New PhD Thesis: Regulatory Design for Food Waste Governance
International Food Loss and Food Waste Studies Group
Dear all,
I am very pleased to share my recently published PhD thesis, which examines the governance of food waste in Australia:
Cultivating a Nationally Integrated, Context-sensitive Regulatory Framework for Food Waste in Australia: From Endless Mopping to Turning off the Taps
You can access the full thesis here: https://eprints.qut.edu.au/260441/
The research uses a mixed-methods approach, combining legal analysis with interviews with 21 council officers responsible for waste from 14 local governments in Queensland.
Queensland offers an interesting test case due to diverse landscapes, key industries, varied demographics, and complex challenges arising from urban, regional, island, and Indigenous communities, alongside a strong tourism sector and rapid population growth. These complexities offer valuable insights that can inform strategies and policies relevant to various contexts across Australia as well as internationally.
The study argues that food waste is not just a technical or behavioural issue, but also a governance challenge rooted in regulatory design. The thesis proposes a principles-based regulatory model to strengthen national coordination, support local flexibility, and embed prevention, shared responsibility, and circular economy principles into law, building a more coherent, consistent, enforceable, and future-oriented system for food waste governance.
I hope you find it an interesting read. Please also feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulperovic/
Kind regards,
Dr Paul Perovic
Centre for a Waste-free World
Queensland University of Technology
FHEA | School of Law | Faculty of Business and Law | LinkedIn
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