Abstract

Invented in Australia, the remarkable men’s shed movement has spread from the back blocks of Australia to reach a total of more than 1,400 Men’s Sheds in diverse countries on opposite sides of the world. This book provides a fascinating, carefully evidenced and definitive story of men’s sheds for the first time. It is a book and movement whose time has come. Many nations are struggling to meet the needs and interests of men beyond the workplace. Over two decades, the men’s shed movement has mushroomed from the ground up to become a strongly networked international movement, not only in Australia, but now Ireland, the UK, New Zealand, and continental Europe. How and why this has happened and what the evidence and research means for service providers, communities and the men in the men’s sheds movement is thoroughly explored. Lead author, Professor Barry Golding, Federation University Australia, is the respected world expert in the field, being a patron of the Australian Men’s Shed Association and the winner of the coveted Ted Donnelly Award in 2013 for his “outstanding contribution to the men’s shed movement.”