The Future Monument

Recorded Tuesday 28 March 2017 Panelists: Sergeant David Robertson, recipient of the Medal for Gallantry, was deployed twice to Afghanistan and currently serves as an instructor at Puckapunyal. He now wants to help the community better understand the Afghanistan conflict and how it affected the soldiers who served there. Dr Steven Cooke, Senior Lecturer in Cultural Heritage, is the Course Director of Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies Programs at Deakin University. Alistair Gee, Chief Operating Officer of the Institute for Economics and Peace, an international think tank dedicated to building a greater understanding of the interconnection between business, peace and economics. Jean McAuslan, Director Access and Learning at the Shrine of Remembrance, has led the development of extensive exhibition spaces beneath the Shrine, including a Peace Gallery, which opened in late 2014.   Does better understanding the mistakes of our past encourage us to build a peaceful future? The Shrine was created to ensure that the sacrifices of Victorians during the First World War would never be lost on future generations. It has also served as a place of public and private remembrance for all conflicts since. The Shrine is not simply a monument to loss or a place to reflect on our history as a nation—it also provides a space to analyse the events, motivations and consequences of conflict. It encourages us to look forward.   The United Nations, NGOs and visionary individuals are all working towards eliminating world conflict and providing aid to people touched by war. The Shrine has taken some exciting steps in recent years to highlight these efforts, including the development of a dedicated Peace Gallery. But can war memorials play a larger role in fostering reconciliation? Are we doing all that we can to encourage the community to think critically about the choices before us? Join a panel comprising a young veteran, an academic, a peace theorist and a curator to explore these questions.