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Bittersweet Impacts of a Sugar Mill’s Closure: Partnerships and Processes in Using University Research to Inform Planning and Management Around a Complex Regional Issue
Conference paper   Open access   Peer reviewed

Bittersweet Impacts of a Sugar Mill’s Closure: Partnerships and Processes in Using University Research to Inform Planning and Management Around a Complex Regional Issue

Anne H Roiko, Bonita Hafey, Bill Allen, Susie Chapman and Sharon Hall
Proceedings of the 2010 Australian Universities Community Engagement Alliance National Conference, pp.328-339
Australian Universities Community Engagement Alliance (AUCEA) National Conference: Communities Participation and Partnerships, 2010 (Launceston, Australia, 05-Jul-2010–07-Jul-2010)
Australian Universities Community Engagement Alliance Inc. (AUCEA)
2010
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Abstract

Human Geography university engagement structural adjustment sugar-cane health and well-being networks
Key individuals can make or break engagement initiatives. Even where formal mechanisms exist to facilitate engagement and collaboration across organisational boundaries, the desired outcomes are unlikely to be achieved without the critical and timely input of key individuals. This is one of the key findings of the reflective analysis reported on in this paper, built around a university-led research study that examined the impacts of a sugar mill closure on the health and well being of cane growing families. Rather than focussing solely on the outcomes of the research, it highlights informal and formal engagement mechanisms that both pre and post date it. Through the lens of social network theory, this paper discusses the ways in which such mechanisms were utilised and the lessons that can be learnt in the management of university-community engagement.

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