Katherine Sugars

Recruiting and retaining volunteers, especially a diverse representation of volunteers, is an ongoing and problematic task for P&C committee members.

The challenge of finding volunteers and increasing the diversity of volunteers is not unique to the P&C setting nor to Australia.

Volunteering—as we know it—is in decline, with COVID-19 causing further disruption to volunteering initiatives and community building in general. Volunteering, and the decline in volunteering, are well researched but not in a P&C context, which has some unique features compared to other nonprofit and volunteer-led organisations. The most obvious disadvantage is that parents tend to move on from the P&C when their children leave the school, so length of service is limited, but a large advantage is that parents are highly motivated to be involved in their children’s lives.

We were retained by WACSSO to research the perennial question of how to maintain a diverse team of volunteers to organise, support, and engage in P&C initiatives. We have drawn on collective experience and knowledge to identify a practical and versatile framework for building a base of volunteers. We identified areas where knowledge can be shared, as well as where expertise is more sparsely distributed and knowledge-building is warranted.

Analysis of data from 238 surveys and 14 in-depth interviews using mixed methods approach, in conjunction with knowledge from literature, suggests the following:

P&Cs operate in a wide range of schools throughout Western Australia, with complex, situational challenges requiring flexible approaches.

Approaches to increasing volunteer numbers and diversity are inseparable from approaches to developing any aspect of P&C functioning and community building.

P&C situational analysis, ideation, planning, activities, and operations can be improved using a four-dimensional model developed from emerging research themes.

The model, or framework, is based on four findings:

P&Cs that embed foundational principles of nonprofit and volunteer-led organising—identified in this research as volunteering, community, purpose, objectives, culture, process, and leadership—more readily attract and retain volunteers.

Positive change occurs when individuals and groups in the community reflect on and make sense of their current situation, create options, find agency, resources and support, and act.

Initiatives by planners, doers, and relaters can all be successful, as can teamwork combining different styles.

People are drawn to and stay in P&Cs where they feel belonging, purpose, and enjoyment.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to advance the debate on "cosmopolitanism or globalization" by approaching this rich literature from cultural, ethical and governance angles, and by introducing key notions from the work that has taken place in the natural sciences, around the Anthropocene.

Design/methodology/approach - This paper is based on analytical tactics that draw on a literature review and thematic analysis.

Findings - The composite analytical "lens" is introduced here (crafted around cultural, ethical and governance angles) to approach the debate on "cosmopolitanism or globalization" plus the engagement with the literature on the Anthropocene, allow us to engage with current understandings of the global and the "planetary" that are at the heart of cosmopolitanism.
Research limitations/implications - The paper deals with and merges two complex streams of literature ("cosmopolitanism or globalization" and the Anthropocene), and as such, needs to be seen as part of an initial, exploratory scholarly effort.

Practical implications - The analytical "lens" described here shall be of further use to develop current trends re-claiming cosmopolitanism for the study of organizations.
Social implications - This work can help nurture a cosmopolitan sensitivity which celebrates difference, highlights expanded concerns for the "distant other" and fosters involvement in new forms of governance.

Originality/value - The approaches introduced here bring new angles to continue thinking about the planet as the "cosmos" of cosmopolitanism, and to explore new understandings around organizations and (global) responsibility.

The crystal structures of the isomorphous compounds [NH4]6[XMo9O32]·6H2O, (X = Ni or Mn) which crystallize in the rhombohedral space group R32, Z= 1 with a= 10.084(2)Å, α= 104.31(2)° for X = Mn and a= 10.087(4)Å, α= 104.35(3)° for X = Ni have been determined. The stereochemistry of the oxyanions is similar to that described previously for the manganese(IV) compound, with the Mn–O bond length [1.897(3)Å] being slightly longer than the Ni–O distance [1.872(2)Å], and both metal ions conforming to a crystallographic 32 ligand co-ordination geometry. The low-temperature polarized electronic spectra have been recorded, that of the manganese(IV) compound suggesting a ligand-field splitting parameter Δ= 22 500 cm–1, with the 4T2 excited state exhibiting only a small trigonal splitting. The Racah interelectron repulsion parameter B is substantially reduced from the free-ion value, implying considerable covalence in the MnIV–O bonding. Although the spin-forbidden transitions cannot be fitted accurately using a single Racah parameter C, it is apparent that this undergoes only a modest reduction from the free-ion value. The electronic spectrum of the nickel(IV) compound is poorly resolved and suggests a ligand-field splitting parameter Δ≈ 21 000 cm–1.

The absolute configuration of the title compound has been established from a single-crystal room temperature X-ray structure determination of its dibromo derivative, C24H28Br2O8. Crystals of the latter are orthorhombic, space group P21212, a l6.696(5), b l5.660(3), c 4.713(1) Å, Z 2; 1452 independent 'observed' reflections yielded R 0.033 following full-matrix least-squares refinement. The molecule lies on a crystallographic 2 axis. The occurrence of lignans in Eremophila species is summarized.