News from the Faculty of Arts, Monash University, Melbourne Australia
Travel in Atomic Sunshine
Robin Gerster’s book, Travels in Atomic Sunshine: The Australian Occupation of Japan has been shortlisted, in a group of three, for the 2009 NSW Premier’s Australian History Prize.
Travels in Atomic Sunshine was also shortlisted earlier this year for the Queensland Premier’s Literary Awards.
Travels in Atomic Sunshine is published by Scribe Publications, 2008.
Jeff Jarvis, Vicki Peel with Peter Doody, Manager of Working Hostels Mildura
Are backpackers long term tourists or short term migrants?
This is a question that Dr Jeff Jarvis and Dr Vicki Peel from the Graduate Tourism Program at the National Centre for Australian Studies tried to answer when looking at what impact Working Holiday Makers had on the tourism economy of Mildura in north west Victoria.
The pilot study, which is a joint initiative with Tourism Victoria, found that Working Holiday Makers (WHMs) are one of the fastest growing international visitor sectors in Australia. Between 2004/05 and 2008/09 the market has increased by over 79%, with just under 188,000 young internationals arriving in Australia last year. This makes Working Holiday Makers the ‘boom segment’ for Australia’s tourism industry. The market has been estimated to be worth over $1.8 billion per year to Australia in 2007/08.
The Working Holiday Maker visa permits young international travellers aged between 18 and 30, from nineteen countries the right to work and travel in Australia for up to 12 months. It is a popular visa for young backpackers to take up.
In 2005 and 2006, the Howard Government changed the requirements for Working Holiday Maker Visas. The changes allow these backpackers to apply for an additional WHM visa, if they spend three months working in agriculture. It was aimed at generating wealth for regional economies, while providing farmers with a reliable and mobile workforce.
Dr Jarvis and Dr Peel found that Working Holiday Makers had a substantial impact on the tourism economy of Mildura. On average, they stayed in town for two months while they worked, and spent $3200 during their stay. Dr Jarvis and Dr Peel also found that farmers were benefiting, with Working Holiday Makers interested in staying in jobs for the full 3 months.
The researchers found there is scope for the Federal Government to extend the upper age limit of the working holiday visa from 30 to 35. This would cater to the booming international tourism market for career breakers or ‘flash packers’ as they are now known.
Dr Jarvis and Dr Peel are in the process of applying for funding via an ARC-Linkage grant to roll their study out across more regions around Australia.
Listen to the ‘Backpacker benefits’ radio interview on ABC Local radio
