Biography
Dr Rebecca Olive is a Vice Chancellor's Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Urban Research at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University, Australia. She leads the research theme of ‘Regenerative Environments and Climate Action’ at the Centre. Dr Olive also serves as the current President of the Cultural Studies Association of Australasia (CSAA). With a background in feminist cultural studies of sport and leisure, her current work explores how recreational sports shape our relationships to ecologies. In this work, she focuses on swimming and surfing to understand human relationships to coasts and the ocean, and has a growing focus on urban swimming including at beaches and in rivers and pools. She has a co-edited book, Women in Action Sport Cultures, and recently co-edited special issues in the Journal of Sport and Social Issues, Journal of Sport History, and Health and Place. Aside from academic publications, Dr Olive is active in community and public engagement, including community presentations and contributions to national and international media. You can learn more about this work at her website https://movingoceans.com.
Keynote Presentation (2025) | Swimming Together: World-Making with Everyday Practices
