Professor James Arvanitakis
James Arvanitakis is an Adjunct Professor at the Institute. Previously he held position as the Pro Vice Chancellor (Research and Graduate Studies) at Western Sydney University. James was also the founding Head of The Academy at Western Sydney University that received an Australian Financial Review higher education excellence award (2016) and the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue Excellence in Education Award (2017).
James is internationally recognised for his innovative teaching style and was the recipient of the Prime Minister’s University Teacher of the Year Award in 2012 and an Eminent Researcher Award from the Australia India Education Council in 2015. In 2017 he was appointed a Research Fellow of the Australian India Institute and sits on the Australian Indian Education Working Party.
A former economist and free market advocate, James changed his position after witnessing child and indentured labour. After 9 years of working in finance, he has since worked with a cross-section of organisations across Australia, Asia, Pacific and Europe including Oxfam Hong Kong, Aid/Watch and Friends of the Earth (France).
His research areas include citizenship, resilience, piracy and the future of universities. James has authored over 100 articles in his latest book is an edited collection titled Teaching and Learning in Higher Education in India and Australia (2019) published by Routledge.
James is a regular media commentator appearing on ABCNews24. He tweets at @jarvanitakis (opens in a new window).
Qualifications
- PhD, 2006, History and Philosophy and Environmental Studies, University of New South Wales, Australia
- Graduate Diploma (Environmental Policy), 2000, University of New South Wales, Australia
- Graduate Diploma (Course Work - Social Movement Theory and Economics), 1999, University of New South Wales, Australia
- Certificate in Financial Markets, 1995, Securities Institute of Australia
- BA (Hons) Applied Economic Geography, 1990, University of New South Wales, Australia
Research Focus
- Citizenship
- Resilience
- Piracy
- Trust
- Hope
- The Future of Universities
Selected Awards and Recognition
- 2019 Fulbright Fellowship as the Milward L. Simpson Visiting Professor – University of Wyoming.
- As the Founding Head of the Academy received:
- Australian Financial Review higher education excellence award (2016)
- Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue Excellence in Education Award (2017).
- Eminent Researcher Award from the Australia India Education Council (2015)
- Prime Minister’s University Teacher of the Year Award (2012)
Selected Publications
Arvanitakis, J., 2016, From Despair to Hope, Penguin, Sydney
Arvanitakis, J. and Hornsby (eds.), 2016, The Citizen Scholar and the Future of Higher Education, Palgrave, London.
Arvanitakis, J, (ed.), 2015, Sociologic: A sociological analysis of everyday life, Oxford University Press, Melbourne
Arvanitakis, J. and Hodge, B., 2015, “Engagement and Citizenship: Universities in the Contemporary World”, The Citizen in the 21st Century, Interdisciplinary Press, Oxford. Pp.191-200.
Arvanitakis J, Sidoti E, 2011, ‘The Politics of Change - Where to for Young People and Politics’ in In Their Own Hands: Can Young People Change Australia?, Lucas Walsh and Rosalyn Black, Melbourne, Australia, pp 11-19
Keith Heggart, James Arvanitakis, Ingrid Matthews (2018) “Civics and citizenship education: What have we learned and what does it mean for the future of Australian democracy?”, Education, Citizenship and Social Justice,
Arvanitakis J, Fredriksson M, 2016, “Commons, piracy, and the crisis of property”, TripleC, vol 14, no 1, pp 132-144
Fredriksson M, Arvanitakis J, 2015, Piracy, property and the crisis of democracy, JeDEM: eJournal of eDemocracy and Open Government, vol 7, no 1, pp 134-150
Arvanitakis, J. and Matthews, I, 2014, “Bridging the Divides: An Interdisciplinary Perspective On The Teaching-Research Nexus and Community Engagement, Adelaide Law Review, Volume 35 Number 1, pp. 35-53.
Arvanitakis, J., 2013, ‘Massification and the large lecture theatre: from panic to excitement’, Higher Education: The International Journal of Higher Education Research, Vol. 66, No. 5., November.
Access All Publications
- Western Sydney Staff Profile
- Academia.edu.au Profile (opens in a new window)
- Google Scholar Profile (opens in a new window)
- James Arvanitakis' Website (opens in a new window)
