School of Humanities, Languages and Social Science, Griffith University

🗞️ Recently, Dr Susan Grantham, Senior Lecturer in Communication, presented at the Emergency Media and Public Affairs (EMPA) Conference, speaking on the role of short‑form video and influencer content in contemporary crisis communication.

Her presentation explored how platforms such as TikTok are reshaping public communication, particularly during moments when audiences are seeking information, reassurance, and connection in real time.

Alongside this, Susan and Kai Grant (PhD candidate in HLSS) received a Highly Commended award in the Research category for their collaborative work, which examines evolving communication practices in emergency contexts.

The conference brought together practitioners, researchers, and emergency media professionals to consider the future of communication, and the intersection of platforms, publics, and crisis response.

🌏 Conference Presentation

Last week, Dr Mingyan Amy Hu presented two papers at the Redesigning Pedagogy International Conference 2026 in Singapore, contributing to research on AI in language education and teacher learning.

Working with colleagues across the Griffith University AI in Language Education Research Team, her presentations explored collaborative approaches to AI, language education, and ethical assessment, with a focus on keeping teachers at the centre of these conversations.

Reflecting on this work, Mingyan noted the importance of collaboration and the role of educators in shaping how emerging technologies are understood and implemented in practice:

'Working on these two projects has reminded me how important it is to keep teachers at the centre of conversations about AI in education, and how much thoughtful collaboration can make possible'.

The conference, hosted by the National Institute of Education at Nanyang Technological University, brought together researchers and educators from across the globe under the theme Education Research for Impact.

The list of all presenters of the conference can be found here: https://www.rpic2026.com

📖 Smallroom Reading Night

The final Smallroom Reading Night for Trimester 1 will take place tomorrow on Friday 5 June at the Griffith University Gold Coast Drama Theatre, featuring author Emily Lighezzolo.

Organised by Smallroom’s student and graduate team, the evening continues the collective’s ongoing work in creating space for writers and creatives to share their work and connect with audiences.

📅 Friday 5 June
📍 GUGC Drama Theatre
🕡 6.30pm
🔗 Event details: https://www.facebook.com/share/17f3yVWAk7/

🌟 May HLSS Staff Feature – Dr Rafael Azeredo

This month, we’re featuring Dr Rafael Azeredo, Lecturer in HLSS, who joined the School in 2025.

Raf's work draws on human geography, sociology, and international studies, with a research focus on the intersection of labour and migration regimes. He specialises in the Latin American diaspora and the governance of temporary migration in Australia.

In this feature, Raf reflects on his scholarship and teaching, including a research project that is nearing completion, and his plans to teach his redeveloped course in Trimester 2, Public Policy for Change. He also reflects on the role of the humanities, and how this discipline brings nuance, empathy, and courage at a time when those qualities are most needed.

Raf's work, through both his teaching and research, reflects the importance of critical inquiry in understanding movement, belonging, and policy in contemporary contexts.

📡 Research Feature

An Australian Research Council–funded study led by Monash and Griffith researchers has revealed the extraordinary role community radio plays in supporting Australian music. A report based on the study - which is co-led by Professor Susan Forde (HLSS) was launched at the Victorian Music Development Office’s Music and Data Insights Summit in Melbourne, last week.

The report provides a detailed analysis of how community broadcasting supports Australian music, from artist discovery through to audience engagement and industry participation.

As Professor Forde explains:

'This research delivers a comprehensive economic analysis of the contribution community radio is making to the Australian music industries for the first time. From this work, we know that community radio music stations contribute about $153 million each year to the Australian music industries; and play more than double the volume of Australian music than commercial radio does'.

The findings quantify what has long been recognised within the sector, highlighting the scale and reach of community radio in supporting local and emerging artists.

Reflecting on this, she notes:

“People within the sector and within the music industries instinctively know what community broadcasting does… but putting figures behind that really helps.”

The research also points to the central role community radio plays in connecting audiences with new music:

'30% of weekly community radio listeners discovered a local or emerging artist by listening to community radio'.

She added that: 'First Nations stations are also doing some real heavy lifting when it comes to playing Australian music as well — they comprise one-third of the top 39 ‘music intensive’ stations, which demonstrates the high volume of Indigenous and other Australian music they are playing every week'.

The report has since prompted national media coverage and ongoing conversation about the place of community broadcasting within Australia’s cultural and creative industries. It has been covered in outlets including in The Music Network, ArtsHub, The Conversation, Beat Magazine, Radioinfo, and Resident Advisor, among others.

🔗

Community Radio Drives $153 Million Into Australia’s Music Economy Annually Australian community radio stations contribute more than $153 million annually to the national music economy, according to a landmark new study.

🎧 HLSS in the media

Last month, Professor Jacqueline Ewart was interviewed by SBS for 'News in Depth', on a segment exploring whether migrant communities and non‑citizen taxpayers are being overlooked in cost‑of‑living discussions.

A crisis communication expert, Jacqui spoke to the role of political communication in times of uncertainty, highlighting what governments and leaders can do to better engage and reassure migrant communities during periods of economic and social strain.

🔗 You can listen to the segment here:

Are migrant communities and non-citizen taxpayers being forgotten in cost of living conversations? The war in the Middle East has impacted the cost of living in Australia, affecting communities across the country. Representatives for migrant and refugee communities are concerned needs are not adequately being addressed however, as economic and mental health impacts combine.

Congratulations to Professor Bruce Buchan (HLSS), whose recent book, co‑authored with Dr Linda Andersson Burnett (Uppsala University), has been shortlisted for the Pickstone Prize by the British Society for the History of Science.

Awarded biennially, the Pickstone Prize recognises the best scholarly book in the history of science published in English over the previous two years, celebrating innovative and ambitious research that advances understanding of the scientific past.

Titled 'Race and the Scottish Enlightenment: A Colonial History, 1750–1820', and published by Yale University Press, the book offers critical insight into how colonialism shaped the Scottish Enlightenment’s conception of race and humanity

🔗 More on the book:

https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300264388/race-and-the-scottish-enlightenment/

🔗 Pickstone Prize shortlist:

https://bshs.org.uk/pickstone-prize-2026-shortlist/?fbclid=IwY2xjawRoszZleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFBTXpxZG9aOEtxMklxeWNHc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHnGvISg-Idg4MxGO4IHJUakrM8LnYsMVU9yyRIzeHuKNulU5JdVfbA-H5EeQ_aem_YxisRLMvb64i6KRaiBZJxA

Race and the Scottish Enlightenment How colonialism shaped the Scottish Enlightenment’s conception of race and humanity In the decades after 1750, an increasing number of former medical st...

📚 Publication Alert!

Associate Professor Ben Fenton-Smith and Senior Lecturer in Applied Linguistics Dr Ian Walkinshaw (HLSS), together with Associate Professor Pamela Humphreys (Macquarie University), have recently published a new chapter examining the growing phenomenon of English Medium Instruction (EMI) in Asian higher education.

Titled ‘EMI: English Medium Internationalisation in Asian Higher Education’ and published in The Cambridge Handbook of Multilingual Education, the chapter analyses how EMI operates across ten higher education systems, including Singapore, Malaysia, China, Japan, and South Korea.

The authors suggest that EMI can be more effectively understood as a form of English medium internationalisation, where English functions as a key mechanism for advancing institutional and national internationalisation agendas.

The chapter was supported by the Griffith Institute for Educational Research and the Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research.

🔗 Read more:

EMI (Chapter 18) - The Cambridge Handbook of Multilingual Education The Cambridge Handbook of Multilingual Education - August 2025

📖 Smallroom Reading Night

The Smallroom Writers Collective returns on Friday 8 May at Griffith University’s Gold Coast campus, with an evening of open mic readings and a feature performance by poet Jane Frank, celebrating her new collection Gardening on Mars.

Smallroom is open to anyone with an interest in the creative arts, and is a great way to connect with other writers, share work, and be part of a supportive creative community.

The evening continues Smallroom’s longstanding commitment to creating space for emerging and established voices to share work, bringing together poetry, performance, and community.

🔗 Event details: https://www.facebook.com/events/1488755312886460/

📚 Publication Alert!

Associate Professor Robert Mason (HLSS) has recently published a new book chapter with Professor Celmara Pocock (University of Southern Queensland) titled ‘Heritage tourism and the ethics of bearing witness’.

Published in 'The Routledge Handbook of Heritage Ethics', the chapter explores the ethical risks of commodifying unhappy heritage for tourist consumption.

🔗 For those with an interest in history, tourism, heritage, and ethical practice, check out the chapter here: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781003204220-15/heritage-tourism-ethics-bearing-witness-celmara-pocock-robert-mason