The Breaking Down Barriers project seeks to inform and shape policy and practice to break cycles of poverty and disadvantage in Australia.
In partnership with the Paul Ramsay Foundation, the project addresses the need for accessing better data that will allow an increased understanding of the extent, nature, and causes of socio-economic disadvantage. It also encourages solutions that will enable program development and policy innovation that can make a real difference to individuals and to broader communities.
Our Research
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Breaking Down Barriers Community Profiles
This Research Insight/Rapid Analysis introduces Breaking Down Barriers Community Profiles – an interactive web-based data visualisation tool to track factors associated with economic poverty among Australian communities.
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Individual Earnings Changes and the Business Cycle
This report studies the relationship between earnings changes and business-cycle fluctuations in the Australian economy.
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Prevalence of, and Recovery from, Negative Earnings Shocks
This report explores year-to-year variations in earnings for Australian tax filers and the factors and timeframe that influence their financial recovery.
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From Partnered to Single
This report explores the impact that a relationship breakdown can have on disposable household income and an individual’s vulnerability to experiencing poverty.
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Dynamics of Income Poverty in Australia
Incomes of Australians have on average risen substantially over the last three decades and continue to trend upwards. However, some in the community continue to be left behind.
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Measuring Individual Poverty
This report captures family income and sociodemographic measures for individuals, which sheds light on the poverty faced by Australians at a household level.
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Does poverty in childhood beget poverty in adulthood in Australia?
This report explores the intergenerational transmission of disadvantage, providing evidence that experiencing poverty as a child can impact future outcomes.
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Spatial and Community Dimensions of Income Poverty
This report captures the dynamic state of poverty in Australia, highlighting the extent to which community poverty rates have changed over time.
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Social Housing and Poverty in Australia
This is the first of three Rapid Analysis reports that explores the connection between social housing and poverty.
Community Profiles
The Breaking Down Barriers Community Profiles is an interactive data insights tool that has been specifically designed to showcase the data that are curated inside our Shared Data Environment (BDB-SDE).
This data tool provides key characteristics and insights into Australian communities to support service providers, policy makers, shapers, and analysts to make better, data driven decisions to support change
Data Visualisations
We have developed industry leading data visualisations to interact and engage with the data behind the Breaking Down Barriers report series.
These visualisations allow us to bring the BDB reports to life, by communicating the research narrative in a unique and hands-on way.
Shared Data Environment
The Breaking Down Barriers shared data environment (BDB-SDE) will enable comprehensive research by allowing more people to access and link key datasets to better understand entrenched and persistent disadvantage in Australia.
Foundation Fellows Training Program
The Breaking Down Barriers Foundation Fellow Training Program is designed to bring university graduates with an interest in data analysis and a passion for evidence-based policy to work side-by-side with our world class researchers on policy-relevant research.
The Foundation Fellow position is a two-year program with a focus on developing key skills and experience whilst adding value to Melbourne Institute research projects. The knowledge gained over this program will also be relevant for the Foundation Fellow’s future career aspirations in academia and/or industry.
The Paul Ramsay Foundation
The Paul Ramsay Foundation seeks to identify and partner with individuals, communities and organisations working to create an Australia where people can overcome disadvantage and realise their potential.
The late Paul Ramsay AO established the Foundation in 2006 and, after his death in 2014, left the majority of his estate to continue his philanthropy for generations to come.
