Higher Hopes Podcast

Ebe Ganon
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  • EDUCATION

The podcast raising the bar for Australian universities. Clever thinkers from the Australian universities community tackling the big questions about systemic change. Students, advocates, academics, and refreshingly honest senior leaders come together to envision how higher education can genuinely serve staff and students from traditionally marginalised and underserved backgrounds - and chart the path to get there. Produced on Ngunnawal and Ngambri lands by Ebe Ganon. 

Episodes

  1. DEC 7

    Episode 5: Placement Equity with Amani Bell and Lachlan Sibir

    In this episode, Ebe speaks with Associate Professor Amani Bell (University of Sydney) and Lachlan Sibir (classroom teacher and researcher) about placement equity and placement poverty in Australian higher education. The conversation explores what placement equity means and why it matters for students from equity-deserving backgrounds. We discuss the strengths and limitations of the Commonwealth Prac Payment, which currently supports students in education, nursing, and social work but excludes many other degree programmes that also require extensive unpaid placements. The episode examines the intersection of placement poverty with Indigenous student support and other equity initiatives, before diving into practical solutions such as flexible placement models, payment structures based on year level, and strengths-based approaches. We challenge the difference between framing placement support as welfare versus recognising the labour students contribute to organisations, and share insights on designing inclusive and accessible placement experiences that work for all students. Throughout, the conversation challenges the idea that "this is how it's always been done" and explores concrete ways to make placements equitable without students having to choose between financial survival and completing their degrees. Episode resources: ACSES Fellowship Report: Addressing placement inequities via participatory action researchThe team’s literature review on global approaches to ameliorating placement povertyAustralian Council of Deans of Health Sciences Report Information about the Commonwealth Prac PaymentADCET resources on Inclusive fieldwork, work placements, excursions and practicumsPaid Placements Aotearoa Students Against Placement Poverty Send us a text Support the show For students who want to transform their universities. For staff ready to build genuinely inclusive systems. For academics and professionals who think big about what Australian higher education could become. Ready to raise the bar? Support the podcast: higherhopespod.com Follow us: LinkedIn @HigherHopesPod | Instagram @higherhopespod Full transcript: Available at higherhopespod.com Produced on the traditional lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples.

    39 min

  2. NOV 9

    Episode 4: Keeping Disability Rights on the National Agenda with the DIIU

    In this special episode recorded at UNSW's Diversity Fest, we examine the rising global threats to diversity and inclusion through a disability lens. Join Ebe Ganon in conversation with Professor Jackie Leach Scully (Director, Disability Innovation Institute UNSW), Professor Alistair McEwan (former Disability Royal Commissioner), and Dr Supriya Subramani (University of Sydney) as they unpack everything from Trump's harmful rhetoric to Australia's NDIS challenges, university diversity strategies, and what meaningful allyship actually looks like. Professor Jackie Leach Scully – Director, Disability Innovation Institute at UNSW. Expert in disability bioethics and the philosophy of embodiment. Professor Alastair McEwin – Former commissioner on the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability. Former Australian Disability Discrimination Commissioner. Dr Supriya Subramani – Ethics researcher at the University of Sydney, examining structural injustice, everyday indignities, and the ethics of belonging. This episode was recorded at UNSW's 2025 Diversity Fest. Special thanks to the Disability Innovation Institute of UNSW for hosting the event and allowing us to share this important conversation. This episode discusses discrimination, violence against people with disability, ableism, racism, and systemic oppression. References to deaths of people with disability in institutional settings and COVID-19 discrimination. Send us a text Support the show For students who want to transform their universities. For staff ready to build genuinely inclusive systems. For academics and professionals who think big about what Australian higher education could become. Ready to raise the bar? Support the podcast: higherhopespod.com Follow us: LinkedIn @HigherHopesPod | Instagram @higherhopespod Full transcript: Available at higherhopespod.com Produced on the traditional lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples.

    1h 28m

  3. OCT 19

    Episode 3: Indigenous Knowledge in Learning and Leadership with Tracy Woodroffe

    In this conversation, Ebe sits down with Dr Tracy Woodroffe, a Warumungu Luritja senior lecturer at Charles Darwin University, to talk about what it really means to embed Indigenous knowledge in Australian universities - and why our current approaches keep falling short. Tracy shares her journey from childhood, to teacher, to academic, explaining why Indigenous perspectives can only be owned and delivered by Indigenous people, and what happens when non-Indigenous academics try to speak for communities they're not part of. They discuss the exhaustion of being tokenised as "the Indigenous expert", and the glass ceilings that persist even in supposedly progressive institutions. The conversation also explores parallels between Indigenous and disability communities' experiences of tokenism, the difference between genuine partnership and performative allyship, and what it would look like if universities actually structured themselves to centre Indigenous knowledge rather than treating it as a weekly add-on. Links mentioned: Tracy's publications and work in pedagogy, education, and leadership: https://researchers.cdu.edu.au/en/persons/tracy-ann-woodroffeTracy's paper on work-like balance and managing identity: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-97-2823-7_6Send us a text Support the show For students who want to transform their universities. For staff ready to build genuinely inclusive systems. For academics and professionals who think big about what Australian higher education could become. Ready to raise the bar? Support the podcast: higherhopespod.com Follow us: LinkedIn @HigherHopesPod | Instagram @higherhopespod Full transcript: Available at higherhopespod.com Produced on the traditional lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples.

    51 min

  4. SEP 28

    Episode 2: Universities and the Disability Discrimination Act

    The Disability Discrimination Act review is happening right now - and it could fundamentally change how disability rights work in Australian universities. But only if the sector actually gets involved. In this episode, Ebe unpacks four game-changing reforms proposed in the DDA review and why every person in our sector needs to engage with this once-in-a-generation opportunity for change. What you'll learn How universities have historically been absent from disability law reform conversationsFour key areas of DDA reform that could transform university experiences for staff and students with disabilityHow a positive duty framework could incentivise proactive inclusion rather than reactive crisis managementWhy removing 'reasonable' as a qualifier for adjustments mattersHow inherent requirements are being misused as tools of exclusionWhy disability action plans currently function as "insurance policies" rather than accountability toolsThe cost of inaction - and why proactive inclusion is more efficient than the current systemGet involved in the DDA review DDA Review Issues Paper - Attorney-General's DepartmentDDA Review consultation page - Australian Human Rights CommissionBackground reading Why the university sector must engage with the Disability Discrimination Act review - Ebe's original Substack post that sparked this episodeDisability Standards for Education 2005 - Department of EducationSend us a text Support the show For students who want to transform their universities. For staff ready to build genuinely inclusive systems. For academics and professionals who think big about what Australian higher education could become. Ready to raise the bar? Support the podcast: higherhopespod.com Follow us: LinkedIn @HigherHopesPod | Instagram @higherhopespod Full transcript: Available at higherhopespod.com Produced on the traditional lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples.

    40 min

  5. AUG 21

    Episode 1: Student Advocacy and Disability Inclusion with Gemma Lucy Smart

    In this inaugural episode, we dive into the power of student collectivism and what it actually takes to build genuine advocacy movements within universities. Host Ebe Ganon sits down with Gemma Lucy Smart, a PhD candidate and seasoned disability advocate who serves as both Disability Equity Officer and HDR Equity Officer for the Sydney University Postgraduate Representative Association, plus represents postgraduate students with disability nationally through the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations. Gemma shares her experience as a student advocate at the university and national level: we explore how student advocacy works and what drives student advocates, how to balance working within systems versus challenging them directly, and how student collectivism is a deeply valuable source of community and systemic change on campus. Key topics The power of student collectivism vs individual advocacyStrategic decision-making: when to work within systems vs challenge themSupporting emerging student leaders and preventing burnoutBuilding disability communities across undergraduate and postgraduate spacesLanguage politics in disability advocacyCo-production and co-design in university settingsUniversal Design for Learning and AI's role in accessible educationAssumptions about disabled students in higher educationConnecting with student advocacy and networks SUPRA (Sydney University Postgraduate Representative Association): https://supra.net.au/ Students with Disability Leadership Collective: https://studentvoiceaustralasia.com/students-with-disability-leadership-collective Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations: https://www.capa.edu.au/ National Union of Students (NUS): https://nus.asn.au/ National Student Ombudsman: https://www.nso.gov.au/ Professional Networks for Staff Equity Practitioners in Higher Education Association: https://www.ephea.org/ Australian Tertiary Education Network on Disability (ATEND): https://www.atend.com.au/ Universal Design for Learning Resources CAST (Centre for Applied Special Technology) UDL Guidelines: https://udlguidelines.cast.org/ Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training (ADCET): https://www.adcet.edu.au/ Gemma’s work: Writing in Honi Soit, the University of Sydney student paper: https://honisoit.com/author/gemma-lucy-smart/Gemma's research: https://orcid.org/0000Send us a text Support the show For students who want to transform their universities. For staff ready to build genuinely inclusive systems. For academics and professionals who think big about what Australian higher education could become. Ready to raise the bar? Support the podcast: higherhopespod.com Follow us: LinkedIn @HigherHopesPod | Instagram @higherhopespod Full transcript: Available at higherhopespod.com Produced on the traditional lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples.

    52 min

  6. SEASON 1 TRAILER

    Episode 0: Introducing Higher Hopes with Ebe Ganon

    Welcome to Higher Hopes, the podcast raising the bar for Australian universities. In this trailer episode, host Ebe Ganon introduces a new kind of conversation about systemic change in higher education - one that genuinely centres student voices, lived experience, and solutions to move our sector forward. Tired of surface-level solutions and feel-good initiatives that don't actually shift the dial? Same. This podcast brings together students, advocates, academics, and progressive leaders for bold conversations about what's possible when universities actually live up to their potential. From student leadership and governance reform to universal design for learning and genuine First Nations allyship, we're exploring how universities can serve staff and students from traditionally underserved backgrounds - and charting the path to get there. No institutional BS allowed. We're reimagining higher education or we're not talking at all. Send us a text Support the show For students who want to transform their universities. For staff ready to build genuinely inclusive systems. For academics and professionals who think big about what Australian higher education could become. Ready to raise the bar? Support the podcast: higherhopespod.com Follow us: LinkedIn @HigherHopesPod | Instagram @higherhopespod Full transcript: Available at higherhopespod.com Produced on the traditional lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri peoples.

    7 min

Trailer

About

The podcast raising the bar for Australian universities. Clever thinkers from the Australian universities community tackling the big questions about systemic change. Students, advocates, academics, and refreshingly honest senior leaders come together to envision how higher education can genuinely serve staff and students from traditionally marginalised and underserved backgrounds - and chart the path to get there. Produced on Ngunnawal and Ngambri lands by Ebe Ganon. 

Information

  • Creator
    Ebe Ganon
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    6
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Higher Hopes Podcast
  • Show Website
    Higher Hopes Podcast