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Brotherhood Comment

Brotherhood Comment, published three times a year, provides an overview of Brotherhood research projects and policy analysis.

Earlier issues of Brotherhood Comment (from December 1997 to April 2000) can be accessed on Pandora, the National Library's permanent archive.

Use the Brotherhood comment subscription form (PDF file, 74 KB) to receive printed copies of Brotherhood Comment by mail, or you can download PDF files free from this website.

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2011

Brotherhood Comment November 2011 (PDF file, 364 KB)

Talking taxation: small steps towards reform
Rising energy prices: causes and opportunities
The Relocation Tool Kit project: policies to enhance residents’ health, wellbeing and social inclusion
Life Chances turns 21: reflections on a longitudinal study
Overlooked and underemployed: the challenge of assisting disadvantaged jobseekers
Responding to youth disengagement: Peninsula Youth Connections evaluation
A risky cocktail: alcohol, drugs and other kinds of youth disadvantage
Exploring age and intergenerational identity
Planning inclusive, competitive cities

Brotherhood Comment August 2011 (PDF file, 310 KB)

Articles include:

Policy on ageing Australia bursts into new life
What would help people to gain and retain decent work? Research insights
Integrated service hubs: creating opportunities for community governance
Underpaid and undervalued: seeking fair pay for care workers
Australia’s carbon price: looking beyond the hype
Reducing the risks: home contents and vehicle insurance for low-income Australians
On inclusiveness and Australian economic growth
Influencing policy through effective social research: the role of not-for-profit organisations
Addressing the challenges together: consultations with Brotherhood clients
Valuing capabilities in later life: findings from a survey of users of Brotherhood aged services
Bringing Brotherhood history to digital life

Brotherhood Comment April 2011 (PDF file, 499 KB)

Articles include:

Inclusive growth: the new action imperative
The financialisation of everyday life: insights from Australian interviews
Beyond stereotypes: baby boomer workforce participation
Labour market activation and young people: considering ‘choice’
Household energy use: what changes behaviour?
Social inclusion and Indigeneity: towards embracing diversity
Navigating VET: the experience of ‘at risk’ youth
Employment assistance: a fresh approach to unlock the potential of our labour force
Towards integrated client-centred services: developing a framework
Brotherhood Current Awareness Portal (BroCAP): opening the door to information

2010

Brotherhood Comment November 2010 (PDF file, 337 KB)

Articles include:

Revaluing care: gender, justice and equality
Monitoring social exclusion: findings from a new multidimensional measure for Australia
The changing nature of ageing: an international perspective
Ready set go: a good start for HIPPY children
Turning up the heat: where to now for climate change policy?
Australian social policy: a view from New Zealand
When words fail: language and ageism
Integrating youth services
Rebadged and refocused: the Brotherhood Information Centre

Brotherhood Comment August 2010 (PDF file, 358 KB)

Articles include:

Of finance and fairness: programs and policies to address exclusion
Shaping future education and youth transitions to work
A life that I value: investigating capabilities and social inclusion of aged care clients
Training for work: insights from trainees
A history of decay: time for the government to put teeth first
National evaluation of HIPPY: building a solid evidence base
Reviewing the outcomes of the Myer Foundation 2020 Vision for Aged Care in Australia
Evaluating the High Rise Public Housing Recycling Project

Brotherhood Comment April 2010 (PDF file, 286 KB)

Articles include:

Social policy to build an inclusive nation
Making work pay and making income support work
Public housing and social inclusion
Navigating the flexibility–security nexus: a way forward for Australia?
Climate change proposals: assessing their impact on equity
Women on the Move: a personal and settlement mentoring program for refugees
School engagement and life chances: strengthening inclusion in education
Ready for the second fifty years: shaping the research and policy agenda
Family day care: exploring an undervalued service
Assets for all? Reviewing Australia’s asset building policies
From the margins to the mainstream: identifying the challenges for microfinance in Australia

2009

Brotherhood Comment November 2009 (PDF file, 393 KB)

Articles include:

Opening the door to tax reform
Social inclusion and the politics of recognition
One year on from the crisis: economic and social policy challenges for Australia
The cost of a ‘free education’: the financial burden of schooling for low-income households
The HIPPY team goes to Alice Springs: practical and cultural research considerations
Youth ‘underclass’: a critical analysis of social divisions
Individual placement and support: a new approach to assistance for disadvantaged job seekers
Homelessness and older people with cognitive impairment
Neighbourhood Justice Centre evaluation update

Brotherhood Comment August 2009 (PDF file, 272 KB)

Articles include:

Adding real value: the role of the not-for-profit sector
Getting ahead: is career advancement important to disadvantaged job seekers?
Joblessness, gender and family care work: supportive policy responses
From the bottom up: savings incentives should be focused at the lower end
Measuring social inclusion in retirement and ageing: the Brotherhood’s latest Social Barometer
Coming to grips with credit contract: exploring how to protect vulnerable borrowers
Workshop on social inclusion and the early years: looking at the big picture
Completing Year 1 2: social inclusion in education
Wages and social inclusion: seizing a new opportunity
Evaluating the impact of household energy efficiency measures for low-income households

Brotherhood Comment April 2009 (PDF file, 284 KB)

Articles include:

Social policy, social democracy and the GFC
Managing the impact of the global financial crisis on social and economic participation
Ageing well, planning wisely: strengthening Australia’s retirement incomes system
No time like the present: prioritising policies to support families
Global financial crisis and corporate responsibility: regulating to avoid a poverty crisis
The Brotherhood’s Green Collar Jobs Project: the case for accessible, decent, green jobs
Beyond the classroom: learning support for disadvantaged students
Fostering civic engagement of disadvantaged youth: Community Services Leadership Program
Towards culturally inclusive social inclusion
Much more than child’s play: assessing integrated early childhood initiatives
Evaluating a targeted child and parent intervention: HIPPY

2008

Brotherhood Comment November 2008 (PDF file, 442 KB)

Articles include:

Towards climate-proofing: a national energy efficiency program for low-income households
The baby, the bathwater, and the social–economic conundrum
Education reform in Victoria: Brotherhood reflections on the Blueprint
They didn’t really listen to what I was saying’: stories of early school leaving
Towards effective communication: how to better engage low-income parents in their children’s education
Tracking employment progress: the Employment Retention and Advancement Project
Immediate assistance as well as structural reform required for a fair pension scheme
Taxing questions about housing affordability: exploring modifications to negative gearing
Effective services for children and families: learning from the Cottage
The national Compact and social inclusion: a new role for the community sector
Meet the families: characteristics of parents and children taking part in HIPPY

Brotherhood Comment August 2008 (PDF file, 294 KB)

Articles include:

In the national interest: addressing inequities in the tax system
Opening opportunities: advocating the social inclusion of children and young people
The new employment services system: maximising the potential for social inclusion
Introducing seasonal migrant workers: managing rights and risks
Getting down to business: inclusion through community enterprise
Making aged care services more responsive to individual needs:
is consumer-directed care part of the solution?
Not to be forgotten: the housing crisis facing a significant minority of older people
Place-based policy at the crossroads
Racism and the health of Indigenous Australians
Responding to climate change: UK lessons for protecting low-income households

Brotherhood Comment April 2008 (PDF file, 254 KB)

Articles include:

Social inclusion down under
‘It changed my vision of Australia’: outcomes of giving refugees a chance
Responding to climate change: steps to assist low-income private renters
Through school to work: research directions to foster social inclusion of young people
Youth listening to youth: peer research into youth transitions
Raising the bar: responsible business conduct in a globalised economy
A lifelong concern: social inclusion and older people
Re-fashioning community engagement: Rotary’s PACE project
Exploring new Indigenous partnerships
Helping parents and children learn together:
insights into the impact of a home interaction program

2007

Brotherhood Comment November 2007 (PDF file, 340 KB)

Articles include:

Employment assistance: time for a fresh approach
Spotlight on working age Australians: the Brotherhood’s third Social Barometer
Forging new directions: research and policy development in retirement and ageing
Equity in response to climate change: an issue of critical importance
Social policy: the new main game
Going nowhere fast: transport as a cause of social exclusion
Ethical threads: examining corporate social responsibility in Australia’s garment industry
Human rights and social inclusion
Playgroups in Greater Dandenong: benefits and barriers

Brotherhood Comment August 2007 (PDF file, 364 KB)

Articles include:

The rise of the community sector
Using an Intermediate Labour Market as a pathway to mainstream employment
Sixteen up: school and further education and training plans from the Life Chances Study
Increasing participation: lessons from the Personal Support Programme
Planned national evaluation of HIPPY (Home Interaction Program for Parents and Youngsters)
Stories of significant change in the Communities for Children initiative, Frankston North
Human capital: the most rewarding investment
Affordable housing: the need for action
Rebuilding connections: Brotherhood Community Care’s Socialisation Program

Brotherhood Comment April 2007 (PDF file, 263 KB)

Articles include:

What does the Brotherhood have to do with climate change?
Life chances for 15 year olds: parents’ employment and influences on school engagement
Under pressure: older people and their carers
A new deal for young people? Lessons from the UK about youth employment
Good social policy can be good for business
Gaps in affluence: exploring social exclusion of children in Boroondara
Engaging with the early years: multiple interventions make a difference
Behind the fashion label: corporate social responsibility in the garment sector
Rotary engagement: four examples of local collaborative action
Implications of welfare changes for single parent families in transition to paid work

2006

Brotherhood Comment November 2006 (PDF file, 328 KB)

Articles include:

Towards the good society
Enabling work for all: understanding the vocational needs of people facing multiple barriers
Unemployment and low-paid work: the low-pay, no-pay cycle
It’s not all about paid work: exploring caring–work transitions
Can in-work benefits reduce poverty? Considering the arguments
Making saving a habit: monitoring outcomes of Saver Plus
Mental health and well-being: capturing the contribution of community arts
Community enterprises: documenting a bold experiment

Brotherhood Comment August 2006 (PDF file, 271 KB)

Articles include:

Could the era of the common good be upon us?
Challenges facing Australian young people: the Brotherhood’s youth barometer
Supporting transitions: maximising opportunities for young people
Building pathways: addressing youth and employment issues
To their credit: learning about personal loans for people on low incomes
Stepping into aged care: evaluating a training program for disadvantaged job seekers
Risk and reality: investigating access to insurance for people on low incomes
Business and human rights: applying the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
Outcomes for older people: how well is community care working?

Brotherhood Comment April 2006 (PDF file, 272 KB)

Articles include:

COAG, the PM and a new social policy
The Brotherhood’s Social Barometer: monitoring trends in Australians' well-being
Equal opportunities for all Australian children: the Brotherhood's child advocacy platform
Left out and missing out: towards new indicators of social exclusion and deprivation
Innovative employment strategies: addressing local unemployment and skills shortages
Assisting children and families: lessons from The Cottage
IR reforms should be flexible but fair
Regaining ground: WorkChoices amendments to protect outworkers
Incorporating Indigenous perspectives in research and advocacy
Social capital and community strengthening: does it matter and how do we know we have it?

Research and publications

Brotherhood Comment

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

Brotherhood Comment prior to 2006

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