Relationships Australia: 20 Years of Neighbour Day - Social Connection Campaign Implementation Research

Help support communities to stay connected throughout challenging circumstances.

label Opportunity type

Student opportunity type

College approved Internship
schedule Application date
Applications open/close
24 Mar 2022 | 8pm - 14 Apr 2022 | 3am
school Level

Degree level

Bachelor
Master

Contact

contact_support Contact
Contact name
Internship course convenor
Contact number

About

Credit : For credit

Relationships Australia are a leading provider of relationship support services for individuals, families and communities. We aim to support all people in Australia to achieve positive and respectful relationships.

Neighbour Day is Relationships Australia’s social connection campaign. It aims to support and enable sustainable respectful relationships across communities, while also helping to address loneliness across the nation. It does this through awareness raising and capacity building. In 2019, an estimated 400,000 people got involved in Neighbour Day. Since 2020, the campaign has received media attention, as it shifted to promote #CreativeConnections, supporting communities to stay connected throughout challenging circumstances. We have had the campaign externally evaluated by the ANU and other universities for four years. You can read this blog summarising these findings.

 

Internship details
Availability Winter or Semester 2, 2022
Disciplines
  • Psychology
  • Science Communication
  • Science and Health Policy
Level
  • Undergraduate 3rd year
  • Postgraduate Coursework
Open to international students Yes
Preferred project skills
  • Strong communication skills
  • Quantitative and/or qualitative data analysis
  • Literature reviews
  • Focus groups and/or interviewing
  • Experience with culturally and linguistically diverse communities
  • Interest in community and relational solutions to public health issues
  • Familiarity with issues such as loneliness, mental ill-health and family and domestic violence
Clearances required Working With Vulnerable People (WWVP) card
Host supervisors

Claire Fisher, Senior Research and Projects Officer

(E: Cfisher@relationships.org.au; Ph: 0490 452 926)

Location

2/67 Eyre St

Kingston, ACT

Depending on COVID-19 restrictions, the student/s will start in the office and will then have the opportunity to work from their preferred location, including from home

Project opportunities/benefits for the intern
  • Exposure to a non-for-profit environment
  • Exposure to a non-for-profit working across Australia, in a variety of different sectors. Relationships Australia contributes its practice evidence and skills to research projects, the development of public policy, and the provision of compassionate and effective supports to families
  • Experience designing research projects, analysing data, report writing and giving presentations
  • Experience with project management during dynamic times
  • Exposure to projects occurring across disciplines, with multiple stakeholders, including Councils
  • Experience working with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds

Summary:

This project will use LGAs, whose Councils are not currently actively involved in Neighbour Day, as case studies to explore the process of implementation and promotion of Relationships Australia’s Neighbour Day campaign. This will allow us to measure the effectiveness of implementing the Neighbour Day campaign in a localised area and explore changes to constituents in relation to Neighbour Day’s key campaign outcomes. We will be guided by our previous research into changes in mental health and wellbeing as a result of involvement with neighbours, communities and the Neighbour Day campaign.

The research will involve two surveys, administered before and after the event, as well as focus groups conducted online and in-person (COVID permitting). The student may be required to travel to the LGA (Moreland City Council) in Melbourne, to support the focus groups.

Download:

20 Years of Neighbour Day - Social Connection Campaign Implementation Research