are undertaking work related to anti-racism. This will be an opportunity for us all to learn more about each other’s work, build networks, and explore the potential for future collaborations.
Please submit your abstract using this link by 1 August 2025.
A registration link to attend the conference will be circulated separately, closer to the date of the conference. | We encourage you to support the HASS sector by sharing details about your discipline/department via this newsletter. No news is too small of too big. Any mention of HASS is of value to our sector and we plan on continuing to extend the reach of our newsletter overtime. Please submit all content to CHASS Digital Publications via digitalpublications@chass.org.au . Suggested content includes, but is not limited to:
- Awards and Prizes
- Call for Papers (journals/conferences)
- Call for Book Chapters
- Competitions
- Discipline/Department news
- Industry connections
- Funding Opportunities
- Job and/or scholarship opportunities (these will also be listed on our publicly searchable website directory)
- Publications, especially those with free full access
- Social sciences week events
- Other upcoming events
- Submissions
- Social gatherings
| | Increasing our Newsletter Reach | You can help increase our newsletter's reach by sharing the below link with your friends and colleagues. The link will enable them to be added to the mailing list for our newsletter.
| Supporting CHASS 2025 Congress of HASS: | Contact CHASS Digital Publications:
digitalpublications@chass.org.au | |