ILWS - Institute of Land, Water and Society
Researchers
Professor Margaret Alston
BSocStud Syd, MLitt New England , PhD NSW, GDipComApp Riverina Murray/HE, MAASW
Professor of Social Work and Human Services
Professor Margaret Alston has a high media profile and is often called on to speak on rural social issues and to contribute to Government policy making decisions.
"I do a lot of media," says Marg whose recent research projects include social impacts of drought, rural issues, rural women and sport, violence against women in rural areas, rural youth and unemployment, and women and agriculture.
Marg has a farming background (she and her husband have farmed for 30 years) and her passion for the recognition of the contribution made by rural women has fired much of her research.
"I have a real commitment to farming and to making rural women's work visible and giving some sort of credibility to that.and it's still not recognised enough," says Marg who has written two books based on that theme, the last one being Breaking through the Grass Ceiling: Women, Power and Leadership in Rural Australia.
Marg, currently a Director for the Foundation for Australian Agriculture Women, organised and coordinated the First National Rural Women's Forum at Parliament House, Canberra in 1995. Since then she has been an invited delegate to various Federal Government summits and forums on issues including rural finance, domestic violence, and women in agriculture and resource management.
In recent years she has been a member of various boards including the Board of General Practice Education; the Family Services Council, Family and Community Services Department, Canberra and the National Women's Advisory Group. At present she is a member of the board for Centacare, Riverina.
In 2003 she spent a month working in the Gender Division of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation in Rome , assessing the impact of gender mainstreaming policy on rural women.
Marg is widely published in the field of rural gender and rural social issues. Her most recent coedited book is Fields of Social Work Practice 2 nd edition. Oxford University Press.
A very busy person, Marg devotes time to working out in the field in rural communities doing timeintensive qualitative research. Currently she is working on the impacts of drought on young people's access to education in rural and remote areas. She also supervises 9 PhD students and is an associate supervisor for another 7.
In April 2005 she was made an Honorary Professor of Social Work at Sydney University . Also in 2005 she was presented with an Edna award which is a Women's Electoral Lobby (WEL) award honouring the late Edna Ryan. Her award was for mentoring other women.