Dr Jorge Knijnik is a Brazilian-Australian academic currently working  in the intersection between curriculum, democratic schooling and youth political education in the Global South. Dr. Knijnik is well-known for his wide understanding of industry partnerships that promote practical research endeavours. His current research develops procedures that offer clear evidence to industry and governments on where to focus their expenditures to increase youth wellbeing and educational outcomes.

A/P Jorge Knijnik has a high level of accomplishments in promoting pioneering and relevant theoretic and practical approaches to the intersections of educational results, gender equity, social cohesion, social activism and sports participation, going back to his PhD dissertation which looked at gender diversity and human rights within the Brazilian sports realm. Jorge has a rich know-how - demonstrated by domestic and global accolades - in developing and assessing pedagogical transformative hands-on experiences within super-diverse environments, that respect each participant’s complex mix of identities including gender, physical capacities, philosophies and cultural practices, towards positive educational, community and health results.

Jorge has a verified capability to produce research with communities that have an actual impact on community members. The results of his action-research that saw the win of civic society against the developers who sought to build a shopping mall in one of Rio de Janeiro's most iconic heritage areas during the 2007 Pan-American Games were described in a Q1 journal paper that has been cited over 100 times worldwide. Jorge’s research findings have impacted international public policies, such as the UN WOMEN 2014 report “Envisioning women’s rights in the post-2015 context” and the 2014 UNICEF report on social inclusion, sport and youth vulnerability.

His teaching and research achievements were recognized by an OLT ‘Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning’ presented by the Australian Government and the ‘Building the Gender Equity’ award presented by UN/Women, UNESCO and the Brazilian Research Council. Jorge’s latest books include Tales of South American Football: passion, revolution and glory (Fair Play Publishing), Women’s Football in South America: social challenges and historical perspectives (vol 1, Brazil with Ana Costa and vol 2 Spanish Countries with Gabriela Garton, Palgrave McMillan), Historias Australianas: Cultura, Educação e Esporte do outro lado do mundo (Fontoura) and The World Cup Chronicles: 31 Days that rocked Brazil (Fair Play Publishing). Jorge holds a PhD in Social Psychology at Universidade de Sao Paulo (Brazil) and is a senior researcher in the Institute for Culture & Society and the Centre for Educational Research.