South Africa’s proposed national minimum wage must not be seen as a solution for all the country’s economic problems but as a floor to protect the most vulnerable workers.
There are currently far too few vacant academic jobs in Australia each year to employ all our PhD students. It’s time to rethink the training of doctoral students.
Indonesia has the potential to make important contributions through academic research and the dissemination of knowledge emerging from Indonesian universities.
Many centres were set up in Australian universities to take advantage of China’s rising importance, but without ongoing funding they might be subject to interference from external donors.
The recent NHMRC funding announcement has renewed criticism about how medical research is funded in Australia. Is the system fair? Or is it stacked against some researchers?
Food, drug and other companies often sponsor research in the hope it might produce results favourable to their products. How can we ensure such research remains independent?
A new clause being embedded in a number of university contracts attempts to restrict academics from speaking freely in public debate about issues that are outside their area of research.