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Aboriginal australian; Social conditions; Economic conditions

AbstractThe Economics and the Dreamtime was a landmark in Australian Economic History where Noel Butlin elevated awareness of the central importance of Indigenous economic history. It was a sprawling inter‐disciplinary work that used economic tools to understand Indigenous society before first contact and in the early colonial period. This article revisits that book to provide a critical evaluation of the major contributions of Butlin's research on Indigenous Australians. His primary contribution was to make Indigenous people more visible in the Australian economy in the early colonial period. He created a unique backcasting methodology that allowed Indigenous population to be estimated in the first six decades of the colony based on depopulation from disease, resource loss and frontier violence. I argue that the two main shortcomings of Butlin's research is that his method used colonial estimates of the population and that the population estimates are not sufficiently geographically differentiated. The main criticism of Butlin's research in the literature is that it is too speculative. However, his methodological innovation allows considerable transparency in the assumptions used and can create a range of plausible estimates that give us a sense of the unreliability of the existing population estimates. Alternative methodologies based on estimating population densities in 1788 from anthropological evidence are historically point estimates, which do not provide a sense of how uncertain the estimates might be. The way forward for this debate is to combine Butlin's demographic backcast methodology with population density estimates that take into account the selective mortality from disease and frontier violence. Finally, in order to create a truly Australian Economic History, it is necessary to also augment the methodology to incorporate Indigenous perspectives into the analysis and to utilise a local geography that acknowledges the diversity of Indigenous Australia.

A 'wicked problem' is a term used in the planning literature to characterise a complex multi-dimensional problem. The article argues that Indigenous child abuse is one such problem. Whatever the merits of the recent federal intervention into Northern Territory Indigenous communities, it is unlikely to succeed without both long-term bipartisan commitment of substantial resources and a meaningful process of consultation with Indigenous peoples. If we are to learn from what policies worked (and what did not work), then it is particularly important that a transparent evaluation framework be established before undertaking policy initiatives.

A 'wicked problem' is a term used in the planning literature to characterise a complex multi-dimensional problem. The article argues that Indigenous child abuse is one such problem. Whatever the merits of the recent federal intervention into Northern Territory Indigenous communities, it is unlikely to succeed without both long-term bipartisan commitment of substantial resources and a meaningful process of consultation with Indigenous peoples. If we are to learn from what policies worked (and what did not work), then it is particularly important that a transparent evaluation framework be established before undertaking policy initiatives.

Abstract The changing social structure of the labour market has both distributional and efficiency implications for Australian society. This article analyses the increase in the employment inequality among Australian urban neighbourhoods (that is, Collectors Districts or CDs) between the 1976 and 1991 censuses. When CDs are ranked by socioeconomic status we find that the employment rate falls by more in the low status areas than in other areas. Given that participation and population growth rates are higher in the high status areas, this phenomenon is likely to be driven by differences in employment levels. Shift share analysis of changes in employment levels shows that the lower demand for workers who live in the low status areas has led to falls in employment in those areas. Therefore the structural shift in the Australian economy has been a major explanation of the differences in employment rate within Australian cities. The results raise questions about the current ability of Australia's economy to adjust to the structural change necessary in an open economy.

It is important to locate recent increases in neighbourhood inequality and economic segregation of Australian cities within the international debate about increasing urban disparities. The present article uses standard inequality techniques to show that neighbourhood inequality is increasing within Australian, Canadian, and USA cities. While the labour market status of people in poor neighbourhoods is similar for Australia and the USA, there is an almost inexorable trend towards increasing income inequality, probably reflecting ongoing labour market deregulation and the stricter welfare regimes that have been in place since the 1980s. Policy options to deal with locational disadvantage and increased economic segregation are also considered in detail.

Preliminary -- Table of Contents -- Abbreviations and acronyms -- List of tables -- List of figures -- Acknowledgements -- Contributors -- 1. Towards a broader understanding of Indigenous disadvantage -- 2. Mobile people, mobile measures: Limitations and opportunities for mobility analysis -- 3. Fertility and the demography of Indigenous Australians: What can the NATSISS 2008 tell us? -- 4. Does the 2008 NATSISS underestimate the prevalence of high risk Indigenous drinking? -- 5. Improving Indigenous health: Are mainstream determinants sufficient? -- 6. What shapes the development of Indigenous children? -- 7. The benefits of Indigenous education: Data findings and data gaps -- 8. What are the factors determining Indigenous labour market outcomes? -- 9. The Indigenous hybrid economy: Can the NATSISS adequately recognise difference? -- 10. Is Indigenous poverty different from other poverty? -- 11. Is there a cultural explanation for Indigenous violence? A second look at the NATSISS -- 12. NATSISS crowding data: What does it assume and how can we challenge the orthodoxy? -- 13. Do traditional culture and identity promote the wellbeing of Indigenous Australians? Evidence from the 2008 NATSISS -- 14. A mile wide, inch deep:The future for Indigenous social surveys? -- CAEPR Research Monograph Series.