CHRG

Members of the Contemporary Histories group are concerned with the uses of history in the public sphere and public debate. They research and publish on a range of topics linked to the unfinished business of the modern past, including the (often-interconnected) following:

• Australia’s indigenous past, including leadership, contact history and the role of Christianity

• Modern Pacific history, including special focus on Papua New Guinea

• Biography and other forms of life writing

• Decolonisation: from colonial to postcolonial, as shown in historical, fictional and performative interpretations

• The political uses of history

• Remembering conflict and its aftermath

• Material culture and transmission