Qualifications:

Bachelor of Social Science / Bachelor of Arts (Hon)

Biography and interests:

Melissa Lovell is a PhD candidate in the School of Political Studies and International Relations. Her research interests include liberal theory, Foucault’s ideas about governmentality and the politics of settler societies.
 
She is particularly interested in the continuing relationship between liberal politics and practices of colonialism and colonial government in settler states.

Current research projects:

Melissa is currently working on her PhD project “The Practice of Liberal Government in Settler Societies”. She uses the Northern Territory Emergency Response (NTER) to explore the contemporary relationship between colonial discourse and liberal democratic politics in Australia. Her aim is to develop a better understanding of the role that liberal conceptions of the individual / citizen play in the development of rationales for authoritarian and colonial forms of policy and regulation.  She posits that the political narrative of indigenous affairs policy in Australia has recently revolved around two related ‘failures’; the failure of ‘self-determination’ as a policy and the failure of indigenous individuals and communities to meet the pre-requisites of liberal citizenship. The narrative of failure contributed to a policy environment in which the proscriptive and authoritarian elements of the NTER could be understood as necessary – though not unproblematic - policy tools.

Courses currently taught:

POLS1002 (tutor)

Publications:

Refereed Publications

Lovell, Melissa. (2007). ‘Settler Colonialism, Multiculturalism and the Politics of Postcolonial Identity’ Australasian Political Science Association Conference, Monash University 24-26 September.

Ayirtman, Selen, John Dryzek, Bora Kanra, Melissa Lovell, Penelope Marshall and Ricardo Mendonca. (2010). 'Deliberative Democracy'. In Mark Bevir (Ed), Encyclopedia of Political Theory. Sage Publications. 

Conference Papers & non-refereed Publications

Lovell, Melissa. (2008). ‘Settler Liberalism and the Strange Case of the Northern Territory Intervention’. Presented to the Australian Political Studies Association Conference, University of Queensland 6-9 July.
 
Lovell, Melissa. (2008). ‘Settler Sovereignties and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’. Presented to the New Worlds New Sovereignties Conference, University of Melbourne 6-9 June.
 
Lovell, Melissa. (2006). Can Deliberative Democracy Generate a Postcolonial Society? An Evaluation of Duncan Ivison’s Postcolonial Liberalism [Unpublished Honours Thesis].
 
Lovell, Melissa. (2005). An Analysis of Debates on the Privatisation of Communally Owned Aboriginal Land: A Philosophical and Historical Context. Report prepared for Hon. Warren Snowdon, MP as part of the assessment criteria for the Australian National Internship Program.
 
Lovell, Melissa. (2004). Aboriginal Customary Law and Queensland: Media Sources on the Inclusion of Customary Law in Queensland’s Legal System. Report prepared for Ronan Lee, MP as part of the assessment criteria of the Queensland Internship Program.
 
Warburton, Jeni and Melissa Lovell. (2005). Volunteering and Productive Ageing Report. Prepared for National Seniors Productive Ageing Centre. Summary available at:http://productiveageing.com.au/PDFs/RB%20Vol.1%20No.4.PDF