About the Challenging Racism Project

The Challenging Racism Project is the leading national research program on racism and anti-racism in Australia. It is a highly successful research collective based in the School of Social Sciences and Psychology at Western Sydney University. The Challenging Racism Project has a commitment to principles of social justice and quality empirical research. It has global esteem for its research impact in countering racism and improving community relations. Based in Western Sydney, one of the most culturally diverse regions in Australia, the Challenging Racism Project is ideally situated to provide topical, timely and engaged research on issues concerning cultural, religious and ethnic diversity.

Established in 2002, the Challenging Racism Project supports a new generation of anti-racism researchers and practitioners and partners with government, non-government and community organisations that have a shared outlook on intergroup relations and anti-racism initiatives. Our research empowers communities to build resilience and deploy strategies to challenge racism, provides analysis and commentary on issues of national importance, and is used to inform, educate and train individuals and communities on positive interventions for culturally diverse societies.

Our research themes

• Attitudes towards cultural diversity, race and racism
• Experiences of racism and their impact
• Anti-racism strategies
• Cyber-racism
• Islamophobia
• Violent extremism

Our partners and projects

The Challenging Racism Project has established strong connections with community and research partners. Recent examples of these partnerships include:

• A training package aimed at those vulnerable to violent extremism, with leading national anti-racism organisation All Together Now.
• Investigating the strength of NSW Police community engagement programs with the Muslim Community in Australia, with NSW Police.
• Investigating the challenges of providing local-level services for countering violent extremism, with the Federal Attorney General's Department.
• Promoting intercultural understanding through student exchange programs, with the City Country Alliance of Schools.
• Measuring the extent and variation of racist attitudes and behaviours in Australia. These results were used to inform the SBS documentary, Is Australia Racist?
• Developing the award winning Everyday Racism App, a world-first mobile app that challenges understandings of racism, with All Together Now.

Australian Research Council grants

The Challenging Racism Project has received over $2 million in prestigious Australian Research Council grants. Current and recent grants examine: ethnic discrimination in the rental housing market; prosocial behaviours among school students in response to racism and bullying; the production, prevalence and exposure to, and strategies for responding to cyber-racism; teacher understandings of multiculturalism and anti-racism education; regionally-appropriate anti-racism strategies; and comprehensive national data on the nature of racism in Australia.

Policy impact

The Challenging Racism Project makes significant contributions to policy related to racism, multiculturalism and cultural diversity. We have made submissions to a number of Government Inquiry's, including the Inquiry into Freedom of Speech, the Inquiry into Strengthening Multiculturalism and the Inquiry into Strengthening Australian Citizenship. We work closely with government departments to ensure policy is backed up by rigorous academic research. Recent engagements include working with the Department of Education and the Attorney General's Department. We also make policy contributions to the work of the Australian Human Rights Commission.