Vamsi Krishna Pothuru, working under the guidance of Prof. Kanchan K Malik and Treesa Reena John, working under the guidance of Prof. Vinod Pavarala, both PhD scholars from the Department of Communication visited University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia from April 6-21, 2025 as part of a Government of India SPARC (Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration) project.

Vamsi and Treesa with Profs Pradip Thomas and Elske van de Fliert at the School of Communication & Arts, UQ

The SPARC project, Community Media, Participation & the Decolonisation of Indigenous Knowledge Systems is a collaborative project between the University of Hyderabad (UoH) and University of Queensland (UQ), Brisbane, Australia. The project is led by Profs Vinod Pavarala, Kanchan K Malik and Vasuki Belavadi at the Department of Communication, UoH and by Professors Elske van de Fliert and Pradip Thomas at the School of Communication and Arts, UQ.

Vamsi & Treesa with Prof. Susan Forde and Dr. Bridget Backhaus at Griffith University

During the visit, the two scholars were primarily engaged in data collection and literature review under the guidance of Profs Thomas and van de Fliert. They presented their work at the research seminar, ‘Indigenous and Local Knowledge Systems and Community Radio in India’ at UQ. At the research seminar, Vamsi and Treesa presented research findings from their field visits in Telangana and Kerala, respectively, while Prof. Thomas discussed the political context of indigenous knowledge system in India and Prof. van de Fliert discussed the negotiation between indigenous and mainstream knowledge systems. Vamsi and Treesa also presented their own ongoing Ph.D. work at a Doctoral research roundtable in the School of Communication and Arts, UQ.

With Prof. Heather Anderson of Griffith University at the 4ZZZ Community Radio Station in Brisbane

As part of the project, the scholars visited three community radio stations located in Brisbane, namely: 4EB 98.1 FM, Triple A 98.8 FM and 4ZZZ 102.1 FM to understand their indigenous programming and operations. The visits contributed to the understanding of indigenous community radio landscape in Australia and how this medium has catered to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in the region.

Treesa with Prof. Susan Forde at the Triple A Community Radio Station

Furthermore, the two scholars also visited Griffith University in Brisbane, where they presented their research in a collegial scholarly advisory session. They also had the opportunity to interact with academics with whom some faculty at the Department of Communication at UoH have ongoing collaborations.

Vamsi with Prof. Susan Forde at the Triple A Community Radio Station

These included Prof. Susan Forde, Prof. Heather Anderson, Dr. Bridget Backhaus, Dr. Samid Suliman, and Dr Kasun Ubayasiri.

Vamsi Krishna Pothuru presenting his work at a UQ Seminar

It may be mentioned that in August 2024 Prof. Vinod Pavarala spent two weeks at University of Queensland’s School of Communication and Arts as a George Watson Visiting Fellow.

Treesa Reena John presenting her work at a UQ Seminar

And, Profs Pradip Thomas and Elske van de Fliert of University of Queensland visited University of Hyderabad for two weeks during January-February 2025 during which they gave talks, conducted workshops, joined the UoH team for fieldwork, and presented at an international symposium held on UoH campus.