Dr Kate Brooks

With experience in social research across the regional, State and Federal domains, Dr Brooks has a high level of experience in maximising program and community outcomes through employing social research. Her years in the research environment have been specialised in social issues linked with policy and projects, focusing on community networks. Dr Brooks' previous work has given her a broad level of experience across a range of community types, and a skill set which incorporates social impact assessments, community proling, community consultations, program and policy evaluation and social monitoring and evaluation. Her particular area of interest, social capital, identifies community knowledge networks as a basis for understanding community interactions, decision making structures, needs and development options in changing environments.
Dr Brooks' work has focussed on the issues associated with impacts on communities caused by changes in their environment and their responses to these changes. Social impact assessments have formed the basis of much of her work ranging across, childcare, tourism and natural resource management. Particularly, she has an interest in assisting communities to proactively manage their environments and become active players in their futures.