Australia, explained.

A housing crisis might seem like a domestic problem, but there are significant foreign policy wins on offer.

The potential knock-on effects to Australian foreign policy from the housing crisis are large (Miki Fath/Unsplash)

Betting the house on Australia’s soft diplomacy

A housing crisis might seem like a domestic problem, but there are significant foreign policy wins on offer.

Grant Wyeth

14 March 20254 min read

Housing will be a central issue of Australia’s forthcoming election. The cost and scarcity of it is a national emergency. While younger voters may force politicians to think about it more clearly when they reach the ballot box, the problem should also be viewed through a foreign policy lens. International students – one of the key arms of Australian global engagement – are also being subjected to these abject conditions.

There’s a lot of blame to go around, and international students haven’t escaped some of it being thrown their way. Yet at only six per cent of the rental market, their demand-side contribution to the problem isn’t large. However, the potential knock-on effects to Australian foreign policy from the housing crisis are large. And these are effects I’m witnessing in real time.

As I currently divide my time between Sweden and Australia, when I’m in Melbourne, I’ve found myself acting in the unofficial role of the Swedish International Student Welcoming Committee. This is, of course, a role I relish. Melburnians love talking about Melbourne, explaining which trams go where, how to find the bars the city loves to hide, and, most importantly, taking students to the footy. The value of knowing a local for newcomers to the city is immense.

International students are not just a source of revenue for universities, or a boost to local economies. They are potential ambassadors for Australia to cultivate.

But in recent weeks, this role has expanded. Due to the dire housing situation, I’m currently sleeping on the couch as I’ve taken in a pair of Swedish students struggling to find accommodation.

Each day, alongside their classes, they are out inspecting apartments, only to come back to my place dejected because of exorbitant prices, unliveable conditions and landlords demanding six months' rent in advance (which is illegal) or being unwilling to rent for the short periods of time students require.

International students are not just a source of revenue for universities, or a boost to local economies. They are potential ambassadors for Australia to cultivate. The objective is for them to return to their countries of origin and speak positively about their time in Australia to everyone they meet, for them to also rise to positions of power and influence and use their connection to Australia to forge new economic relationships between Australia and their home country, or become major political or diplomatic figures who know and admire Australia.

Housing will be a central issue at the forthcoming Australian election (AEC Images/Flickr)

For a country like Australia of limited cultural reach, international students seed knowledge of the country throughout the world. This is particularly important as major neighbours such as Indonesia move up a tier in international power and may no longer see Australia as in their league. A large cohort of students who have studied in Australia helps to keep Australia in Indonesia’s line of sight.

These foreign policy objectives fail if the most basic thing international students need – accommodation – is impossible to secure, or poor quality, and too expensive. It ruins the whole experience of studying in Australia. Instead of returning home enamoured with the country, they instead feel disgruntled and used. It is an experience contrary to the hope of seeing diplomatic dividends, such as fostering new economic opportunities or emerging political leaders keen on cooperation with Australia.

Australia has made the concept of “whole-of-nation” a central pillar of its foreign policy approach. For this to be more than just a slogan, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade needs to think seriously about issues that it may not consider its traditional purview. Of course, state governments and local councils bear heavy responsibility here too. As do the universities themselves – with some student accommodation seemingly designed to extract more money from international students rather than provide them with the housing they need to pursue their studies.

We are all ambassadors for Australia, engaged in diplomacy whenever we meet someone from outside of the country.

Yet within this failure of responsibility from governments and institutions lies an opportunity. An opportunity for ordinary citizens to pick up the slack and see themselves as active foreign policy actors. As capping student numbers is a self-defeating policy, there’s a chance instead to see your spare room or granny flat as a tool of Australia’s influence in the world. To give the government’s “whole-of-nation” concept some real substance – to give each of us a role in its application.

We are all ambassadors for Australia, engaged in diplomacy whenever we meet someone from outside of the country. And each person we meet, and interaction we have, is of great importance – it builds an impression of what kind of country Australia is. If we wish to project ourselves globally as kind, friendly, hospitable, and trustworthy – and by extension be a force for good in the world – then these are traits we need to actively embody.

Housing is the essential platform from which all positive aspects of humanity flow. Like food, it should be abundant, good quality and affordable. A society that fails to provide such housing for its emerging generations is not only attacking its domestic capabilities, it is attacking its own international reputation as well.

To recognise this is also to recognise that we can no longer outsource responsibility to governments, that civil society should take a greater leadership role in advancing the national interest. The simple act of opening your own door can also open doors for the country.

About the author

Grant Wyeth

Grant Wyeth is a columnist for The Diplomat and is the editor at Asia-Pacific Development, Diplomacy and Defence Dialogue (AP4D).

Topics

Australia Trade & investment Economy Migration & refugees