Talia’s multi-disciplinary research interests include racism and prejudice development; intercultural understanding and antiracism - at an individual and organisational level; culturally informed and responsive education and social policy design, implementation and evaluation; reconciliation and recognition; contested and difficult histories; ethnography and storytelling; and children's agency. She is committed to participatory research methodologies that centre the priorities of, be led by, and engage with First Nation peoples and communities.

Her PhD research focussed on everyday reconciliation in the education system and explored how reconciliation was (re)constructed in education at the policy, school and classroom levels as well as through the perspectives of children in two primary schools.

Talia has co-organised conferences, seminar series and workshops, including between the Australian Public Service and academia. Talia has presented at national and International conferences, and has been a visiting scholar at Queens University, Belfast and Victoria University, Wellington. In 2019 and 2020, she co-convened the Indigenous Studies first year undergraduate course and has lectured into other courses.

Talia’s more recent applied projects have focussed on identifying organisational cultural change approaches to institutional racism in higher education, primary schools and the public service.

Talia undertook her PhD as a Sir Roland Wilson Scholar, and currently maintains a role in the public service as a researcher in residence focussing on First Nation priorities and engagement in disability policy and delivery and as a Research Fellow at CAEPR. In 2018 she was awarded the Joan Uhr Prize for her contributions to public policy and research.

Conferences / Papers / Seminars

2019

Reconciling education policies and the everyday practices in schools in relation to reconciliation in Australia, at the Australian Association Research for Education, Brisbane, Australia (December 2019)

Settled Reconciliation: ‘Settled reconciliation’ in education policy and practice – how celebrations of reconciliation can silence diversity, agency and racism, at the AIATSIS Research Conference, Brisbane, Australia (July 2019). Joint paper with Ginibi Robinson

2017      

Celebrating Reconciliation or Racism in Celebration: Institutional racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and cultures in primary and secondary schools at the 50 Years of Institutional Racism Conference, November 2017, joint paper with Melinda Herron               

Reconciling reconciliation - reflections from an Australian school ethnography; Oxford Ethnography and Education Conference, Oxford

2015                     

Reconciliation in schools in Australia; Centre for Shared Education, Queens University

Racism and Education Outcomes of Indigenous Australians; Social Policy Research Conference, UNSW - joint paper with Dr Nick Biddle and Dr Naomi Priest

Committees / workshops

2016                      

National Reconciliation Week ANU Unpacking Reconciliation initiative Organising Committee - post-graduate showcase of Indigenous Studies research to ANU Council; published an ANU booklet on post-graduate Indigenous Studies research; recorded a pledge video of executives, staff and student regarding reconciliation; and hosted Stan Grant public lecture.

2015                      

Organising committee for symposium on Racism and the Health and Wellbeing of Children and Youth ¬ Understanding impacts, Finding solutions held at ANU

2014-present    

CASS RAP Committee