Aborigines have been living in Australia for over 50,000 years and the Indigenous economy has sustained their culture and society for that whole period. This course seeks to use a range of basic economic concepts to understand the nature and operation of that economy in order to critically assess various policy options for effectively addressing the significant socioeconomic challenges facing Indigenous Australians in the modern economy. The inherent complexities of these challenges means that students will be also exposed to a range of insights from other disciplines (e.g., philosophy, anthropology and demography) to assess effective policy options that are likely to require a combination of equity or fairness considerations with an efficient allocation of resources.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
Upon Successful completion of this course, students will be able to:- Explain basic economic concepts relevant for Indigenous Australia (e.g. scarcity, opportunity costs, supply and demand, comparative advantage, welfare and policy evaluation)
- Critically assess the historical value and relative importance of resources (i.e., land, labour and capital) in ongoing Indigenous development
- Distinguish between sunk costs and opportunity costs and their respective roles in addressing Indigenous disadvantage.
- Categorise, and attempt to theorise, the role of supply and demand-side factors in Indigenous economic development
- Compare and contrast Indigenous involvement in various sectors in order to identify the comparative advantage of Indigenous Australians.
- Critically assess alternate arguments for efficiency and equity in Indigenous economic development.
- Explain the linkages and tensions surrounding Indigenous economic development through written analysis and/or oral presentation.
Indicative Assessment
Comparative Research Paper, 2000 words (20%) Learning Outcomes 1, 2, 5, 6 & 7Essay, 2000 words (30%) and presentation, 10 min (10%) Learning Outcomes 5, 6, 7
Final Exam, 2 hours, held in the formal examination period (40%) Learning Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 7
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
130 hours of total student learning time made up from: a) 36 hours of contact over 12 weeks: 24 hours of lectures and 12 hours of tutorials; and b) 94 hours of independent student research, reading and writing.Prescribed Texts
Altman, J. and Biddle, N. (2014). Refiguring Indigenous economies: a 21st –century perspective, Chapter 24 in Simon Ville and Glenn Withers The Cambridge Economic History of Australia, CUP, Cambridge, pp.530–55.Hunter, B. (2014) ‘The Aboriginal Legacy’, Chapter 4 in Simon Ville and Glenn Withers The Cambridge Economic History of Australia, CUP, Cambridge, pp.73–96.
Preliminary Reading
An excellent introductory overview of Indigenous Australia is provided (for interested students):Arthur, W.S. and Morphy, F. (eds) (2005). Macquarie Atlas of Indigenous Australia, Macquarie Library Pty Ltd, Sydney
- Austin-Broos, D. and Macdonald, G. (eds) Culture, Economy and Governance in Aboriginal Australia, University of Sydney Press, Sydney (numerous chapters of relevance - especially chapters on discrimination, art, mining).
- Biddle, N., (2014) 'Insights for Indigenous policy from the applied behavioural sciences' Working Paper No. 94, CAEPR, The ANU, Canberra.
- Butlin, N.G. (1993), Economics of the Dreamtime: A Hypothetical History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).
- Fijn, N. Keen, I. Lloyd, C. and Pickering, M. (eds) (2012), Indigenous Participation in Australian Economies II: Historical Engagements and Current Enterprises (Canberra: ANU E Press). See Altman Chapter for Hybrid Economy.
- Hunter, B. (2013). ‘Recent growth in Indigenous self-employed and entrepreneurs ', Working Paper 91, CAEPR, The ANU, Canberra.
- Hunter, B. and Jordan, K. ( 2010) Explaining Social exclusion: Towards Social Inclusion for Indigenous Australians’, Australian Journal of Social Issues, 45(2): 243–65.
- Keen, I.(ed.) (2010) Indigenous Participation in Australian Economies: Historical and Anthropological Perspectives (Canberra : ANU E Press).
- Langton, M. 2010. ‘The resource curse: New outback principalities and the paradox of plenty’, Griffith Review, 28 (Still the Lucky Country?): 46–62.
- Thaler, R.H., Sunstein, C.R., and Balz, J.P., (2013) ‘Choice Architecture’ in Shafir, E., (ed) The Behavioural Foundations of Public Policy Princeton University Press
Assumed Knowledge
First year microeconomics level. Some understanding of first year macroeconomics is also desirable but not essential.Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 1
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $3000 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $4560 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8244 | 22 Jul 2019 | 29 Jul 2019 | 31 Aug 2019 | 25 Oct 2019 | In Person | N/A |