Members
| Dr Peter BanselPeter is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Social Sciences, and a member of both the Young and Resilient Research Centre and Sexualities and Genders Research, a strand of the SoSS Centre for Human Rights and Diversity. His interdisciplinary research is characterised by three broad interests: neoliberalism, education and policy analysis; biography, narrative and experiences of difference and diversity, and; identity, digital life, social worlds and wellbeing, with a specific focus on young people. His work on digital life and social worlds is concerned with the relationships between technology and identity and between material objects, practices and language in forming and transforming lived experience, especially as related to questions of individual and collective wellbeing. |
 | Dr Valentina BaúDr Valentina Baú is a Senior Research Fellow at Western Sydney University. Her work investigates the use of the media and communication in international development, with a focus on areas affected by violent conflicts. Valentine’s experience involves the implementation of both research and media projects with victims and perpetrators of conflict, displaced people, refugees and people living in extreme poverty. Valentina has collaborated with international NGOs, the United Nations and the Italian Development Cooperation, and has worked in Africa and Asia. |
| Dr Michelle CatanzaroMichelle co-leads our Places and Platforms research stream, where she explores questions surrounding place and identity utilising participatory, digital and visual methods. She is a lecturer in Design, Visual Communication within the School of Humanities and Communication Arts. Her research focuses on visual communication, creative methodologies and cultural geography. |
 | Dr Shiva ChandraDr Shiva Chandra is a Research Fellow at the Sydney Centre for Healthy Societies, the University of Sydney. He uses creative and innovative methods to investigate subjectivity and how individuals relate to their social worlds. His work explores personal life, young people’s experiences, sexuality, gender, race, and decolonisation. He is particularly interested in how people think about relationships and how they live out these attachments. Shiva also explores how scholarship can sit at the intersection of academia and community development, with the aim of improving people’s lives. He believes academic work carries a social responsibility to give back to others. |
| Dr Jenna CondieJenna is a a School-based Research Fellow with the Young and Resilient Research Centre and Senior Lecturer in Digital Research & Online Social Analysis in the Social of Social Sciences, and a Curriculum Champion with the 21C Curriculum Project at Western Sydney University. Her interdisciplinary research traverses critical psychology, geography, and technology studies. Jenna’s research is concerned with what people and places are becoming with digital technologies. Current projects focus on women’s safety, digital geographies of fear, and equitable mobilities. Since joining Western, Jenna has been working across Schools to produce new curricula that enables students to work at the intersections of technology and society. |
| Associate Professor Louise CrabtreeLouise's research focuses on the social, ecological and economic sustainability of community-driven housing developments in Australia; on housing innovation in practice and policy; on complex adaptive systems theory in urban contexts; and on property rights, institutional design and democracy. |
| Associate Professor Ann DadichAnn is a registered psychologist, a full member of the Australian Psychological Society, and a Justice of the Peace in NSW. She has accumulated considerable expertise in health service management, notably knowledge translation. This encompasses scholarship on the processes through which different knowledges coalesce to promote quality care. This is demonstrated by her publishing record; the grants she has secured; and the awards, received. She holds editorial appointments with several academic journals; she is the Deputy Director of the SPHERE Knowledge Translation Strategic Platform; and she chairs the ANZAM Health Management and Organisation Conference Stream and its Special Interest Group. Additionally, A/Prof. Dadich supervises doctoral candidates and teaches undergraduate units on change management, innovation, creativity, and organisational behaviour. |
| Dr Milissa DeitzMilissa is a senior lecturer in digital media and creative writing. She is a novelist and former journalist. Milissa’s book Watch This Space: The Future of Australian Journalism (2010) was published by Cambridge University Press. Her novel Bloodlust and non-fiction title My Life As A Side Effect are both published by Random House. Her scholarly interests include grief, identity and family; voice and the marginalised within digital storytelling (The Right To Know: 100 Years of the Australian Red Cross International Tracing Service, Immigration Museum, Melbourne 2015); and young people, wellbeing and technology (www.invisiblecity.org.au). Milissa’s current research is focused on children and young people in foster-care: she is working on an app to support belonging and identity. |
| Associate Professor Nida DensonNida leads our Learning and Work research stream. Nida is an Associate Professor in the School of Social Sciences and Psychology (SSAP) and a member of the Challenging Racism Project (CRP). Her research focuses on young people from underrepresented minority groups (e.g., from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, migrant youth, refugees, sexuality and gender diverse youth) in a variety of contexts. She is interested in the factors that improve or hinder their well-being, development, and participation and engagement. She has worked collaboratively with a number of community organisations such as Twenty10, ACON, and Great Lakes for Peace and Development International to address issues of local, national and international importance. Her past and current projects examine issues of difference, diversity, equity, safety, and well-being. |
 | Dr Luigi Di MartinoLuigi is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the Young and Resilient Research Centre. His research investigates the use of social media in public and political communication in everyday life, with a focus on developing and theorising ethical online listening and monitoring approaches through social media analysis. Other areas of interest include public diplomacy, online political engagement, public and political communication on social media, and data ethics. |
| Professor Kevin DunnKevin is a leading researcher in the geographies of racism and anti-racism, immigration and settlement, Islam in Australia, and local government and multiculturalism. He has championed local anti-racism, bystander activism and online action, as a means to address racism in direct, relevant and more contemporary ways. Kevin’s research has highlighted the culturally and spatially uneven distribution of citizenship in Australia. As a leader on the Challenging Racism Project, Dunn has developed and lead Australian Research Council funded projects that have generated comprehensive databases on racism and anti-racism, and operationalised novel concepts, such as Anglo privilege, belief in ‘race’, and bystander responses. |
| Dr Catharine FlemingCatharine co-leads our Participation and Engagement research stream. She is a Lecturer in Public Health in the School of Health Science. Dr Fleming has research and professional experience is in public health nutrition, paediatric nutrition, infant feeding, oncology and chronic disease management. Dr Fleming has research experience in mixed-methods, clinical and public health research methodologies covering quantitative, qualitative and data linkage studies. This experience has also involved working with families, children and population-based data in both the paediatric nutrition and oncology field in a variety of clinical and community settings. Dr Fleming has a PhD in paediatric nutrition/dietetics and over 12 years’ experience in paediatric nutrition relating to infant/child feeding and childhood obesity. |
| Dr Benjamin HanckelBenjamin is a Vice Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow. Benjamin’s work examines youth health and wellbeing, social inequalities in health, and social change. His current research explores the design and use of digital technologies for health, as well as the ‘real world’ settings of public health interventions, particularly in relation to the lived experiences of young people, including LGBTIQ+ youth. Benjamin is a convenor of The British Sociological Association (BSA) Youth Study Group, and a convenor of the LGBTQI Cluster within the Health Systems Global (HSG) SHAPES thematic group. He also holds affiliate positions at King's College London (KCL) and the University of Tasmania (UTAS). |
 | Dr Alex HawkeyDr Hawkey is a Research Fellow at the THRI, Western Sydney University. Alex works at the intersection of critical public health and cultural enquiry to explore inequities in sexual and reproductive health experienced by marginalised groups of women, particularly migrant and refugee women. Her areas of research interest are fertility and contraception, sexuality, sexual violence, menstruation and menopause. Alex uses participatory research approaches to ensure co-design of research projects and broader health interventions. She is also bringing new perspectives to women’s sexual and reproductive health through the adoption of arts-based research methods, including body mapping and photovoice. |
| Professor Phillipa HayPhillipa is an academic psychiatrist who is recognised internationally for her expertise in reducing the personal and public health burden of eating disorders and the mental health of people with a high body weight. Her research aims to develop a better understanding of eating disorders to reduce the individual, family and community burden. |
| Dr Stephen HealyStephen is a Senior Research Fellow at ICS. His research has concentrated on the relationship between economy, subjectivity and the enactment of new econo-socialities exploring various topics: health care reform policy, cooperative and regional development, and the solidarity economy movement. |
| Associate Professor Rachel HenderyRachel co-leads our Intergener8 Living Lab research stream. She is Associate Professor of Digital Humanities in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts. She is passionate about building relationships between academia and broader publics, with a history of research and engagement around hackathons, museums, and school engagement. A linguist by training, she has a number of research projects that combine digital platforms and co-research with community members, in particular projects relating to language, data visualisation, mapping, simulation, and virtual reality. |
 | Dr Sky HugmanSky has extensive research experience in the area of young people, sexuality and gender equity issues. She researches the flows of power, affect and epistemological assumptions in the creation of knowledge with a focus on the role of reflexivity, resistance and the imaginary in the generation of alternative knowledge production spaces. Other interests include network representation and theory, and the use of natural language mapping software for text analytics and network analysis. She is the managing editor of the Australian Journal of Sociology. |
 | Dr Kate HuppatzKate Huppatz is an Associate Professor in Sociology at Western Sydney University. Kate is interested in exploring the role of culture in the production and reproduction of inequality. Her ongoing research is concerned with work and employment, social class, households and embodiment. She has produced two edited books (with co-authors) and two sole authored monographs titled Gender Capital at Work: intersections of femininity, masculinity, class and occupation (Palgrave Macmillan UK, 2012) and Gender, Work and Social Theory (Palgrave Macmillan, UK, 2021). Kate was joint Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Sociology (Sage) 2017-2020, and is currently Discipline Lead of Sociology, Deputy Chair of Senate and Associate Dean of Research, Social Sciences. |
| Dr Alanna KampAlanna is a Research Fellow at the Young and Resilient Research Centre and Lecturer in Geography and Urban Studies in School of Social Sciences. Dr Kamp’s research contributions lie in the areas of Australian multiculturalism and cultural diversity, experiences of migration and migrant settlement, racism and anti-racism, national identity, citizenship and intersectional experiences of belonging/exclusion. Her work utilises national-level quantitative methods as well as smaller-scale qualitative techniques that are influenced by multi-disciplinary research (post-colonialism, feminism, history, diaspora etc). |
 | Julia is a lecturer in Sociology in the School of Social Sciences, having previously worked as a lecturer in The Academy within the Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor Engagement & Advancement. She is a passionate student-centred educator who was recently the recipient of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President Academic Award for Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning (2022). Julia has worked in the curriculum development space across the HASS cluster, within the Learning Futures’ ‘Technology-Enabled Learning’ division, and with the Future Student Engagement team at the University. Julia’s research interests include diaspora politics, transnational youth mobilities, tourism, identity, and community engagement. |
| Dr Sukhmani KhoranaSukhmani is a Vice-Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow. Sukhmani's research publications and grants span three main areas: diasporic film and culture, refugee media and empathy, and food in multicultural contexts. She has extensive experience in collaborating with community organisations and artists on projects benefiting diverse communities. With Kate Darian-Smith and Sue Turnbull, Sukhmani is a CI on a current ARC Linkage Project, 'Migration, Cultural Diversity and Television: Reflecting Modern Australia'. Sukhmani is the Australian node leader of the international 'Justice, Arts and Migration' network and a member of the Executive Board of the Asian Australian Studies Research Network. |
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| Dr Girish LalaGirish is a social psychologist whose research interests include exploring identity, interaction, and behaviour in online and face-to-face realms, and technological mediation of social cohesion and social change. He is particularly interested in engaging in applied research leading to measurable social benefit, where goals include both advancing academic understanding and developing practical solutions to real-world issues. To that end, he has worked with diverse research partners and participants, including young people, minority communities, marginalised and vulnerable groups, gang members, genocide survivors, local and international government agencies and NGOs, industry bodies, and policy makers. His most recent work includes investigating the intersections between creativity, community, and political engagement, and understanding how new technologies influence and can be applied to facilitating individual and social health and wellbeing. |
| Associate Professor Liam MageeLiam co-leads our Intergener8 Living Lab Research Stream. He is interested in exploring the application of social methods and information technology to the areas of urban development and sustainability. He is presently investigating how online games, simulations and other information technologies can facilitate greater clarity and visibility of sustainability objectives among urban communities and stakeholder groups. |
 | Ms Ingrid MatthewsIngrid Matthews (BEc, LLB) is a PhD candidate and sessional academic at Western Sydney University. She teaches in the law and social sciences programs, with research interests in the decolonising curriculum (Matthews 2017a), the commodification of country (Matthews 2017b), and climate justice. Her work on political journalism is published in journals and book chapters and forms the basis of her PhD thesis on media coverage of the Uluru Statement from the Heart. Ingrid is a white Australian living and working on unceded lands of the sovereign Darug Peoples. |
| Dr Kate McBrideKate's broad research expertise is in epidemiology, public health and the improvement of health at a population level through the prevention of and reduction of chronic disease. Kate's research focusses on the prevention and management of chronic disease including cancer, diabetes and obesity within high risk, marginalised populations which includes through the optimisation of healthcare access among these individuals. |
 | Mr James McDougallJames is a policy consultant with experience and knowledge in youth justice, child protection, children’s and youth services, family violence and child safety. He practiced law for over twenty years, including ten years as a children’s lawyer. His research focuses on systems mapping, planning and governance for children and young people, with emphasis on access to justice, participation, and protection. James has undertaken reviews of service systems for children in Australia, and provided child rights advice and support in Australia, China, and Southeast Asia. |
 | Dr Rachel MorleyDr Rachel Morley is a Senior Lecturer in Communication and Writing, and the Associate Dean for Engagement in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts. As a lecturer, she teaches writing, media studies, and creative industries. Her engagement role sees her working closely with local and national arts and cultural institutions to build strong collaborative partnerships that are high on research, learning and creative outcomes. In research, Rachel has worked on participatory storytelling projects in communities across Western Sydney, Northern NSW, Central Australia and Taiwan. |
| Professor Andrew PageAndrew has over a decade research experience in epidemiology, psychology and public health research, and a developed track record in social determinants of health, suicide and mental health, injury prevention, sexual health, agricultural health. He has also been involved in international research collaborations in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, China and New Zealand. Andrew is also the Director of the Master of Epidemiology program in the School of Medicine. |
| Associate Professor Lucie RamjanLucie is a qualitative and mixed methods researcher who is committed to mental health research, particularly in the area of young people with eating disorders. Lucie received funding from The Ian Potter Foundation to develop a mentoring program for people with anorexia nervosa and was awarded a Women’s Research Fellowship to extend the pilot to all eating disorders. Lucie will contribute to the health expertise within the Health & Wellbeing research stream of the Young and Resilient Research Centre extending her work to explore the use of digital technology by young people to manage and support their recovery from eating disorders. |
| Associate Professor Shanthi RobertsonShanthi is an Associate Professor in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts and an Institute Fellow at the Institute for Culture and Society, specialising in migration and diversity, youth studies and urban social change. She has completed an ARC DECRA fellowship on young Asian migrants to Australia and is currently Chief Investigator on three ARC Discovery and Linkage projects that focus on: the economic, social and civic outcomes of transnational youth mobility for young people moving into and out of Australia for work, leisure and study; the role of autonomous technology in the social inclusion of migrants living with disability in Sydney; and the changing social civic practices in Sydney suburbs with high numbers of Chinese heritage residents. |
| Professor Ned RossiterNed is a media theorist noted internationally for his research on network cultures, the politics of cultural labour, logistical media and data politics. He is Professor of Communication in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts and Director of Research at the Institute for Culture and Society. Rossiter is the author of Organized Networks: Media Theory, Creative Labour, New Institutions (2006), Software, Infrastructure, Labor: A Media Theory of Logistical Nightmares (2016) and (with Geert Lovink) Organization after Social Media (2018). He is currently writing a book with Soenke Zehle called The Experience of Digital Objects: Automation, Aesthetics, Algorithms. His writings have been translated into Italian, Spanish, German, French, Finnish, Dutch, Chinese, Greek, Latvian, Hungarian, Turkish and Polish. |
| Ms Katrina SandbachKatrina co-leads the Places and Platforms Research Stream. She is a designer and academic with a background in brand communication design, and lectures in the Design (Visual Communication) program in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts. A practice-oriented researcher, she employs visual and digital methods to study place, identity, and community, with a particular interest in participatory approaches and creative outcomes. Katrina has supported a number of grassroots creative initiatives in Western Sydney and manages creativewest.com.au — an interactive map of creative businesses and cultural spaces in the west. |
 | Madison ShakespeareMadison Shakespeare is an Indigenous artist, filmmaker, poet, novelist and accomplished musician who has performed nationally and internationally. As a lecturer of the Indigenous Major Degree for HCA at Western Sydney University, she has had a diverse career as educational mentor, teacher and consultant for students, teachers and executive staff in primary, secondary and tertiary arenas. Identifying proudly as a Gadigal saltwater woman, Madison seeks, through diverse pedagogical approaches founded on many traditional lore practices and beliefs, to ensure she lives her life as a Custodian of Country where education founded on creative, open-teaching and learning forums provides contextually meaningful ways to understand and address the impact of Colonisation in Australia. |
| Associate Professor Karen SoldaticKaren is a member of School of Social Sciences & Institute Fellow of ICS. Her research on global welfare regimes builds on her 20 years of experience as an international (Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Indonesia), national and state-based senior policy analyst, researcher and practitioner. Karen's research focuses on social inequalities and social injustice particularly in fields of research concerned with disability, Indigeneity, race and migration, sexuality and gender, poverty and welfare. Research emphasis is on the critical intersectionalities across, within and between such regulatory categories and their implications for practices of social embodiment. She has been awarded an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellowship (2016–2019). She is also a recipient of other prestigious research awards such as Fogarty Foundation Excellence in Education Fellowship; British Academy International Fellowship. |
 | Mrs Dinusha SooDinusha is an Associate Researcher on the project "New Possibilities: Young People and Democratic Renewal" at the Young and Resilient Research Centre. Her research focuses on how visual communication shapes society which is also the focus of her ongoing Master of Research. As a freelance designer with a background in professional accounting, she uses her transdisciplinary skillset for impact in social advocacy and climate justice spaces, and has won awards for her work in university engagement and sustainability. |
 | Dr Katie SutherlandKatie is a journalist and tutor in media and writing within the School of Humanities and Communication Arts. She holds a Doctorate of Creative Arts through the Writing and Society Research Centre. This facilitated her researching and writing a creative non-fiction book about families living with autism, published in 2020. Her research interests include disability, parenting and families, and media and cultural representations of these. She is currently assisting Dr Milissa Deitz with the research and development of a digital platform for children and young people in foster care. |
| Dr Teresa SwistDr Teresa Swist is a Research Fellow at the Young and Resilient Research Centre and the Wellbeing Health & Youth Centre of Research Excellence. Her transdisciplinary research explores the complexity of knowing, making and caring in the digital age. Teresa has extensive experience in theory-building, framework development, and participatory methodologies that advance imaginative possibilities and inclusive practices with people of diverse ages, backgrounds, and expertise. Her social-ecological systems perspective helps to examine how wellbeing and innovation co-evolve across personal, public, and planetary contexts. Teresa’s research highlights how situated ethics and knowledge sharing can shape more equitable and sustainable futures. Her writing has been published in New Media & Society, Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, and Journal of Youth Studies. |
