 | Dear ~~first_name~~,
There is plenty happening across TASA this week, with the results of our recent Executive election, new opportunities for members, and several upcoming events to share.
In case you missed our direct email, we are pleased to announce that Giselle Newton has been elected as TASA’s Public Sociology Portfolio Leader and Brooklyn Donnelly as Postgraduate Portfolio Leader. Both Giselle and Brooklyn have already been contributing to the Executive in these roles since taking over from the previous portfolio leaders during the current term, and we look forward to their continued contribution.
In this edition, we also have two new calls for papers for special issues, as well as a new Early Career Scholars competition for members to explore.
Looking ahead, our next TASA Thursdays is coming up - Thursday 27 August - featuring Professor Celia Roberts speaking about Experimenting with Estrogen.
We also have new publications by TASA members, and announce another New Members Onboarding session for those who have recently joined TASA.
As always, we hope you enjoy the newsletter and find something that catches your interest.
| TASA Key Dates at a glance
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- 20/21 August - TASA Executive Meeting
- 27 August - Postgraduate TASA Thursdays: Experimenting with Estrogen
- 28 August - Social Stratification one-day symposium: Perceptions and Indicators of Social Class in Australia
- 31 August - Sociology of Youth 'Catch up and Write' session
- 14 September - Talking About Death: Building Community Conversations About Dying, Grief and Care
- 17 September - New Members OnBoarding Session
- 28 September - Sociology of Youth 'Catch up and Write' session
- 12 October - Sociology of Youth 'Engaging with Young People' symposium
- 16 October - Housing & Urban Sociology symposium 'Ready or Not?: Improving adoptability of regional, rural & remote preparedness research'
- 22 October - Families & Relationships 'Transition to Parenthood' event
- 23 October - Sociology of Religion symposium 'Leaving Religion and the Politics of Nonreligion'
- 26 October - Sociology of Youth 'Catch up and Write' session
- 23 November - Migration, Ethnicity and Multiculturalism symposium 'Theorising migration, settlement and diversity in unsettled times'
- 23 -27 November - TASA 2026
|  | The two-part event will comprise a panel discussion followed by facilitated round-table conversations inspired by the Death Café model
September 14, 4:00pm - 7:00pm (AEST)
UNSW Scientia Galleries, John Niland Scientia Building (G19)
The event is being hosted by the UNSW School of Social Sciences in collaboration with TASA via Giselle Newton, the Public Sociology portfolio leader.
The panel discussion will be facilitated by fellow member Emma Kirby (Lead of The Car Lab at UNSW)
Panellists:
- Fellow member Na'ama Carlin (Co-author of Being Patient: Close Encounters in Cancer World)
- Louise Chappell (Co-author of Being Patient: Close Encounters in a Cancer World)
- Cindy Stocken (PhD candidate researching living wakes)
- Jodie Clarkson (palliative care outpatient in Mparntwe (Alice Springs). She has been living with brain cancer since 2017. Jodie is the consumer representative for the Palliative Care Northern Territory
Despite the inevitability of death and dying, they remain social taboos such that the silence around them leads people to be unprepared, feel isolated and afraid. These experiences compound for patients undergoing cancer treatment, who live with uncertainty.
| Social Cohesion Symposium: Belonging, Resilience, and Democratic Participation
September 14 at 9:30 am - 4:00 pm AEST, Sydney
Speakers include fellow members Adam Possamai and Alphia Possamai-Inesedy
Join leading researchers, educators and community voices at this thought-provoking event that explores some of the most pressing challenges facing contemporary Australia, from multiculturalism and social cohesion to media trust, democratic participation, belonging and resilience. Through expert panels and lively discussion, the symposium will examine how communities navigate exclusion, build connection, and contribute to a more inclusive society.
| Our Stories: Make a Film with Your Community
Wednesday 16 September 5:00pm - 7:00pm AEST
The University of Sydney
Supported by TASA's SSW funding program
Our Stories invites community members and anyone interested in storytelling to explore how people represent their experiences and places through film. The evening features a short talk by fellow member Habib Moghimi and Nick Grinpukel on how documentary and creative media can support communities in telling their own stories. The session asks: who tells our stories, who decides what is seen and heard, and what changes when people hold the camera themselves?
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Welcome to new member Katherine Uren, it's great to have you with us at TASA.
Our Student Career Stage Group is putting together another warm and welcoming New Members Onboarding session, coming up on Thursday 17 September at 12.30pm as part of the TASA Thursdays program. If you've joined TASA this year, or if you are a long-time member who would like an update on TASA's current program and services, please do register for this session. We'd love to see you there.
And thanks as ever to renewing members, we appreciate your contribution as members and participants in TASA's activities.
If you have changed your email address since you joined TASA, please do let Ali know at membership@tasa.org.au so she can update TASA records. It's a good idea to ensure you have an alternate email address listed on the database, so we don't lose touch with you if your workplace or institution changes their email system or security settings.
If you have received a renewal notice, all you need to do is log in to tasa.org.au and follow the prompts to renew. If you have difficulty logging in, please email Ali at membership@tasa.org.au as she can generate a login for you. Do reach out to membership@tasa.org.au if there is anything we can do to assist you with the renewal process. It is always good to hear from members.
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Journals
Withers, Matt, and Jessie Liu. 2026. ‘Timescales of Transnational Social Reproduction’. Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State & Society 33 (2): 481–504. https://doi.org/10.1093/sp/jxag026.[open access].
Op-ed / Commentary
| Call for Special Issue Proposals for 2028
Each year the Journal of Sociology editors invite expressions of interest from the international community of sociological scholars to guest edit a Special Issue (SI) of the journal. This year they particularly welcome proposals that bring a new spark to the core themes of sociology and advance conversations of discipline-wide relevance.
For the full details of the call, please visit TASAweb here.
Proposals deadline: September 14th, 2026.
| Journal of Sociology, 62 (2)
Issue 62:2 includes a Special Issue on 'Platform Labour in the Global South and Global North', curated by guest editors Lutfun Nahar Lata, Andrew Copolov, and Aditya Ray. This issue includes an Introduction article, six research articles and three book reviews, all centred on digital platform work as this has developed across different geographical locations. In addition to the Special Issue articles, this issue also features four standard articles that all focus on migrants and migration. As usual, in this newsletter you find the abstracts for all articles and a link to each article.
All articles are available here.
| | TASA Thursdays: Experimenting with Estrogen | Thursday 27th August | 12:30pm AEST
We invite you to join us next week for our 27 August Postgraduates TASA Thursdays for a conversation with Professor Celia Roberts and members of the Experimenting with Estrogen Working Group. Drawing on feminism, queer theory, Actor Network Theory and ethnographic research, the team will explore how estrogen is understood across human and non-human bodies, and why this matters for health inclusion. Hear how this ARC-funded collaboration came together, how the team works across disciplines, and what makes a successful research partnership.
| | | Leadership & Communication Workshop |  | TASA members are invited to attend a workshop on Leadership & Communication with Debra Burlington from Risk Strategies.
Debra will be known to some TASA members as the Facilitator of TASA Mentorship Program's popular online sessions, a key ingredient in the success of the program. This session will focus on strategies for effective and constructive communication for people in a leadership role. Leadership & Communication is offered to all participants in TASA's Mentorship Program, and this year we are extending that invitation to all members who may wish to attend as a member of TASA's Career Stage Groups.
TASA has a Student Career Stage Group for undergraduate and postgraduate members, an Early Career Stage Group for members in their first five to eight years working as a sociologist, a Mid Career Stage Group for people in that next busy phase of a sociology career (perhaps eight to fifteen years working as a sociologist), a Senior Career Stage Group for very experienced sociologists, and a Retired Career Stage Group for Retired or semi-Retired sociologists.
Next Tuesday 25th August
If you can't attend the session, but would like to join a career stage group, please email Ali at membership@tasa.org.au to be added to the appropriate Career Stage Group.
| 2026 Monthly ‘Catch Up & Write’ Sessions
Hosted by the Sociology of Youth Thematic Group
The Sociology of Youth thematic group are excited to continue hosting virtual ‘Catch Up & Write’ sessions on the last Monday of every month from 1:00pm to 3:30pm to ensure you all have a dedicated space to write and connect.
If you are interested in joining them, please refer to the below 2026 schedule to register for the sessions you would like to attend. While the writing group is hosted by the Sociology of Youth thematic group, they welcome other TASA members whose research engages with youth in interesting ways. The more the merrier!
2026 SCHEDULE: ‘CATCH UP & WRITE’ SESSIONS
Register to receive Zoom links + save the dates in your calendar!
ONLINE 1:00PM TO 3:30PM AEST
MONDAY 31 AUGUST | REGISTER HERE*
MONDAY 28 SEPTEMBER | REGISTER HERE*
MONDAY 26 OCTOBER | REGISTER HERE*
* Please note each month’s ‘Catch Up and Write’ session requires a separate registration as each session has a different Zoom link *
The Sociology of Youth team look forward to seeing you at an upcoming session!
If possible, please give the new TASA Sociology of Youth LinkedIn page a follow and share amongst your networks.
| | Transitions to Parenthood
Monash University and online
Friday, 23 October, 9:30 am – 5:30 pm
| | | | Engaging with Young People: Constructing, Conducting, and Translating Meaningful Research
Monday, 12 October 2026 from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM (AEDT)
University of Sydney + Online
Free event (limited tickets available)
Some travel bursaries available
This workshop, co-hosted by the Sydney Centre for Healthy Societies and TASA's Sociology of Youth Thematic Group, will be a semi-structured space for researchers (HDR, early career, and established), industry practitioners, and young people to engage in critical conversations about the promise and complexities of youth-focused research. The workshop will also examine how youth research can be practiced in ethical and considered ways, and explore how to navigate its emotive and caring dimensions.
| | | Ready or Not?: Improving adoptability of regional, rural & remote preparedness research | 16 October 2026 | 9:30am - 1:30pm
Join the Remote, Regional & Rural Sociology thematic group, along with academics, professionals, students and community members for Ready or Not?: Improving adoptability of regional, rural & remote preparedness research, a half-day hybrid event exploring how research can better support regional, rural and remote Australia through challenging and disruptive futures. Hear from leading voices, take part in thoughtful discussions and build valuable connections across sectors. Attend online for free or In person
REGISTER HERE
| | | Join the Social Stratification Thematic Group in Melbourne, on 28 August, for a free one-day symposium exploring perceptions and indicators of social class in Australia.
Hear from leading speakers Mark Western, Steven Threadgold and Andrew Leigh, and engage with discussions about inequality, family background, housing, education and healthcare.
The event also offers graduate and early career researchers a supportive space to share work, receive feedback and build collaborations.
| | | Leaving Religion and the Politics of Nonreligion
This symposium, hosted by the Sociology of Religion thematic group & held alongside the 50th anniversary of Religious Studies at the University of Sydney, invites researchers to explore nonreligion as a subject in its own right. Papers are invited on themes including deconversion, religious trauma and recovery, ex-member communities, post-religious life, the politics of nonreligion, the “Mark No Religion” campaign, and the complexities of measuring nonreligion.
University of Sydney, Friday 23 October, hybrid.
| | | | Theorising migration, settlement and diversity in unsettled times
Symposium Keynote: fellow member Amanda Wise
TASA’s Migration, Ethnicity and Multiculturalism and Social Theory Thematic Groups invite submissions for a half-day symposium exploring the theoretical foundations, current developments and future directions of migration, ethnicity and multiculturalism research.
23 November, University of the Sunshine Coast.
| | | Call for proposals for Special Issue by Guest Editors: Issue 1, 2028
The Editors of Health Sociology Review encourage sociologists to submit proposals to develop and edit special issues exploring new ideas and the cutting edge of their field of expertise. they particularly welcome proposals for special issues with a focus on novel empirical domains, theoretical frameworks and/or methodologies in the sociology of health and illness (for example, the intersection of health sociology and climate change and/or artificial intelligence).
Please submit expressions of interest to guest edit the February 2028 Special Issue to Associate Professor Katherine Kenny, Editor in Chief, by 31 August 2026 to hsr@tasa.org.au.
You can access the full call for proposals here.
| Health Sociology Review, Volume 35, Number 2 (July, 2026).
All articles in the latest issue are available here.
| PhD Scholarship Opportunities
| Border Security: Managing a Shared Responsibility Approach to Biosecurity at the Frontline
School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Tasmania
This PhD project will investigate how those working in border biosecurity – at ports and airports – interpret their roles, responsibilities, and everyday practices. This includes investigating how border biosecurity personnel understand their role as part of a shared responsibility approach, the ways in which they work with and collaborate with others, the forms of expertise, skill, and judgement used in making decisions, the challenges they face as part of their role, and how they navigate, work with or work around these to reach outcomes that are judged to be legitimate and credible.
Working with fellow member Professor Vaughan Higgins.
Empowering households as active agents of change in resource-efficient sustainability transitions
RMIT
This doctoral scholarship is part of a multidisciplinary research project funded by the Australian Research Council’s Discovery Project “Empowering households as active agents of change in resource-efficient sustainability transitions “. The project is a collaboration between RMIT University, Monash University and the University of Manchester.
With fellow member Bhavna Middha.
Beyond Participation: Operationalising Theory of Change for Valid & Sustainable Impact Measurement in Community Sport for Development
This PhD looks at how community organisations can turn their Theory of Change (a map of how their work leads to specific outcomes) into a practical, trustworthy way of measuring impact that they can keep using over time.
Supervisors: Professor Camilla Brockett, and fellow member Professor Ramon Spaaij
| Other Events, News & Opportunities
| New: Early Career Scholars Competition 2026
The Research Committee on Sociology of Health (RC15) of the International Sociological Association in collaboration with Dr Gabriela Irrazábal (RMIT Europe) and Dr Ignat Bogdan (Research Institute for Healthcare Organization and Medical Management of Moscow Healthcare Department) invites current PhD students and researchers who obtained their doctoral degrees within the three years prior to the submission deadline and work in the field of sociology of health to submit individual papers (4,000–6,000 words, English, APA 7th edition) on any topic within the sociology of health. The six highest-ranked papers will be presented at the XXI ISA World Congress of Sociology in Gwangju, Korea (4–10 July 2027); the three top-ranked papers will additionally receive RC15 membership for four years (if applicable) and full coverage of the congress registration fee.
Distinctive Work in the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
$2000
This prize is for a distinctive work with public impact in any Humanities, Arts or Social Sciences field. Examples of entries might include, but are not limited to: an exhibition, performance, podcast, digital project, documentary, policy report, public program or educational resource.
Future Leaders Writing Prize
Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences & Future Leaders
$2000
This prize is awarded to a future leader for a piece of written work (e.g., essay, scholarly article, media article, book chapter) from the perspective of the Humanities, Arts or Social Sciences.
People Places Prize
Future Leaders
Prize $10,000
The People Places Prize 2026 is about creative and innovative ideas for living places. The Prize is open to Australian citizens and residents aged 18 and over. The winner will receive $10,000 and their ideas featured on www.peopleplaces.org.au.
Creative and innovative ideas for the Prize can be in any (or combination) of four areas.
– The Arts
– Green spaces
– Building design
– Disability access
Entry deadline: 1 November. Read on... |  | Award for Excellence in Research
The ISA Award for Excellence in Research and Practice is granted by the International Sociological Association to a sociologist whose outstanding contributions advance and promote sociological knowledge and practice, while strengthening the discipline, the profession, and the ISA.
| Kohli Fellowship 2027
Berlin Social Science Center
The Kohli Fellowship is awarded to a promising early-stage researcher in sociology. The fellowship is awarded for 24 months. The current monthly stipend is € 2,700, subject to revision.
Application deadline: 20 September. Read on...
| | In Their Own Words: Self-Determination as Seen by Young People With Intellectual Disability as They Transition into Adulthood,
This UNSW Sydney PhD project, by fellow member Sierra Bromwich, is exploring how young people with intellectual disability experience growing up, making choices and decisions, and becoming adults. Sierra is currently recruiting young people with intellectual disability aged 12–28 years living in Australia.
We invite you to share the study details among your networks.
The full study details, and Sierra's contact information are available here.
| | | | Exploring the health impacts of the purity culture movement on cisgender women.
Two sets of interviews will be conducted:
- interviews with cisgender women above the age of 18, exploring their embodied and health experiences of purity culture
- interviews with support providers who have experience supporting those healing from purity culture, may include: sexologists, psychologists, pelvic pain specialists, coaches, counsellors, MFTs, therapists, somatic body workers etc.
For more information, please scan the QR code in the image on the left or email the research directly, fellow member Noelle Simpson at s225141315@deakin.edu.au
| | | | The Poverty and Inequality Partnership, led by ACOSS and UNSW, is running a research project called ‘Always, usually, sometimes: Poverty over time in Australia’. The study aims to understand the day-to-day and long-term impacts of poverty in Australia, and how experiences of poverty might change over time. The researchers are looking for people who have experienced poverty within the past 5 years to take part in paid research activities for several years (until 2031).
The below orange button links to a set of recruitment materials that the researchers, including TASA member Yuvisthi Naidoo, would appreciate TASA members sharing.
| | |  | Public Lectures
New: Thesis Eleven Annual Lecture: Decline of the West (again)? with Craig Calhoun
5:30-7:30pm, Tuesday 25 August
At the Greek Centre for Contemporary Culture (Mezzanine)
168 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Refreshments from 5pm, lecture at 5:30pm
This year Professor Craig Calhoun (Arizona State University and Princeton University) joins us to reflect on the future of liberal democracy amid the Western world’s crises, institutional decline, and the resurgence of authoritarianism in a dialogue with Peter Beilharz.
Talks
Hemmed In: School Uniforms, Gender Performance, and the Illusion of Choice
Hybrid, Sydney
Wednesday 26 August, 1-2pm (AEST)
Presented by fellow member Jennifer Cheng
Panels
Education in an Age of AI and Ecological Crisis
TODAY 20 August, 6pm (AEST)
St George's Performing Arts Centre, Melbourne
The panel will feature leading voices exploring how education must respond to the defining challenges of this generation.
Summits
Australian Social Cohesion
5-6 November, Melbourne
The summit will explore the forces shaping Australia’s social fabric through the theme: Understanding Australia’s Social Fabric: Diversity, Connections, and the Future of Social Cohesion.
Seminars
ANU School of Sociology Seminar Series
The program for the ANU School of Sociology Seminar Series is now online. All seminars are hybrid, with options to join via Zoom. Please visit the School’s Humanitix page, here, to view and register for upcoming seminars.
Newcastle Youth Studies Centre (NYSC) 2026 Online Seminar Series
The full 2026 program for the Newcastle Youth Studies Centre’s online seminar series is now out (see below), you can check out each seminar, and register for them, at the NYSC Eventbrite page here.
Note, you can watch the full 2025 recordings at the NYSC's YouTube playlist here
|  | Conferences
Global Sociology in Turbulent Times
International Sociological Association
XXI ISA World Congress of Sociology
4 to 10 July 2027, Gwangju, Korea
The deadline for Integrative Sessions is 28 September. Integrative Sessions are semi-plenaries that engage a debate on the Congress theme. Read on...
Towards a post-sustainability society? New challenges, agendas, and roles in socio-ecological transformation and its research
16-18 March 2027, TU Dortmund University, Germany
Abstract submission deadline: 15 November. Read on....
Schooling and Sexualities 4: 30 Years On
Australian Association for Research in Education
It will be primarily an in-person conference with some options for online attendance.
This event is being organised by fellow member Barrie Shannon.
30 Sep - 1 Oct
Adelaide University
Freedom and Hope in the Current Global Context
British Sociological Association
31 March-2 April 2027
University of Manchester, UK
Abstract submission deadline: 11 September. Read on...
| Call for the next Editor of International Sociology Reviews
The International Sociological Association currently has open a call for the next editor of International Sociology Reviews, one of ISA publications. Please consider the call yourself and share it, using link below, among your networks, and if you know people who would be good at the role, do encourage them to apply. It would be terrific to have a TASA member as the editor!
Expression of interest deadline: 10 September. Read on...
Call for Submissions - Special Issues
New: Rethinking Gender Pressures, Education and Wellbeing in Schools
Guest Editors: Associate Professor Garth Stahl (The University of Queensland), Dr. Sarah McDonald (Adelaide University), Dr. Rohann Irving (Flinders University), Professor Murray Drummond (Flinders University)
Gender is a fundamental dimension of child and adolescent development, and growing research highlights the influence of gender norms, expectations, and stereotypes on student wellbeing. Across school, family, peer, and digital contexts, young people encounter gendered pressures that shape their bculine and feminine ideals, gender based harassment, and internalised gender role stress are associated with elevated rates of anxiety, depression, self-harm, eating disorders, and suicidal ideation.
Manuscript submission deadline: 31 January, 2027. Read on...
New: Health security and health and care workforce resilience conflicts, crises and capacities
Health Policy, Elsevier, published in collaboration with the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
Guest editors: Ellen Kuhlmann, Katarzyna Dubas-Jakóbczyk, Michelle Falkenbach, Gabriela Lotta
Health security depends on a resilient health and care workforce. Yet climate change, pandemics, hybrid and armed conflicts, migration and rapidly evolving digital technologies are converging with a severe health and care workforce crisis, exposing major gaps in current health security policies. This special issue explores how health and care workforce resilience can become a cornerstone of health security through stronger governance, leadership, implementation and transsectoral policies. We welcome contributions covering all areas of the health and care workforce addressing health security challenges in single or multiple countries, primarily high-income countries in line with the journal’s scope.
Submission deadline: 31 January 2027 (acceptance to online publication: two days). Read on...
| For membership information, processes, and frequently used resources, visit the Members' Navigator. To contact a member of the team directly, see our TASA Staff page.
| Admin (Sally): admin@tasa.org.au
Events (Penny): events@tasa.org.au
Membership (Ali): membership@tasa.org.au
Indigenous (Morgan): indigenoussociology@tasa.org.au
Digital Publications Editor (Roger): digitalpe@tasa.org.au
Thematic Groups (Molly): thematicgroups@tasa.org.au
Postgraduates (Brooklyn): postgraduates@tasa.org.au | |