Our postgraduate program

Students undertaking their Masters or Doctoral research degree integrate knowledge from diverse academic disciplines to create new perspectives on sustainability challenges. This helps them build a better future in their chosen area. Here we profile four students who completed their postgraduate studies in 2018.

→ Read more about our ISF post-graduate program

Kevin Morrison 

The tale of two taxes: a study of mineral and petroleum resource taxation in Australia

Kevin Morrison’s Masters thesis aimed to understand why two mineral resource taxes introduced by the Australian Government based on the same economic theory achieved such different outcomes. The Mineral Resource Rent Tax (MRRT) in 2010 attracted hostility from industry and state governments, split political parties, and perturbed the general public, yet the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax (PRRT) received industry backing and bipartisan political support.

He adopted an agenda building framework that examined the policy positions of the then Federal Labor Government and the resources sector, and an additional framework based on regulatory capture to fully explain the different outcomes.

Laure-Elise Ruoso 

Understanding place identity and productive landscapes peri-urban environments

Dr Laure-Elise Ruoso’s PhD thesis examined the politics of place identity and the role of productive landscapes in the peri-urban. Using a framework to describe the different dimensions of place identity, Laure-Elise conducted a case study of Wollondilly Shire in NSW to investigate how these dimensions affected decision-making about urban planning and agriculture. Her research highlighted potential ways the role of agriculture land uses in peri-urban areas can be renegotiated and adapted to exist in harmony with developing peri-urban environments.

Stephen McGrail 

The roles and use of prospective knowledge practices in sustainability-related transitions

The roles and use of prospective knowledge practices in sustainability-related transitions Dr Stephen McGrail’s PhD thesis presents an evaluative case study of CSIRO’s multistakeholder ‘futures forums’ and analyses forward-looking knowledge practices in transitions. His thesis argues that social, political and reasoning factors strongly condition the use and effects of these prospective practices, often resulting in unintended consequences and less impact than hoped for. The thesis presents related theory-informed lessons for practitioners wanting to harness the potentially productive roles of forward-looking exercises under real-world conditions and provides a novel example of theory-driven impact evaluation.

Isabel Sebastian 

Looking beyond Corporate Social Responsibility through a holistic systems lens

Dr Isabel Sebastian’s PhD thesis examined Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in international and Bhutanese businesses to explore how businesses can move beyond conventional CSR practices. Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness (GNH) philosophy and its influence on business ethics and sustainability practices highlighted five key dimensions that differentiate ‘beyond CSR’ from ‘conventional CSR’ businesses.

Isabel developed the ‘Beyond CSR Maturity Model’ (BCMM) which allows mapping of businesses against the five dimensions to understand their level of CSR maturity and identify ways to move beyond conventional CSR.