Who we are

The last couple of years have really shown me that you can achieve whatever you want if you put your mind to it. Meeting mentors at Flinders gave me the motivation to pursue this path in accounting. Flinders gives you lots of opportunities and it's really important to take every one.

I am working on several exciting projects at present. One is looking at the role of guns in crime. This involves interviews with convicted gun criminals regarding how they acquire guns, how they use them, and their role in different kinds of serious crime. Two other projects are in the cyber-crime area. One is looking at how adolescents who use the Internet then drift into crime. We are following a cohort of secondary students over four years to see how their Internet uses change in that time. Another project is with some UK colleagues, looking at the problem of ransomware. What I enjoy about criminological research is the ability you have to ‘get your hands dirty’ by combining theoretical knowledge with field work when looking at real-world problems of crime.

As a mature aged student who graduated over 20 years ago, the Bachelor of Government and Public Management has given me a second chance at a new life. I am now in a high achiever’s program gaining invaluable experience in a government department on a real project with the opportunity to conduct myself, much like a consultant. What was once a scary dream is a fantastic university experience on my way to my new career and brand new, educated outlook on life!

I have been an academic at Flinders University since 1992, teaching law students and researching the theory of law. Flinders University has been a great location for engaging freely with new ideas, and allowing some quiet time for writing and reflection. My next project will be about the ways in which property law is changing in response to environmental demands.

For me International Relations is the intersection between politics, history, culture and languages and in this increasingly globalised world that we live in this study is extremely important.  At Flinders we have such a large number of internationally recognised experts in different fields as well as opportunities such as the Flinders University Washington Internship Program, where I was lucky enough to intern with the US Congressman Jim McDermott. This really consolidated my learnings.

What attracted me to coming to Flinders was that Tonsley is transformation in action. I have been talking for decades about the importance of disciplines working together in support of industrial transformation. Tonsley has to be one of the most inspiring locations for this I have seen in the last decade. I have found a new workplace ‘home’ at the site, in Flinders University’s $120 million advanced technology and research building that offers a new direction for engineering, business and work in the 21st century. It’s a fitting workplace for someone who has helped lead Australia through the decline of its car industry, providing pointers to a new future for work.

I study the practice of human rights within the international political system and its changing forms and meanings - such as the new rights regime in our region, Southeast Asia. My focus is on controversial rights, such as those to do with gender and sexuality, looking at what they tell us about complex political relations at the global level. Flinders’ strong institutional commitment to social justice makes it a natural environment for rights based research both locally and internationally.

My research investigates best practice climate change policy responses and how governments are influenced and encouraged to improve public policy in this area, in Australia and our Asia Pacific region. I like that working at Flinders gives me the opportunity to work with NGO and public sector leaders from around the world to work towards a better, safer climate.