Introduction: Why Australia and Latin America? On Mapping Connections and Its Implications for Knowledge Production

Abstract

This introduction discusses the development of the field of Latin American Studies in Australia to consider its place in the broader academy. It outlines some of the current trends in the field, both positive and negative, and suggests some potential research agendas. Ultimately, it argues that Latin American Studies in Australia has never been (and should not seek to be) a re-creation of American or British models. Rather, Latin Americanist scholars in Australia generate unique research questions and agendas due to their own peripheral status as inhabitants of the Southern Hemisphere.