Big Ideas ABC listen

Leading Australian climate scientist Dr Joelle Gergis takes a timely look at Australia's perilous future in a warming world.

"Most Australians aren't aware how bad things are and how much worse they will get." — Joelle Gergis

This event was recorded at Gleebooks in Sydney on Tuesday June 4, 2024.

Speakers

Dr Joelle Gergis Climate scientist
Author, Highway to Hell — Climate Change and Australia's Future (Quarterly Essay #94, Black Inc Books)

Marian Wilkinson Journalist and author

A huge number of ancient artefacts, First Nations' ceremonial objects and precious art sits in museums, galleries, private collections all over the world — with polite plaques. But their history is often messier than the plaques suggest. Throughout its reign, the British Empire 'stole' a lot of stuff. One of the arguably most controversial examples are the Parthenon Marbles, a collection of sculptural reliefs from the temple of Athena (the Parthenon) on the Acropolis in Greece. The second season of the TV documentary Stuff The British Stole has started on ABC TV and ABC iView. This discussion was presented by the National Gallery of Australia. The ABC acknowledges the National Gallery of Australia for their support with setting up this event and their assistance to guest speakers and ABC staff.

Speakers

Marc Fennell
Host of the podcast and TV series Stuff the British Stole
Wakely-award winning journalist and documentary-maker

Adjunct Professor Margo Ngawa Neale
Emeritus Curatorial Fellow: First Nations at the National Museum of Australia, former Head of the Centre for Indigenous Knowledges. Born and raised on Gunai/ Kurnai country with other clan affiliations to Gumbaynggirr and Wiradjuri nations

Dr Nick Mitzevitch
Director of the National Gallery of Australia

Santilla Chingaipe (host)
Zambian-born Australian historian, journalist, and filmmaker

Author, essayist and speechwriter Don Watson says that the price of democracy is energy, imagination, and unstinting hard work. Through the lens of Trump's America, and the malaise of Australian politics, Watson questions whether our modern democracies are up to the job. This event was recorded on Bunurong country at the Sorrento Writers' Festival on April 25 2024.

Speaker

Don Watson, Author, essayist and speechwriter

On the doorstep of Gaza comes the remarkable story of the world's first peace treaty — a 3200-year-old text. Egyptologist Dr Camilla Di Biase-Dyson joins Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell to share a political and personal soap opera that brought an enduring peace to a region now suffering from a bloody war.

Speaker:

Dr Camilla Di Biase-Dyson
Linguist and Egyptologist
Senior Lecturer, Macquarie University

Disadvantaged and marginalised students often don't get the financial and teaching support that they need. Equity everyone, regardless of their background, is one of the most pressing challenges facing out higher education sector. 

The government released the Universities Accord Final Report earlier this year – and it recommends sweeping changes.

What are the main recommendations? And are they any good?

Access, Achievement, Accord 2024 was presented at The Australian Student Equity Symposium, Curtin University.

Speakers

Dr Kylie Austin
President for Equity Practitioners in Higher Education Australasia

Professor Verity Firth
Vice President Societal Impact, Equity and Engagement at the University of New South Wales

Professor Barney Glover
Commissioner of Jobs and Skills Australia

Professor Harlene Hayne
Vice-Chancellor of Curtin University

Professor Mary O'Kane
Chair of the Universities Accord Review; director and executive chairman of the consultancy O'Kane Associates

Professor Shamit Saggar (host)
Executive Director Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success, Curtin University

Further information

Australian Universities Accord Final Report Document

Award winning playwright S. Shakthidharan has described his groundbreaking theatre work Counting and Cracking as "a radical act of belonging". The epic, three-act, three-hour tale captures the Australian migrant experience through the story of one Sri Lankan family across four generations. To celebrate the play's return to the stage, we hear from four Sri Lankan Australians about the role creativity has played in their lives, culture and community.

This event was recorded at the University of Melbourne (UMAC) in partnership with Rising Festival and The Wheeler Centre on June 2, 2024.

Speakers

S. Shakthidharan Writer, Director, Producer and composer of original music
Author, Counting and Cracking
Co-Founder and Co-Director, Kurinji

Minoli De Silva Owner, Ella by Minoli
Finalist, Masterchef Australia

Suren Jayemanne Comedian, writer, presenter

Bhakthi Puvanenthiran (host) Entertainment and Features Editor, ABC

Further information

How writing the epic play Counting and Cracking helped Tamil playwright S. Shakthidharan's mum face her trauma
ABC Online, May 27, 2024

'We are here, we belong' — The unifying impact of Counting and Cracking 
The Stage Show, ABC RN, June 11, 2024