Big Ideas

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5.0 (2)
SOCIETY & CULTURE
UPDATED DAILY

Feed your mind. Be provoked. One big idea at a time. Your brain will love you for it. Grab your front row seat to the best live forums and festivals with Natasha Mitchell.

17 HR AGO

Is it still possible for empathy to trump hate? Here's how. Rhonda Magee and Mariam Tokhi with Natasha Mitchell

Rhonda Magee grew up in segregated North Carolina in an abusive household. She knows firsthand the deep divides that define America right now. She draws on her life, and her work as a law professor and leading mindfulness meditation teacher in her book The inner work of racial justice: Healing ourselves and transforming our communities through mindfulness. Mariam Tokhi is a writer and GP in a refugee and asylum seeker health service in Melbourne. She has created a trailblazing narrative medicine course to help doctors use the power of storytelling to fully see the humanity of their patients and themselves. This event was organised by the Contemplative Studies Centre, School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne. Speakers: Rhonda Magee Author, The inner work of racial justice: Healing ourselves and transforming our communities through mindfulness (Tarcher, 2019) Professor Emerita of Law Mindfulness meditation educator Founding director, Center for Contemplative Law and Ethics University of San Francisco. Dr Mariam Tokhi GP and writer Utopia refugee and asylum seeker health service Narrative medicine lecturer, University of Melbourne Medical School

1h 1m
1 DAY AGO

Busting the myths around menstruation and menopause, with Dr Jennifer Gunter

Is menstruation linked to the moon? Do women's periods sync up when they live together? Are girls getting their first period younger? Why don't we talk about menstruation and menopause more? Popular US-based physician and bestselling author Dr Jen Gunter is on a mission to change the conversation about women's health. This event was recorded as part of National Science Week at the University of NSW's Centre for Ideas on 15 August 2024. Speakers Dr Jen Gunter Obstetrician and gynaecologist Author, Blood: The Science, Medicine, and Mythology of Menstruation The Menopause Manifesto: Own Your Health with Facts and Feminism and more Professor Caroline Ford Lead, Gynaecological Cancer Research Group, University of NSW

53 min
2 DAYS AGO

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, 30 years on

Back in 1994, it was a pretty wild pitch for a movie: a troupe of drag queens road tripping across the Australian outback, in a lavender bus named Priscilla. But The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, put the Australian film industry on the global map, and these days it's become an icon of Australian cinema. This event was recorded on 11 September, 2024, at the Capitol Theatre, RMIT University, as part of Social Sciences Week. Speakers Rebel Penfold-Russell Executive Producer, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert Tim Chappel Costume designer, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (Academy Award for best costume along with Lizzy Gardiner) Cerise Howard Program Director, Melbourne Queer Film Festival Kristy Kokegei History Trust of South Australia Stephen Gaunson (host) Senior lecturer in Cinema Studies at RMIT University Further information The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert at 30: more important, enjoyable and vital than ever - by Stephen Gaunson, The Conversation, 5 September 2024 Donate to the Save the Queen campaign - History Trust of South Australia

50 min
6 DAYS AGO

Together, or together alone? Teens and adults debate social media's good, bad and ugly

The Australian federal government wants to restrict social media to those aged over 16. Would that work? Adult and teen experts mount their arguments for and against social media and its harms and benefits. The Great Debate was presented by the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia as part of 2024 Social Sciences Week, recorded at the National Library of Australia on 10 September 2024. Speakers STUDENT DEBATE Featuring Year 7 and 8 students at University of Canberra High School Kaleen Host Ivy Affirmative team Misha, Sienna and Jacob Negative team Umar, Addy and Shreya ADULT DEBATE Lisa Given Professor of Information Sciences, RMIT University Anthony Elliott Distinguished Professor of Sociology, University of South Australia Author, Algorithms of Anxiety: Fear in the Digital Age Ginger Gorman (host) Journalist and author of the book Troll Hunting: Inside the World of Online Hate and Its Human Fallout Host of the Seriously Social podcast

1h 3m
20 NOV

ADHD, autism, depression — is social media causing social contagion? Jean Twenge, Sonny Jane Wise, Alice Dawkins, Sandersan Onie with Natasha Mitchell

Is social media a contagious force harming young minds, a life saver helping people find their neurodiverse tribes and support, or, for better or worse, a bit of both? From the Festival of Dangerous Ideas, join Natasha Mitchell with renowned social psychologist Jean Twenge, neurodiversity advocate Sonny Jane Wise, technology policy campaigner Alice Dawkins, suicide prevention researcher Dr Sandersan Onie. Young people depressed, distressed, and anxious. ADHD and Autism diagnoses on the increase. All at record rates. Is it a renaissance in awareness, enabled by social media, or are people reaching for labels that risk losing meaning? Speakers: Jean Twenge Professor of psychology San Diego State University Author of iGen: Why Today's Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy—and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood (2017) Generations: The Real Differences between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers and Silents—and What They Mean for America's Future (2023) Alice Dawkins Executive Director, Reset.Tech. Au Dr Sanderson Onie Psychologist and suicide prevention researcher Black Dog Institute University of NSW Sonny Jane Wise Neurodiversity advocate Author, We’re All Neurodiverse (2023) and The Neurodivergent Friendly Workbook of DBT Skills (2022) Thanks to Danielle Harvey, Director of the Festival of Dangerous Ideas, and the festival team. Further information: Not Just Algorithms: Online Safety, Children and Young People, Data Security, Privacy and Data Protection report (24 March, 2024) Festival of Dangerous Ideas on-demand audio and video archive selected from over a decade of provocative events

54 min
19 NOV

Negotiating peace against the odds can be murky business

Mediation in armed conflicts means sitting down with brutal war lords, hiding your true values and in an open dialogue trying to really understand all sides of the parties involved. In the most pressurised environments, there are nearly always possible pathways to a win-win outcome — but finding the way requires a combination of imagination, goodwill, timing, and street smarts. Reflections on Diplomacy and Peace Mediation was presented at the TheMHS Conference 2024 Speaker Paul Dziatkowiec Director of Mediation and Peace Support, Geneva Centre for Security Policy Listen to Big Ideas - Is making war more humane in fact prolonging the fighting?

44 min
18 NOV

The 4-Day-Week − creating a better work life balance or just more stress?

Pressing a full-time workload into four days sounds like simply adding more stress to your job – even if you keep your pay. But many people who have tried this model say that one would need to pay them double their salary to make them go back to a standard work week. And businesses enjoy better staff retention and get a completive edge on the job market. Presented by UQ ChangeMakers Speakers Debbie Bailey Consultant Partner, 4 Day Week Global Shannan Quain Chief People Officer, Australian Digital Health Agency Associate Professor James Kirby Clinical Psychologist and the Co-Director of the Compassionate Mind Research Group, University of Queensland Professor Tyler Okimoto (host) Associate Dean (Academic), Faculty of Business, Economics and Law, University of Queensland

53 min
14 NOV

From Mumbai to Studio 54 — how Asha Puthli became India's first disco star

She was Andy Warhol's muse, she's been sampled by Notorious BIG, and her music was once voted on the ten best songs to dry-hump to. This is the amazing true story of how Indian-born singer Asha Puthli became a music legend. This event was recorded at Rising Festival on 7 June 2024. Speakers Asha Puthli Singer Adriana Lazaridis (host) DJ

53 min

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Feed your mind. Be provoked. One big idea at a time. Your brain will love you for it. Grab your front row seat to the best live forums and festivals with Natasha Mitchell.