Recipients of the 2024 Priority Social Science Research Grant

Empowering Communities: Building Resilience and Revitalizing Informal Settlements in Sabah (Malaysia) and Makassar (Indonesia) Through Gender-Responsive and Participatory Approaches

This research project employs a mixed-methods approach to explore the social implications of informal settlements on women and children in Sabah, Malaysia, and Makassar, Indonesia—two rapidly urbanising areas experiencing increasing informal housing due to factors such as economic migration, population expansion, and limited access to affordable formal housing. These informal settlements often lack essential services including clean water, sanitation, healthcare, and education, placing their inhabitants at heightened risk of various social, economic, and environmental vulnerabilities. Among those most affected are women and children, who frequently face compounded disadvantages within these environments. Through a comparative analysis of Sabah and Makassar, this study investigates how differing socio-economic and geographical conditions influence the lived experiences of women and children in informal settlements. It aims to identify key social challenges, assess how substandard living conditions affect health, education, and economic prospects, examine adaptive strategies used by residents, and propose context-sensitive policy recommendations to enhance their overall social well-being.

Collaborators:

• Dr Nurulhuda Mohd Satar, Universiti Malaya (Malaysia)
• Sr Dr Zafirah Al Sadat Zyed, Universiti Malaya (Malaysia)
• Dr Venny Veronica Natalia, Hasanuddin University (Indonesia)
• Ms Jayanti Mandasari Andi Munawarah Abduh, Hasanuddin University (Indonesia)

Indigenous Languages and Gendered Knowledge Systems: Preserving Voices in Sri Lanka and Indonesia

This project aims to investigate how indigenous languages encode gender roles and knowledge systems, focusing specifically on traditional narratives and oral histories, and address issues of social and cultural inclusion by highlighting the role of women in preserving indigenous languages and knowledge systems. Utilizing a qualitative approach, with combined ethnographic methods and participatory action research, the project will document indigenous languages, analyze how these languages encode and reflect gender roles and relationships within the community, investigate the contributions of women as custodians of indigenous languages and knowledge systems, and explore the challenges faced by women in preserving their languages and cultural heritage, including socio-economic and educational barriers. The research also aims to promote social inclusion and identify strategies that enhance access to language education and cultural resources for women, youth, and other marginalized groups. Based on research findings, the project team will develop educational resources and training materials and formulate policy recommendations for language preservation and gender equality.

Collaborators:

• Dr Thinh Van Le, Banking Academy of Vietnam-Phu Yen Campus (Vietnam)
• Dr Dian Fajrina, Syiah Kuala University (Indonesia)
• Mr Nalin Wijesinghe, University of Ruhuna (Sri Lanka)
• Mr Chandula Arsakulasuriya, University of Ruhuna (Sri Lanka)
• Mrs Anuradha Gamage, University of Ruhuna (Sri Lanka)

Empirical Analysis of Climate Change Impacts on Mountain Communities and Women in South Asia and Central Asia Evidence and Policy Implications

The study will estimate the effects of climate distress on mountain communities and women through the assessment of expected earnings decline in mountainous regions of the Himalayas in India and Nepal of South Asia, and the Tien Shan and Pamir mountain ranges in the Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan in Central Asia. This study will ascertain the factors contributing for vulnerability differences in mountain communities and gender dimension attributed to climate variations. The study will also analyze how women are unfavorably impacted due to climate change-induced events, what the level and intensity of these impacts are, and what factors are effecting gender-based climate change vulnerabilities in the mountainous regions of South Asia and Central Asia with a goal of offering policy implications for integrating gender dimensions into climate change readiness and mitigation strategies including suitable climate adaptation strategies for mountainous regions.

Collaborators:

• Mr Farrukh Khakimov, Development Strategy Center, Tashkent (Uzbekistan)
• Ms Symbat Satybaldieva, “KG Analytics” Intellectual Foundation (Kyrgyz Republic)
• Professor Kamalbek Karymshakov, Kyrgyz-Turkish Manas University (Kyrgyz Republic)
• Dr Yogesh Ranjit, Tribhuvan University (Nepal)
• Professor Falendra Kumar, University of Jammu (India)

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) Knowledge for Addressing Water Insecurity Challenges and Social Vulnerability in the Lower Mekong River Basin: The Case Studies of Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam

The research project aims to understand and strengthen local communities in the lower Mekong countries namely Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, especially marginalized groups’ resilience to climate change and water insecurity, ensuring the sustainability and well-being of both human society and the ecosystem. To do so, the project team applies the concept of nature-based solutions (NbS), defined by UNEP as “actions to protect, conserve, restore, sustainably use and manage natural or modified terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine ecosystems which address social, economic and environmental challenges effectively and adaptively, while simultaneously providing human well-being, ecosystem services, resilience, and biodiversity benefits.’’ As NbS is a relatively new strategy, it is not yet widely understood and applied by local officials and residents of the lower Mekong countries. This project will examine the idea further while acknowledging the local knowledge in the Mekong region that is fostering actions to ensure local resilience in new climate change contexts. The project will also endeavor to disseminate and transform NbS knowledge into innovative actions at the local levels, and advocate and incorporate NbS into local and regional policy agendas.

Collaborators:

• Dr Aphiradee Wongsiri, Khon Kaen University (Thailand)
• Dr Wanichcha Narongchai, Khon Kaen University (Thailand)
• Dr Lan Thai Huynh Phuong, Vietnam National University (Vietnam)
• Dr Pichdara Lonn, My Village Organization (Cambodia)

A Participatory Learning Model of Indigenous Women-led Social Enterprise in the Mekong Region

This qualitative study aims to promote the indigenous knowledge system, enable sustainable practices of social enterprise through indigenous women leadership and indigenous community participatory learning, as well as support the economic development of the indigenous community in the Mekong region. This research draws on social constructivism to provide a comprehensive framework to understand the dynamics of indigenous knowledge management and its role in building indigenous women-led social enterprise in the Mekong Region. This study will examine four Hmong communities, specifically targeting one White Hmong and one Blue Hmong village in Luang Prabang Province, Laos, as well as one White Hmong and one Blue Hmong village in Nan Province, Thailand. The first phase of the research will apply Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) to explore indigenous knowledge and challenges to transferring knowledge of Hmong, both in terms of social, environmental, economic, cultural, and other conditions that will lead to the problem and actions taken to solve it. The second phase will use Appreciation Influence Control (AIC) to develop a process of participatory learning of Hmong in Thailand and Laos. Lastly, the third phase will utilize the Future Search Conference (FSC) to identify key success factors to achieve participatory learning of Hmong across Thailand and Laos.

Collaborators:

• Mrs Maiyer Xiong, National University of Laos (Lao People’s Democratic Republic)
• Professor Syed Azharuddin, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University (India)
• Mr Dorian Winter, Behavioral Science Research Institute (Australia)
• Mr Jeffery Carlson, Behavioural Science Research Institute (Thailand)

Climate Smart Agriculture Investments for Productivity Enhancement: Implications for Poverty Stricken Small-holder Farmers in Vulnerable Communities

The overall aim of this study is to empirically investigate the impacts of climate change on agriculture in Sri Lanka and China to determine the nature and magnitude of public investments in Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) needed to offset climate change-induced losses anticipated in 2050. The selection of the year 2050 aligns the study outcomes with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s projections and goals. Specifically, the study aims to assess the effects of climate change on the productivity of rice and tea cultivations in Sri Lanka and China managed by various farmer groups including smallholders and impoverished farmers and determine their adaptive capacity; evaluate the vulnerability of agriculture to climate change-related extreme weather events, such as floods and droughts, with a specific focus on paddy and tea cultivations in each country by estimating impacts on farm incomes; determine the size of the CSA investments needed to enhance the resilience of the agricultural sectors in the two countries; and assess the economy-wide effects of agriculture productivity losses owing to climate shocks with and without CSA investments made in Sri Lanka and China. The project outcome will contribute to meeting the country-specific IPCC’s 2050 climate change mitigation targets by generating evidenced-based policy implications.

Collaborators:

• Dr Sumali Dissanayake, University of Peradeniya (Sri Lanka)
• Associate Professor Shyama Ratnasiri, Griffith University (Australia)
• Dr Manoj Thibbotuwawa, Institute of Policy Studies (Sri Lanka)