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Purpose: This paper examines gender diversity in the Australian valuation industry from the perspective of valuers in senior management and leadership roles and discusses gender diversity policies and practices in their organisations. Then, it explores the initiatives that can be implemented to improve gender diversity in the Australian valuation industry. Design/methodology/approach: A focus group discussion was conducted with valuers in senior management and leadership roles from selected large valuation firms and government valuation agencies in Melbourne, Australia. Data collected through the focus group discussion was combined with secondary data sourced from journals, online articles and archival materials. Findings: The findings reveal that whilst gender diversity in the Australian valuation industry has improved over the years, females remain underrepresented. Nonetheless, whilst some valuation companies have recognised the need to address the underrepresentation of women and introduced specific gender-focussed human resource policies and practices, these initiatives are not streamlined and implemented across the industry. Research limitations/implications: The study highlights the need for closer collaboration between key stakeholders such as universities, professional associations, valuation companies and government agencies in devising strategies to attract female talents into the valuation industry. Originality/value: The paper is the first empirical study to assess gender diversity in the Australian valuation industry from the perspective of valuers in management and leadership roles. The proposed policies can inform future initiatives to improve gender diversity in the valuation industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the concept of conviviality: the practice and negotiation of sharing space in suburbs with diverse populations. Australia has a growing Muslim population and reports of Islamophobia remain widespread. While there is some evidence, however, that forming intercultural connections can foster more positive attitudes toward religious minority groups, we know little about how Muslim and non‐Muslim communities share space in Australia. This paper presents the findings of a qualitative investigation into how conviviality is perceived in Australian suburbs with high concentrations of Muslim residents. Following qualitative, thematic analysis of 15 interviews with multicultural service providers who work with Muslims in Melbourne, Victoria, we conclude that conviviality is fostered by a sense of community between people who share similar backgrounds as well as increased opportunities to form intercultural social connections. We discuss the scholarly and policy implications of these findings, with consideration of existing arguments about the practices of sharing space in Australian cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contemporary research into community music programmes highlights diverse contexts for collaborative music making. This article contributes a case of the collaboration in music making to a growing literature on creative practice in community music initiatives led by major orchestras. The authors reflect on field research involving an after-school programme that provides free, classical instrumental music instruction to primary school-age students who would not normally have an opportunity due to their socio-economic circumstances. The Pizzicato Effect, run by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) in the City of Hume, Australia has operated in the northern suburbs of Melbourne since 2009. Through focus group interviews with students, family members and teaching artists, the researchers examined community experiences of accruing cultural capital in conditions of social inequality and multicultural practice. Using qualitative methods, the case study aimed to position respondents as experts in their own lives, who own their knowledge of their worlds. Collaboration was central to a model of improvisation developed locally by teaching artists and applied on site. Furthermore, improvisation took the programme in different directions to the El Sistema model of youth orchestra training in Venezuela, which had been the original source of inspiration for the programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Governments and other agencies seeking to tackle racism have been calling for better empirical evidence, including complaint data based on reports by people who have experienced racism. This approach requires much of those who face racism, often while offering little effective support or redress for them. There is a need to understand reporting or not reporting experiences of racism as a result of a complex interplay between different factors – as a (non-) reporting journey, rather than as a singular moment of decision. Reporting is at risk of remaining an ineffective strategy for responding to racism where the reporting pathways and support services are not sufficiently aligned with the expectations and needs of those who experience racism. This article discusses the findings of three place-based community engagement and research projects across four local municipalities in Melbourne. The projects examined locally specific community perspectives and expectations in relation to reporting pathways and support services for those experiencing racism. The analysis of this community input resulted in anti-racism roadmaps specific for each local area, which were co-developed with local communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]