Policy@RMIT

Policy@RMIT

Policy@RMIT (P@R) aims to study and enable collaborations between researchers and policy practitioners in co-producing research that supports evidence-informed policy in addressing major policy and societal issues.

P@R is working to achieve its aims through four main work packages:

  • an overarching research program exploring key questions about the policy ‘impact’ agenda, including: what is policy impact; how might we evidence it; and what kinds of institutional structures might best help with impact efforts?
  • capability building activities for RMIT researchers with R&I’s Research Impact team;
  • a partnership with the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP); and
  • Publications, Discussion Papers, and Policy Briefs

Key work

Funded by the Urban Futures EIP, P@R is one of the ways RMIT is delivering on the ‘research component’ of the DELWP-RMIT Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

P@R aims to study and enable collaborations between researchers and policy practitioners in co-producing research that supports evidence-informed policy in addressing major policy and societal issues.

Principles

P@R actively seeks to engage with diverse knowledge systems through mutually respectful relationships. This engagement seeks to co-identify and co-define research ‘problems’, and then co-identify subsequent research questions, approaches, and outputs that stem from a shared and/or pluralistic view of a problem, place, and land. In doing so, P@R operates under the following principles:

  • Mutual respect and trust
  • Recognition and sovereignty
  • Co-production and co-formulation of knowledge
  • Active engagement with multiple ways of knowing a place

Project Team

The Project Team consists of Professor Jago Dodson (Project Lead), Dr Karyn Bosomworth, and Dr Brian Coffey, who are all based in the Centre for Urban Research.

P@R also has a Project Internal Advisory Group (PIAG) to guide and support the project across and within RMIT. It includes GUSS Head of School, the UF EIP Director, the DELWP relationship manager from the Business Engagement team, R&I Research Translation Manager, the Sector manager from DSC, and the Senior Advisor Public Policy from the VC’s office. 

Capability building opportunities

P@R is also developing a range of ‘capability building’ activities regarding research impact in public policy. Development of this program will be informed by both the literature and insights gained through the P@R DELWP-RMIT Research Collaboration.  The capacity building program will occur in partnership with RMIT’s Research and Innovation Portfolio’s Research Translation team and the Urban Futures EIP.

For example, the Policy Brief development process could help bring networks together, enable production of a truly multi-disciplinary brief of RMIT’s research in key areas related to DELWP policy responsibilities, and provide a source of knowledge and connection for relevant DELWP policy arenas.

Policy Briefs and Publications

One way that research can contribute to public policy is to provide summaries of current knowledge or questions surrounding key policy issues through what might be called ‘Policy Briefs’. The collection presented here have been at the suggestion of policy practitioners, researchers, and sometimes a collaboration.

If you’d like to know more about any of these topics, or perhaps suggest a topic, please contact the project team via: policy.Impact@rmit.edu.au   

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Sarah Robertson, Brian Coffey, Karyn Bosomworth, Jago Dodson

A Discussion Paper on key considerations for universities in moving beyond research-policy boundaries.

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Professor Veeriah Jegatheesan

This policy brief draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s Water: Effective Technologies and Tools (WETT) Research Centre to inform policy makers and the wider community on critical challenges in planning for Victoria’s future water use.

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Professor Sujeeva Setunge

This briefing draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s transport research community to inform policy makers and the wider community on critical challenges and opportunities in planning for and maintaining Victoria’s transport infrastructure

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Dr Chris De Gruyter, Dr Flora Salim, Dr Ian Woodcock, Dr Jan Scheurer, Tiebei Li

This briefing draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s transport research community to inform policy makers and the wider community on critical challenges presented by the emergence of new transport technologies.

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Professor Prem Chhetri

This briefing draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s transport research community to inform policy makers and the wider community on critical challenges facing Victoria’s freight sector.

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Dr Megan Nethercote, Professor Ralph Horne, Professor Tony Dalton

This briefing draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s housing research community to inform policy makers and the wider community on critical challenges in addressing Melbourne’s housing needs

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Dr Chris De Gruyter, Dr Sara Moridpour, Dr Ian Woodcock, Dr Liang Ma

This briefing draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s transport research community to inform policy makers and the wider community on the critical challenge presented by congestion.

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Associate Professor Hannah Badland, Dr Claire Boulange

This policy brief draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s transport research community to inform policy makers and the wider community on the critical challenge of increasing participation in active transport.

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Professor Sarah Bekessy

This briefing draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s urban greening, biodiversity and liveability research community to inform policy makers and the wider community on the critical opportunities nature-based solutions offer in enhancing liveability.

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Dr Lucy Gunn, Julianna Rozek, Dr Jonathan Arundel, Associate Professor Hannah Badland, Distinguished Professor Billie Giles-Corti

This briefing draws upon the expertise of RMIT’s Healthy, Liveable Cities Group to inform policy makers and the wider community on critical challenges that affect the liveability of Victorians.

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Useful links

Fast Track

Fast Track Impact is an international training company working in the Higher Education and research and innovation sectors. They state that their mission is “to change the way researchers generate and share knowledge, so that their ideas can change the world”. They provide an array of freely available resources and publications that researchers may find helpful.

The London School of Economics (LSE) Impact Blog

The London School of Economics (LSE) Impact Blog states that it is “a hub for researchers, administrative staff, librarians, students, think tanks, government, and anyone else interested in maximising the impact of academic work in the social sciences and other disciplines. We hope to encourage debate, share best practice and keep the impact community up to date with news, events and the latest research”.

Analysis & Policy Observatory (APO)

Analysis & Policy Observatory (APO) makes public policy research visible, discoverable and usable.Subscribe for regular updates. Upload and publish reports, papers, data and more. Search the APO database.

Policy Scotland

Policy Scotland fosters co-operation between academics, practitioners and policy makers, and pool this collective expertise in order to flesh out new initiatives, test the effectiveness of interventions, generate better evidence and engage a wide variety of audiences.

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Acknowledgement of Country

RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business - Artwork 'Sentient' by Hollie Johnson, Gunaikurnai and Monero Ngarigo.

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aboriginal flag
torres strait flag

Acknowledgement of Country

RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business.

More information