The origins and focuses of adult education across Western countries are often about meeting adults' needs, and for purposes they have nominated, not those compelled by others. Unlike other sectors (e.g. schools, vocational colleges and universities) that were mainly initiated and sustained by church or state, adult education has long been grounded…

Using an inclusive definition of "demand side," case studies of two industry sectors and three regions in Australia identified how the needs of industry, enterprises, regions, and individuals were being met by vocational education. Local decision making and curriculum development were keys to reconciling the diverse sets of needs. (SK)

The needs of the clients of Australia's vocational education and training (VET) sector were examined in this report. Case studies of client groups in rural, urban, and metropolitan areas were also conducted. The client groups studied included: (1) enterprises (4 owners/managers or workplace experts/delegates per region); (2) industry (at least 1…