I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark should burn ot in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them. I shall use my time. Up to a certain point, it is necessary for a man to live his life in the world in which he finds himself, and to make the best of it. But beyond that point, he must create a world of his own. And the greatest thing about life is that it is always giving us the opportunity to create something new. It is never too late to start over, to make a fresh beginning, to blaze a new trail. Life is short, and we have but a brief time in which to explore, to learn, to experience, and to create. Let us make the most of that time, and let us burn brightly, like meteors across the night sky, leaving behind us a trail of light and inspiration for those who come after us.

Jack London

Latest Papers

The working papers collection comprises historical papers as well as current ideas and works in progress on some of the major issues and topics of our times.

Carmen Unbound (released 4 August 2026)
For around twenty dollars you can sit in a regional Australian cinema — bird’s-eye view, subtitles included — and watch one of the world’s great opera houses deliver a brand-new production of Carmen. I saw it on Sunday at the Empire in Bowral. No plane ticket. No hotel. No three-hundred-dollar seat in the gods. Just a darkened room in an ordinary town and the full weight of the Teatro alla Scala orchestra and chorus, recorded live in Milan on 8 June 2026.
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Bogan Motown or How to Create A Cooker (released 12 June 2026)
Hansonism is sweeping Australia. It threatens to smash the Liberal National conservative consensus and to challenge the Labor party’s political rule in Canberra and in every State and region of the country. Make no mistake the revolution is real. The fire is out of control and the thought that a Trump like change cannot happen in Australia needs to be firmly rejected.
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Mondragon/Rumbalara (released 11 April 2026)
A think piece by Dan Swinney and Peter Botsman, April 2026
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Dan Swinney & Erica Staley: Austin Polytechnical Academy (released 11 April 2026)
Getting More Young People Into Industrial Career Pathways: The Chicago Experience, Austin Polytech & Lessons Learned
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Comparison of Manufacturing and Food Processing Industries: Chicago Area (Chicagoland/Cook County, Illinois) vs. Goulburn Valley (Greater Shepparton, Victoria, Australia) (released 10 April 2026)
Is it still relevant? The 2011–2012 report Learning from Chicago explicitly identifies the Goulburn Valley / Shepparton region as one of the highest-potential sites in Australia for adapting Chicago’s poly-technical education model. It highlights the Yorta Yorta leadership (Paul Briggs, Kaiela Institute), the iconic local manufacturing heritage of J Furphy & Sons, and the need to connect young Aboriginal people to “the ongoing tradition of manufacturing in the Goulburn Valley” (pages 9–10). The report argues that a “Manufacturing Renaissance Council” model—linking industry skill gaps, schools, and community leadership—could create sustainable, high-quality jobs in advanced manufacturing and food processing, mirroring Chicago’s success in serving African American communities.
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What if? Towards A Goulburn Valley Poly-Technical Education Program (2026–2030) (released 10 April 2026)
“Advanced Manufacturing + World Class Education = Sustainable Communities” Adapting the Chicago Austin Poly-Technical Model for Yorta Yorta and Goulburn Valley
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Some Basic International Comparisons (released 10 April 2026)
A Short Backgrounder on First Nations Demography and Other Post Colonial Experiences to help frame discussions and engagement
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Learning from Chicago (released 7 April 2026)
Report of the 2011 ISX/University of Melbourne/CLCR Visit to Chicago
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Hampden Bridge (Kangaroo Valley) “A Bridge for Eternity” (released 21 January 2026)
"The Hampden Bridge Report" (Updated 8 April, 2026)
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It's Time Again.. (released 20 November 2025)
The Whitlam government represented a new era of possibilities and long overdue reforms. It was time! In 2025, 50 years after the maverick dismissal of the Whitlam government that action is universally viewed as aberrant and mistaken. It is time to look beyond and to the future, as Gough implied, when he said ‘nothing will save the Governor General’.
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