Abstract

My doctoral thesis explores the social impacts of major infrastructure projects on local communities in Australia. While infrastructure is crucial for economic productivity and quality of life, the significant scale and pace of projects’ rollout has raised concerns about their adverse social impacts. For example, concerns arise over environmental damage, cultural heritage impacts, reduced social cohesion, biodiversity loss, and climate change contributions. Such issues often lead to community opposition, resulting in project delays or cancellations, costing Australia an estimated $20 billion over the past decade and potentially $40 billion over the next. In addition to these unintended adverse impacts on communities, there is evidence in the literature to suggest that there are complex and dynamic relationships between project developers and communities around infrastructure projects. The positive aspects of these relationships can entail building trusted networks, supporting collective efficacy, exchanging knowledge and information, and building shared practice, norms and values, which ultimately have the potential to enhance community sustainability, wellbeing and resilience. This PhD study seeks to unearth and systematically understand the factors contributing to these impacts and consequences. More precisely, the study examines the following topics: identifying and understanding the key potential social hazards and threats of infrastructure projects affecting local communities (i.e., social risk factors); investigating the impacts of social risk factors on local residents’ perceptions of projects’ activities; examining the nature and factors influencing local communities’ opposition to and acceptance of infrastructure projects in their vicinity (namely, social license to operate); investigating the cumulative effects of multiple projects on local communities; and understanding whether and how infrastructure projects may foster community resilience. To investigate this, the study utilizes a mixed methodology that includes a comprehensive literature review, expert interviews, community-based questionnaire surveys, Partial Least Squared Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM), Ordered logistic regression (ologit), Ordered probit regression (oprobit). The thesis comprises six academic papers and aims to contribute to scholarly debate about these social dimensions of infrastructure planning. Furthermore, the research will contribute new community-based knowledge to support rigorous infrastructure planning and delivery in practice, including social risk management.

Bio

Mr. Sabit Otor is a PhD candidate and research officer at the Institute for Infrastructure in Society, and research associate at the Development Policy Centre in Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University (ANU). He is also a research officer at the College of Business and Economics (ANU). Mr. Otor is a recipient of Australian Government Research Training Program (AGRTP) Scholarship and ANU Supplementary Scholarship. He holds a Bachelor Degree of Science and Education from Alexandria University (Egypt), a Bachelor Degree of Economics and a Master of International and Development Economics from ANU.
Supervisor(s) and panel members:

Associate Prof. Hoang Long Chu (Chair) | Email: Long.Chu@anu.edu.au

Prof. Sara Bice (Primary Supervisor) | Email: sara.bice@anu.edu.au

Fellow Hayley Henderson (Secondary Supervisor), Email: hayley.henderson@anu.edu.au
Prof. Israr Qureshi (Panel Member) | Email: israr.qureshi@anu.edu.au

To join in person:

Venue: Seminar room 3, JG Crawford Building, 132 Lennox Crosssing, Acton ANU (Crawford School of Public Policy)

To join online:

Zoom link: https://anu.zoom.us/s/85850651544

Meeting ID: 858 5065 1544

Passcode: 235685