Gender ups and downs: the new perspective

Social Studies

Changes and progress in the status of women in South Australia are being mapped by a unique new online website produced by social researchers at the University of Adelaide.

Gender Indicators Online is a collaborative initiative of the University's Australian Institute for Social Research, the Premier's Council for Women, Office for Women and the Department of Premier and Cabinet.

The website - www.aisr.adelaide.edu.au/gio - provides a diverse range of statistics reflecting the position and situation of women and men in the State. The data, categorised under nine themes and various sub-themes, is easily accessible and aims to help government departments develop, implement and evaluate gender-sensitive policies.

"This is an important resource for policy developers and researchers, particularly in government and other public sector organisations, but it is open to anyone interested in the field," said the Executive Director of the Australian Institute for Social Research, Associate Professor John Spoehr.

"This resource will help support a gender-sensitive approach to the further development, implementation and monitoring of South Australia's Strategic Plan. It will help government better understand how South Australia is tracking against specific targets in the plan from a gender perspective."

The data is the most up to date available from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and government departments and will be updated regularly.

"The key principles of the site are that it's very quick and simple to use, users don't need any training, and it was cost-effective to develop," Mr Spoehr said.

Data on the site is presented under the themes: crime and justice, education and training, employment, informal networks and community engagement, health, income, leadership and decision making, population and demographics, and recreation and leisure.

Rosslyn Cox, responsible for the site's construction, said one of the strong features of the site was its dynamic presentation of data, enabling comparison of different years and different areas. This feature will be further developed.

The site was developed with the assistance of the University of Adelaide's Marketing and Strategic Communications Office.

For more information visit: www.aisr.adelaide.edu.au/gio

Story by Robyn Mills