Big Ideas

Palestinians and Israelis are building common ground for peace where most say there is none. Since October 7 and the war in Gaza, the idea of cross-community dialogue seems impossible. But behind the headlines, more than 550 leaders from both communities, across politics, security, business, media, and civil society have come together to shape a peaceful future - for both peoples.What does a just and peaceful solution actually require? Who is doing the work to get there? And is there a role for Australia to play? Presented by the New Israel Fund AustraliaSpeakersHiba QasasFounding Executive Director of Principles for Peace, former senior UN officialDr Gil MurcianoCEO of the “Mitvim Institute", a foreign policy research organisation in IsraelDr Sally Warhaft (host)Writer, journalist and host of the Wheeler Centre’s The Fifth Estate series

When writer Hiroko Yoda's mother died, she found herself unmoored. They'd argued a fair bit over the years — as daughters and their mothers can — some things were unresolved. So now what? She found herself setting off an odyssey to understand Japan's surprisingly flexible, practical, pluralistic approach to spirituality, its infinite number of spiritual beings, its affection for angry ghosts, and the curious possibility of embracing belief and non-belief at the same time. She poured it all into a beautiful book called 8 Million Ways to Happiness. Yes, 8 Million! How can that be!? Find out in this poignant conversation she shares with Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell on peace, grief, meaning, and overcoming the mountains within.This event was recorded live at the 2026 Melbourne Writers Festival. To explore more of the festival's events and talks, visit mwf.com.au.SpeakerHiroko YodaTokyo-based author, translator, folklorist, and certified kimono consultantAuthor, Eight Million Ways to Happiness: Find your own way to inner peace with the wisdom of Japan (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2026)

Writers have access to endless worlds, perspectives and experiences — both real and imagined. So what should they do with that privilege? Do they have a responsibility to try to change the world? To cultivate empathy and understanding? Or to simply bear witness?The Melbourne Writers Festival closing night address was recorded on Sunday 10 May 2026.Speakers:Professor Tony BirchAuthor, The White Girl, Women and Children, Ghost River, Blood and moreBoisbouvier Chair in Australian Literature at the University of MelbourneHistorian, activist, teacher, long distance runnerMichael Williams (host)Editor, The Monthly magazineHost, Read This podcast

What if the way we think about rivers as resources to be allocated, infrastructure to be managed, problems to be solved, is just fundamentally wrong. What if they are in fact living entities with rights? From Indigenous law to ecological soundscapes to frontline water justice, this panel of Indigenous leaders, scientists and artists share stories, sounds and strategies for protecting and changing your relationships with waterways.River Listening was recorded live at the annual 2026 WOMADelaide festival, produced and presented as part of their Planet Talks program, held on the traditional lands of the Guarna people.Listen to Big Ideas – Students win fight for climate justice before the world's highest courtSpeakersDr Dan HikuroaMāori earth systems scientist, Associate Professor at the University of Auckland, UNESCO NZ Commissioner for CultureGrant RigneyNgarrindjeri man, current Deputy Chair and past Chair of the Murray Lower Darling Rivers Indigenous Nations (MLDRIN)Dr Leah BarclayAward-winning sound artist, researcher and environmental activistJo Shulman (host)CEO of the Environmental Defenders Office

Forget climate change, forget nuclear Armageddon, did you know that the universe is unravelling? It's probably aeons away, but according to physics, dark energy could end us all. Join award winning theoretical physicist Tony Padilla at this Sophia Club live philosophy event, to explore the torrid birth of the early universe, traverse the twisted hearts of black holes, skip through the harmonic vibrations of string theory, and ponder how, according to physics, it all might one day end.This event was recorded for the Sophia Club live philosophy in London on 21 April 2026.Speakers:Tony PadillaProfessor of physics, University of NottinghamAssociate Director of the Nottingham Centre of GravityHost, NumberfileAuthor, Fantastic numbers and where to find them: A Journey to the Edge of PhysicsSally DaviesEditorial lead for the Sophia ClubEditor, AEON magazineMusic by Oliver CoatesCellist, film composer and electronic music producer (Pillion, Aftersun and more)

Need a mid-Winter pick me up? Well this is the conversation for you!  You could call Astrid Jorgensen a choir conductor, but that really doesn’t capture what she does and the global phenomenon she’s created. On any one night, anywhere in the world, you’ll find Astrid on a stage in front of a few thousand people singing their hearts out. She’s the founder, the composer, and the host of Pub Choir — which has been described as the world’s biggest one night stand in song. But for a while there she could have become a nun. Yes, there's so much more to her story, and she joins Big Ideas' host Natasha Mitchell to tell it.This event, organised by Northern Books, was held at the Fitzroy Town Hall in Naarm/Melbourne.This episode was first aired on the 10 December 2025.SpeakerAstrid JorgensenFounder and conductor of Pub ChoirAuthor, Average At Best (Simon and Schuster Australia, 2025)Further informationHow Astrid Jorgensen turned a suburban pub choir into a worldwide musical phenomenon (Australian Story/ABC News, 2025)Watch Australian Story episode about Astrid on Youtube (2025)

The gambling industry is targeting young people through digital platforms, personalised algorithms and the blurring line between gaming and betting. But also off-line, at the pokies, we see younger faces. We explore the strategies behind this trend, the human costs and what it would actually take to change the culture and the regulation around gambling in Australia.This conversation is a cooperation with Shaun Micallef's Going for Broke, the new ABC three-part documentary series that you can find on ABC iView.SpeakersDr Charles LivingstoneAssociate Professor in the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash UniversityMark KempsterLived Experience Advocate with the Alliance for Gambling ReformReverend Stu CameronCEO and Superintendent of Wesley MissionDr Sally GainsburyAssociate Professor of Psychology and co-Director of the University of Sydney Gambling Treatment and Research ClinicSteve Cannane (host)Reporter with the ABC's Investigations UnitABC Four Corners by Steve Cannane – Losing StreakFurther informationNational Gambling Helpline 1800 858 858Wesley Mission Gamble Aware

The arc of the moral universe may bend toward justice, but not without a whole lot of committed individuals doggedly banging on about it. Even when no one's listening, even when it's boring, even when it takes years or even lifetimes. So in this time of division and fracture, when hearts and minds seem out of reach, is there still value in preaching to the like-minded?The 2026 Sheila Drummond Memorial Lecture was recorded at the Woodend Winter Arts Festival on 6 June 2026.Speakers:David MarrPresent Late Night Live, ABC Radio NationalAuthor, Killing for Country: A Family Story, Patrick White. A Life, Political Animal: The Making of Tony Abbott (Quarterly Essay) and more

It is replacing our work, our relationships, even our capacity to think. It's the combined sum of all human knowledge — so how long until artificial intelligence surpasses our own? Are we already there? In her latest Quarterly Essay, Anna Goldsworthy confronts a near future where humans are no longer the most intelligent beings, inviting us to consider what is irreplaceable in us, in what we do, and what we want for our lives.This conversation was recorded on 8 June 2026 at Woodend Winter Arts Festival.Speakers:Anna GoldsworthyAuthor, The God we made — the threat and promise of artificial intelligence, Quarterly Essay #102 and many moreClassical pianist, founding member, Seraphim TrioDean of the Elder Conservatorium of Music and School of Performing Arts, Adelaide University, and incoming Artistic Director of the Australian National Academy of MusicJacqueline OgeilHarpsichordist, conductor, music teacherFounder and director, Woodend Winter Arts FestivalFurther information:Magnifica Humanitas - on safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence - Encyclical letter by Pope Leo XIV

Is there an art to forgiveness? Join Natasha Mitchell with popular Play School presenter, writer, actor, yoga and meditation teacher Rachael Coopes to explore why it's so hard to forgive people, why it's not what you think it is, and how it can be good for your health to try. Forgiveness may be hard work, but so is hanging on to hurt, hate, or a grudge — that can eat away at you or keep you tethered to the original harm — with consequences for your wellbeing, your relationships and your ability live to your full potential. Rachael Coopes has written a new book The Art of Forgiveness: Let Go, Find Peace. Join her and Natasha for this rich conversation about a complicated act.This event was held at the 2026 Make Good Festival at Bundanon in NSW, on the traditional lands of the Dharawal and Dhurga people.SpeakerRachael CoopesActor, author, presenter of the long-running children's ABC TV show Play SchoolYoga and meditation teacherAuthor, The Art of Forgiveness: Let Go, Find Peace (2025)Thanks to Make Good Festival guest curator Danielle Harvey and the whole team at Bundanon, NSW. 

They say we are what we eat, and in this big, migrant nation, every dish tells a story, about culture, about connection, about identity. But when traditional cuisines become mainstream, does cultural appreciation risk becoming cultural appropriation? Can you own a recipe?This event was recorded at the Oz Asia Festival in Adelaide.Speakers:Durkhanai AyubiAuthor, Parwana: Recipes and stories from an Afghan kitchen and She Who Tastes, KnowsElana BenjaminAuthor, Indian-Jewish Food: Recipes and Stories from the Backstreets of Bondi, and My Mother's Spice Cupboard: A Journey from Baghdad to Bombay to BondiDr Sukhmani Khorana (host)Associate Professor of media and cultural studies, University of New South WalesCo-Director of the university's Media Futures HubAuthor, The Tastes and Politics of Inter-Cultural Food in Australia and more

He is considered the first Hollywood action hero and had a rapid rise to stardom. But Errol Flynn also was on trial for rape and had relationships with underage girls. Behind the Hollywood legend — the sword fights, the swagger, the smouldering screen presence — is a far more complicated and surprising story.This conversation was part of the Meet the Author series at the Australian National University. Listen to Big Ideas – The rise of Australian actors in HollywoodSpeakersPatricia O’BrienAdjunct Professor in the Asian Studies Program at Georgetown University; Honorary Associate Professor in the Department of Pacific Affairs, Australian National UniversityAuthor of Errol Flynn: The True Story of Australia's Hollywood IconFrank Bongiorno (host)Donald Horne Professor of History and Public Ideas, University of Canberra

It may be the least worst form of government, but faith in its leaders and its institutions is waning. From the US to the UK to Australia, democracy has also paradoxically delivered representatives who are proudly anti-democratic and openly undermine democratic institutions like electoral systems, the judiciary and a free media. So why do people see the likes of Donald Trump, Nigel Farage, and Pauline Hanson as the answer?The Future of Democracy was recorded at the 2026 Sydney Writers Festival in partnership with the Resilient Democracy Lab at the University of New South Wales.Speakers:Jon SopelCo-host The News AgentsAuthor, Strangeland: How Britain Stopped Making Sense, UnPresidented: Politics, Pandemics and the Race that Trumped All Others and moreFormer editor, BBC North AmericaNick Bryant (co-host)Host, Saturday Extra, ABC Radio NationalAuthor, The Forever War: America's Unending Conflict with Itself and moreFormer BBC Washington CorrespondentRosalind DixonProfessor of Law, University of New South WalesFounder, Resilient Democracy LabAuthor, A People's Guide to the Australian Constitution

A power panel on the future of truth. In a world of AI hallucinations and corporate algorithms, state-sponsored disinformation campaigns, and misinformation spreading like wildfire on social media — the truth feels more elusive than ever. What can we do to get the truth out of trouble? Join Natasha Mitchell with guests at this event recorded live at the 2026 Sydney Writers Festival at Carriageworks on Gadigal Country.SpeakersJimmy WalesEntrepreneur and Founder of Wikipedia: the free encyclopediaAuthor, The Seven Rules of Trust: Why It Is Today's Most Essential Superpower (2025)Barbara DemickJournalist, former Beijing and Korea bureau chief for the LA TimesAuthor, Daughters of the Bamboo Grove: From China to America, a True Story of Abduction, Adoption, and Separated Twins (2025); Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea (2010), Eat the Buddha: Life and Death in a Tibetan Town (2021);Professor A.C GraylingPhilosopher and founder of Northeastern University London.Author, The Challenge of the Future: What Should We Keep from Yesterday as We Rush into Tomorrow? (2026); For The People: Fighting Authoritarianism, Saving Democracy (2025)Professor Toby WalshScientist, Scientia Professor and head of the UNSW AI Institute, University of New South WalesAuthor, Faking It: Artificial Intelligence in a Human World (2023), The Shortest History of AI (2025)Thanks to Artistic Director Ann Mossop and team at the Sydney Writers Festival.

The fabric of multicultural Australia is under a kind of pressure it hasn't faced in a long time. Can it be renewed? And what role do artists, activists, and migrants have to shape what comes next? The landmark work The Elgar Companion to the Arts and Global Multiculturalism is asking exactly those questions. It traces multiculturalism from its origins as a political philosophy and as lived cultural practice right through to the complicated present. And it makes a case that the arts have been central to this story all along. Presented at the Greek Australian Writers FestivalSpeakersProfessor Nikos PapastergiadisDirector of the Research Unit in Public Cultures at the University of Melbourne Co-editor of the book The Elgar Companion to the Arts and Global MulticulturalismDr Alexandra DelliosSenior Lecturer, Centre for Heritage & Museum Studies, Australian National UniversityAndrew JakubowiczEmeritus Professor of Sociology at the University of Technology SydneyDr Helen Vatsikopoulos (host)Journalist, academic and Director of the Greek Australian Writers Festival

Two authors. Two books. Two very different histories of Australia. Tony Abbott's Australia: A history and Mark McKenna's The Shortest History of Australia were released within weeks of each other. They share similar references, but diverge in key areas, especially when it comes to how the country should reconcile with its Indigenous past. So what is the real story of Australia?The conversation Australian history's great divide: how writers view our past was recorded at the Sorrento Writers Festival on 23 April 2026.Speakers:Tony AbbottAuthor Australia: A history and moreAustralian Prime Minister 2013 to 2015President, Australian Liberal PartyMark McKennaAuthor, The Shortest History of Australia and moreProfessor of History at the University of New South WalesSally Warhaft (host)Anthropologist, writer and broadcasterEditor, Well May We Say…The Speeches That Made AustraliaFurther information:The Australian Wars with Rachel Perkins and Henry Reynolds — a watershed event at the Australia War MemorialBig Ideas, ABC Radio National, 4 February 2026Who can we become? Thomas Mayo and Ray Martin speak Black and White about Australia's futureBig Ideas, ABC Radio National, 3 March 2026Victoria's new treaty with First Peoples — a turning point for Australia?Big Ideas, ABC Radio National, 9 December 2025A new future for Black and White Australia — Thomas Mayo, Margo Neale, David Marr with Natasha MitchellBig Ideas, ABC Radio National, 15 May 2024

Has the Iran War got you thinking about changing to an electric vehicle? Did government subsidies help you go solar or install a home battery? When renewable energy makes good economic sense, and eases cost of living pressures, people want in. As the public's desire for action on climate change is eclipsed by other concerns, and beset by vested interests and mis and dis information, how does climate policy win back ordinary people to galvanise progress once again?This event was recorded at Readings bookshop on 20 May 2026.Speakers:Thom WoodroofeSenior International Fellow, Smart Energy CouncilAuthor, Power, Prosperity & Planet: Climate & Energy Policy for All (In the National Interest, Monash University Publishing)Principal Advisor to Kevin Rudd during his tenure as Australian Ambassador to the United States, and Chief of Staff during his tenure as the Asia Society's President in New YorkDiplomatic adviser to the Marshall Islands in the negotiations of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate changeZoe DanielFormer Independent Member for GoldsteinFormer ABC journalist and foreign correspondentIndependent chair, Mental Health Victoria

What's the toll when your story becomes the story? What these journalists endured for their work beggars belief, but it hasn't stopped them believing in the role of journalism to hold power to account. Locked in a Chinese jail under 24/7 surveillance for more than 3 years — Cheng Lei is now determined to speak out about freedom and the long tendrils of Chinese state control because others can't or won't. Charlotte Grieve's investigation of a superstar surgeon and his patients' horrifying experiences was subject to one of the longest defamation trials in Australian history — a major test case for the public interest defence. Hear their extraordinary stories. They join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell at this Sorrento Writers Festival event.SpeakersCheng LeiAuthor, Cheng Lei: A Memoir of FreedomJournalist and Sky News presenterCharlotte GrieveInvestigative journalist, ABC Investigations Unit.Former journalist with Nine mediaAuthor, Duty to Warn: Dr Munjed Al Muderis promised hope. A daughter saw danger — and fought for the truth.Thanks to Sorrento Writers Festival director and curator Corrie Perkin

Three leaders of three different countries, who decided they would no longer accept the limits placed upon them by the international rules based order. That's all it took for the world as we have known it to unravel. Thomas Wright, a former Senior National Security Council official in the administration of US President Joe Biden, delivers a clear-eyed assessment of the deliberate decisions that have led us here, and weighs up the possible roads ahead.This event After the unravelling: Confronting the new world order was recorded on 6 May 2026 for the Lowy Institute in Melbourne.Speakers:Thomas WrightFormer senior US National Security Council advisor (during the Biden administration)Senior fellow with the Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology at the Brookings InstitutionNonresident Fellow, Lowy InstituteAuthor, Inflection Point: Biden, Trump, and the Future World OrderSam RoggeveenProgram Director, International Security Program, Lowy InstituteAuthor, The Echidna Strategy: Australia's Search for Power and PeaceFurther information:How Trump got Iran wrong - by Thomas Wright, published 7 May 2026, The Interpreter, Lowy Institute

Donor-sperm conception has become even more difficult in Australia. Would-be parents are now facing a shortage of sperm. That's on top of an already complex end confusing process. For solo parents, queer couples, and people navigating fertility the path to parenthood often begins with long clinic waitlists, overseas donor profiles, shady Facebook groups or delicate conversations with friends.Presented by Sydney Opera House at the All About Women Festival 2026SpeakersAlisha BurnsFounder of Solo Mum Society, host of the No Need for Prince Charming podcast, author of  the children's book My Perfect FamilyMaeve MarsdenWriter, Creative Director of Varuna, the National Writers' House, and the Blue Mountains Writers' FestivalDr Melanie SawardBigambul and Wakka Wakka woman, writer, editor and lecturer of Australian Studies, University of QueenslandEdwina Storie (host)Journalist and the lead for The Feed, SBS's youth media brand

From embracing the future of new technologies, materials and innovations, to returning to past times of multigenerational and communal living, architecture and design has plenty to offer when it comes to solving Australia's housing crisis. While debate rages about tax settings, government policy, and urban planning, design solutions are there to create the homes, the communities and the lives we need to make us happier and healthier — but is the will?This event was recorded at Curiosities Live at the University of Technology Sydney on 2 March 2026.Speakers:Anthony BurkeProfessor of Architecture at the University of Technology SydneyHost of ABC TV's Grand Designs Australia Grand Designs Transformations and Restoration AustraliaHost of Anthony Burke's By Design ABC Radio NationalTim RossComedianPresenter, ABC TV's Streets of Your Town, Designing A Legacy and moreAuthor, What A Ripper! 60 everyday objects that shaped Australia, Motel — Images of Australia on Holidays and moreCo-host, with Kevin McCloud, Tim & Kev's Big Design Adventure podcastAdjunct Professor at the University of CanberraHonorary member of the Australian Institute of Architects

Join Bruce Pascoe and Professor Ray Norris with Natasha Mitchell to discuss their eye-opening new book Big Sky: When the Emu Left the Earth. Then go outside, look up, and wonder about what connects humans rather than divides us. Humans have always gazed at the night sky, and (when we could) into the far reaches of our galaxy, to make meaning and sense of life here on Earth. The stories we tell about stars, planets, the Sun, the Moon, and more offer powerful lessons for us all — and for our relationships.This event was hosted by the Melbourne Writers Festival (find out more at mwf.com.au), Scienceworks, Bunjilaka Aboriginal Cultural Centre on the country of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation and the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation.SpeakersBruce PascoeAuthor, poet, Aboriginal farmer based on Yuin CountryAuthor of Dark Emu and coauthor, Big Sky: When the Emu Left the Earth (Magabala Books, 2006)Professor Ray NorrisAstrophysicist and honorary fellow at CSIROCoauthor, Big Sky: When the Emu Left the Earth (Magabala Books, 2006)Thanks to Dr Tanya Hill, Senior Curator of Astronomy at the Scienceworks, and Veronica Sullivan, CEO and Director of the Melbourne Writers Festival.

Rising authoritarianism, splintering alliances and an organised backlash against women's rights, gender equality and international development are threatening progress towards justice and equality. Can the United Nations' women, peace, and security agenda still help ensure stable international relations? Does it need to be modernised? Feminist Answers in a Dangerous World: Gender, Peace and Security in a Precarious Geopolitics — the 2026 Pamela Denoon Lecture was presented by National Foundation for Australian Women and the Gender Institute at the ANU.SpeakersCaroline MillarFormer Australian Ambassador to the European Union, NATO, Belgium and Luxembourg; former Deputy Secretary for National Security, in the Department of the Prime Minister and CabinetDr Elise StephensonDeputy Director at the Global Institute for Women's leadership at the ANUAsha ClementiPrincipal of the Persephone Network, 2022 ACT Young Women of the Year

From GP appointments and hospital procedures, to medical research and clinical trials, for centuries, women's health has historically been dismissed, diminished, or misdiagnosed. But in recent years, there are some signs that the medical system is slowly coming to terms with the fact that women — their bodies, their symptoms, their experiences, are different from men's, and need to be treated as such.This event was recorded at All About Women at Sydney Opera House on 8 March.Speakers:Dr Zoe WainerInaugural Director General of the Australian Centre for Disease ControlCardiothoracic surgeonFormer deputy secretary, Victorian health department, conducted Australia's first ever public inquiry into women's painSummer May Finlay Associate Professor in Indigenous Health, University of WollongongGabrielle Jackson (host)Deputy editor, Guardian AustraliaAuthor, Pain and Prejudice: How the Medical System Ignores Women and What We Can Do About It

Australia's 29th Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull joins former Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland to deliver a candid appraisal of the shifting sands of global politics, from Donald Trump to AUKUS to rising right wing populism in liberal democracies.This conversation was recorded at the Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University on 16 April 2026.Speakers:Malcom TurnbullAustralian Prime Minister, 2015 to 2018President of the International Hydropower AssociationChrystia Freeland (host)Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard UniversityEconomic advisor to the President of UkraineFormer Canadian deputy prime minister and finance minister 2019 to 2024Author, Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else, and Sale of the Century: Russia's Wild Ride from Communism to Capitalism

The untold story of Evelyn Marsden and the woman who rowed against the tide. You've heard of the Titanic disaster. Luxury ship. Largest ever. Impossible to sink. Hits iceberg. Catastrophic. Few survivors. Wreckage still under the sea 114 years later. Hollywood film starring Kate Winslet. But have you heard of Evelyn, the Titanic's only Australian survivor? She was a young nurse from rural South Australia with a sense of adventure. Journalist and former The Today Show and The Project co-host Lisa Wilkinson went digging, and what she unearthed is gobsmacking. Lisa joins Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell at this event organised by Northern Books in Castlemaine, Victoria.SpeakerLisa WilkinsonJournalist, TV presenter, former co-host of The Project and Today ShowAuthor, The Titanic Story of Evelyn (Hachette Australia, 2026).

Democracy is on the decline, so could Plato help? Irish scholar Dr David Horan spent 16 years translating Plato's complete works, including his dialogues on the world's first democracy in ancient Greece. So what lessons can we learn from Plato today?This event was recorded at the School of Practical Philosophy in Sydney.Speakers:Dr David HoranLeader of the School of Philosophy and Economic Science in IrelandMember of the Plato Centre at Trinity College DublinAuthor/ translator, The Dialogues of Plato

Communities that once built their future around coal and agriculture are asking: what do we become next? Regional Australia usually gets left behind when industries change and young people leave. But it's also — quietly, persistently — reinventing itself. Remote work is reshaping where jobs can be done. AI and digital innovation are opening new doors.Presented at the SEGRA National Regional and Economic Development Summit in Lithgow, New South Wales, in partnership with the City of Lithgow and their Lithgow Emerging Economy Project (LEEP)SpeakersJackie SchirmerDirector of Environmental Governance, University of Canberra. Founded the Regional Wellbeing Survey in 2013Dr Jess JenningsRegional and Rural Consultant and former mayor of Bathurst regional councilBjorn JarvisHead of Workforce Futures Program at Jobs and Skills AustraliaAshley Bland (host)Chair of the SEGRA Foundation Board; Associate Partner and Business Development Manager for Green Homes InternationalFurther informationRegional Wellbeing Survey

From running a massage clinic for homeless men to running the largest independent human rights organisation in the country, Kon Karapanagiortidis has always had a strong sense of his moral duty to help the people around him. Not just his friends and family, but anyone that might be called a neighbour. He even named his bestselling cookbook Philoxenia, a Greek word that means having love for the stranger. Kon's life has been defined by refusing to turn his back on those in need but that comes with a cost. Every year he receives thousands of hateful messages from people that he says have allowed themselves to become numb to the plight of others. Hear how he maintains his empathy and motivation while helping thousands of refugees through The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre with the radical simplicity of seeing the humanity in everyone.The conversation Compassion in Action, was recorded at the Centre for a Compassionate Society on 15 March, 2026SpeakersPetrina BarsonDirector of the Centre for a Compassionate SocietyKon Karapanagiotidis OAM Founder and CEO of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre Author, The Power of Hope and Philoxenia - A Seat At My Table

Some say Russian president Vladimir Putin is growing increasingly paranoid, as his war with Ukraine wages on. It's hard to know from the outside looking in. What makes the elusive Putin tick? How has he changed during his 26 years in power? And where will it all end? Putin's not a fan of Soviet era communism, so what's drives him? And what's his thing with Trump? Join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell with two seasoned Russia watchers at the 2026 Sorrento Writers Festival.SpeakersAssociate Professor Will PartlettMelbourne Law SchoolFellow, Centre for Public IntegrityAuthor, Why the Russian Constitution Matters: The Constitutional Dark ArtsCoauthor, The Post-Soviet as Post-Colonial and The People's Guide to the Australian Constitution.Dr Elizabeth BuchananSenior fellow, Australian Strategic Policy InstituteCo-founder and co-director of polar warfare studies at West Point Military Academy's Modern War InstituteFormer, Head of Research for the Royal Australian Navy’s Sea Power Centre, Department of Defence.Author,  Red Arctic: Russian Strategy under Putin and So you want to own Greenland: Lessons from the Vikings to Trump.Thanks to Corrie Perkin, founding director and programmer of the Sorrento Writers Festival.

The global treaty for preventing nuclear proliferation is under serious strain. The last review conferences for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty have ended in deadlock. And this year, last treaty limiting U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals has expired. This new risk comes at a moment when new nuclear actors are asserting themselves, and the diplomatic tools that once managed these dangers are weakening. What's at stake when the nuclear guardrails come down?Presented by the Institute of Politics (IOP), Harvard Kennedy School; Co-Organizer Belfer Center for Science and International AffairsSpeakersRose GottemoellerWilliam J. Perry Lecturer, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and Research Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University; former Deputy Secretary General of NATOLaura S. H. HolgateSenior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School; former U.S. Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency and the United Nations Office in ViennaGraham AllisonDouglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School; Former Director, Belfer Center for Science and International AffairsMatthew BunnJames R. Schlesinger Professor of the Practice of Energy, National Security, and Foreign Policy, Harvard Kennedy School; Co‑Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom, Belfer Center for Science and International AffairsMeghan L. O'Sullivan (host)Jeane Kirkpatrick Professor of the Practice of International Affairs and Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy SchoolFurther InformationTaskforce Harvard's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the Nuclear Threat Initiative — Preventing an Era of Nuclear Anarchy: Nuclear Proliferation and American Security

Have you ever heard of something called Chatfishing? From to AI profiles to cat-face filters, finding true love has never felt more difficult. And yet, dating is still fundamentally unchanged. It relies on good communication and mutual respect. After creating the social media juggernaut Bad Dates of Melbourne, who better to help you navigate the pitfalls and dealbreakers of dating in the modern world than Alita Brydon. Her first book is called How To Date Like A Dangerous Woman and it is full of straight talk with radical self-love at the heart of it all.This event was hosted at the Brimbank Writers and Readers FestivalSpeakersAlita BrydonRelationships expert, author of How To Date Like A Dangerous Woman and Bad Dates of Melbourne founderNelly ThomasComedian, MC and host of the Dear Nelly Podcast

It's the only sure thing in life: that we will all die some day. But many of us are scared to think about death — our own, or our loved ones'. How can embracing death change the way we live our lives and remind us of what's important?This conversation explores topics of grief, philosophies of life and death, and the practical consideration of planning for the inevitable.This conversation was recorded at the Clunes Booktown Festival on 22 March 2026.SpeakersHannah GouldSenior lecturer and fellow with the Death Tech Research Team at the University of MelbourneAuthor of How to Die in the 21st Century: A whole new way to talk about death and moreAntonia PontYogiAssociate Professor Writing, Literature & Culture, Deakin UniversityAuthor, Plain Life: on thinking feeling and deciding and moreMarieke Hardy (host)Co-founder of the spoken-word art salon, Better Off Said: Eulogies for the Living and Dead, Host of the podcast Marieke Hardy Is Going To DieScreenwriter and playwright, forthcoming Melbourne Theatre Company play, Losing Face (June 2026)

Three savvy political minds get up close and (very) personal with power to consider where it succeeds and struggles. They've got gripping stories to tell — about Australia's prime ministers past and present — and their mothers! What traits do you look for in an effective political leader? Are leaders made rather than born?  When Canada's Prime Minister took to the World Economic Forum stage in Davos this year, staking a claim for middle powers and standing up against the bullies across his border, the world took notice. Is that what good political leadership looks like, or not? How does Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stack up? Join Natasha Mitchell and guests with a lively audience at the 2026 Sorrento Writers Festival.SpeakersJennifer HewettBusiness journalist and a national affairs columnist, Australian Financial Review.Troy BramstonSenior journalist, The AustralianAuthor and political biographerAuthor, Gough Whitlam: The Vista of the New (Harper Collins Australia, 2025)Paul StrangioHistorian and Emeritus Professor of politics, Monash UniversityAuthor, The Alchemy of Leadership: Seven Australian Prime Ministers in a Turbulent 21st Century (Melbourne University Publishing, 2026)Thanks to Festival director Corrie Perkin and team.

From rags, to riches, to a prison cell. He could have stayed wealthy and silent, but chose not to. Hong Kong's Jimmy Lai launched newspapers that dared to challenge Beijing, advocate for democracy, and report the truth when the truth was dangerous. Now Jimmy Lai faces a life sentence under China's crackdown on press freedom. But his story sends a warning to us all, everywhere.What happens when power decides that a free press is a threat? This event, The Troublemaker: How Jimmy Lai Became a Billionaire, and China's Most Feared Critic was presented by the City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate CenterSpeakersMark CliffordPresident of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong FoundationAuthor of The Troublemaker: How Jimmy Lai Became a Billionaire, and China's Most Feared CriticEvan Osnos (host)Staff writer at The New Yorker

These days, more Australians get their news from their social media feed than traditional media outlets. Meanwhile artificial intelligence is supercharging the war on information, and distorting the news media's business model, while politicians flood the zone with sh*t as a deliberate media strategy. So what do AI and the algorithms mean for the news and for journalism, and how can we regain control of our information ecosystem?The conversation Truth, Lies and the Algorithm was recorded at the Brimbank Writers and Readers Festival on 15 March 2026.SpeakersIan DuntUK political columnist, The I PaperAuthor, How Westminster Works and Why it Doesn't, Conspiracy Theory: The Story of an Idea (with Dorian Lynskey), and moreDr Mathew MarquesSenior Lecturer in Psychology, La Trobe UniversityRita ArrigoAI consultantLuke Siddham Dundon (host)Radio journalist and news presenter, ABC Radio National Breakfast and the Breakfast Wrap

He's got a rags to riches origin story, a hit Youtube channel and a bestselling memoir. Now Gary Stevenson is using his platform to fight the growing divide between rich and poor across the western world — including in Australia.This conversation was recorded at the Melbourne Town Hall on 28 February 2026 with thanks to Thinkable events.SpeakersGary Stevenson Author, The Trading Game: A Confession host, Gary Economics Youtube Channel, former Citibank financial traderAlison Pennington (host) Chief Economist, McKell Institute, author, Gen F'd? How Young Australians Can Reclaim Their Uncertain Futures

A year on from its landslide victory, has Labor used its historic win to deliver big on BIG ideas to set Australia up for the future? Or is Prime Minister Albanese and his cabinet erring on the side of caution in this second term?  What allowed notable reformer prime ministers in the past to prosecute ambitious agendas? Join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell at the Sorrento Writers Festival with three seasoned and savvy politics watchers, journalists and authors Paul Kelly, Niki Savva, and Amy Remeikis. A lively conversation not to miss as we head towards the May Federal budget.SpeakersAmy RemeikisSenior political analyst, The Australia InstituteContributing editor, The New DailyCommentator as Pyjama PoliticsAuthor, Where it All Went Wrong: The Case Against John Howard (Simon and Schuster Australia, 2026)Niki SavvaPolitical journalist and authorAuthor, Earthquake: the election that shook Australia (Scribe, 2025)Bulldozed: Scott Morrison’s Fall and ANthony Albanese’ Rise (Scribe, 2022)Paul KellyEditor-at-Large, The AustralianAuthor of The Twilight of Exceptionalism: the Liberal and Conservative Era (Melbourne University Publishing,  forthcoming in July 2026)Thank you to Sorrento Writers Festival founder and director Corrie Perkin, Isabel Pinkster, Mark Bollenberg, and the whole festival team.

Martin Luther King III knows what the long fight for equity looks like. His father was the late great Martin Luther King Jr who led the modern American civil rights movement. And he's got something important to say to corporate Australia. Why are you missing out on Indigenous talent? Ignore it at the peril of Australia's future economic growth, he argues. It's more than a social or equitable good. Join Martin Luther III with Australian cultural and corporate leaders at this Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) and CareerTrackers event.SpeakersMartin Luther King IIICivil Rights Leader and Global HumanitarianLinda BurneyFormer Minister for Indigenous AustraliansMelinda CilentoChief Executive CEDARenee Wootton TomlinFounder and CEO New Era EnergyBen WyattFormer WA Treasurer and Non Executive Director of serval companiesAdam Davids (host)CEO and Managing Director CareerTrackers

Are Royal Commissions just a lawyer's picnic? A political witch hunt? Or, a necessary reckoning? They're Australia's highest form of inquiry on matters of public importance. But they've also become the go-to solution when corruption, misconduct or systems failures are exposed. The lowdown with three people who have seen how they work up close.The conversation How do Royal Commissions work? And How Do We Assess Their Impact? was recorded at the Sorrento Writers Festival on Friday 24 April 2026.SpeakersBetty King QCFormer Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria (2005 - 2015), former County Court judge, former state prosecutor, former criminal barristerChairperson of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Review BoardJack Rush KC Barrister, counsel assisting the Victorian Royal Commission into the 2009 Black Saturday BushfiresJon Faine (host)Journalist and former longtime presenter Mornings, ABC Radio MelbourneFormer lawyerVice Chancellor's Fellow, University of MelbourneAuthor, Apollo & Thelma: A True Tall Tale

Malcolm Fraser's legacy remains contested territory in Australian politics. Decades after he left office, we still can't quite figure him out. The Prime Minister who came to power in controversy, governed for seven years, then spent the rest of his life surprising everyone with his increasingly progressive views. Whether Fraser was cautious conservative, pragmatic reformer, or something more complex entirely, this discussion seeks to understand both the man and the government he led during a pivotal period in Australian history.Presented at the Malcolm Fraser Symposium by the Trinity College, University of Melbourne.Listen to Big Ideas - The Art of oppositionSpeakersTroy BramstonSenior writer and columnist with The AustralianAuthor of Gough Whitlam: The Vista of the New (2025)Dr Scott PrasserFormer Senior Adviser to three Federal Cabinet Ministers, Academic and independent researcherGeorgina Downer (host)Chief Executive Officer of the Robert Menzies Institute

October 7 has become synonymous with the Hamas attacks on Israel in 2023, in which more than 1200 Jewish people were murdered. What has followed — the hostage crisis, the war in Gaza, and the global response — has reverberated in communities far beyond the Middle East, including here in Australia. For Jewish Australians, it has turned their lives, their careers, their relationships and their identities upside-down. Four Jewish Australian women share their personal experiences of the profound rift they've felt in the wake of that day, and their hopes and attempts to mend it.This conversation was recorded at Manly Writers' Festival on 22 March 2026.SpeakersJoanne FedlerAuthor of The Whale's Last Song and more, writing teacher, former lawyerDr Kylie Moore-Gilbert Research Fellow in Security Studies, Macquarie UniversityAuthor, The Uncaged SkyFormer political prisoner in IranElana Benjamin Author of Indian-Jewish Food, Recipes and Stories from the Back Streets of Bondi, and moreLee KofmanAuthor of The Writer Laid Bare: Mastering Emotional Honesty in a Writer's Art, Craft and Life and more, writing coach and co-editor, Ruptured: Jewish Women in Australia Reflect on Life Post-October 7Suellen Dainty (host) Journalist and author, An Invisible Tattoo and more

Through the stories of five women across three generations of his family, the influential Greek economist, author, politician and public intellectual Yanis Varoufakis tells the tumultuous tale of Greece's modern history, and reflects on its parallels with the once again global rising tides of fascism, authoritarianism, and the actions of those who resist.This conversation was recorded on 6 March 2026 at the Sydney Greek Festival.SpeakersYanis VaroufakisEconomist, former Greek Finance Minister (2015), founder and General Secretary MeRA25Author, Raise your soul: A Personal History of Resistance, Technofeudalism: What Killed Capitalism? and moreDr Helen Vatsikopoulos (host)Journalist, Doctor of Creative Arts University of Technology Sydney

Every scientist dreams of a breakthrough — a new discovery that will change everything. Professor Georgina Long is someone who has done it — as a pioneer of life saving cancer treatments. So what are the ingredients for breakthroughs to occur? And why are the conditions that can lead to new discoveries under threat right now?The 2026 Ann Moyal lecture When groundbreaking cancer treatments save 50% of patients, what happens to the other half? was recorded at the National Library of Australia on 19 March 2026.SpeakersProfessor Georgina LongMedical Director of the Melanoma Institute of AustraliaChair of Melanoma Medical Oncology and Translational Research, University of SydneyCo-recipient (with Professor Richard Scolyer) of the 2024 Australian of the Year AwardFurther information:Patient Zero - Richard Scolyer - Australian Story 2024Dr Richard Scolyer speaks on his fight with brain cancer - ABC 730, 30 October 2025

The explosion of reactor number four at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is not only a story of the past. Right now, nuclear plants are weaponised in the Iran war. It happened in 2022 when Russian forces occupied the Chernobyl exclusion zone. A new way of weaponising nuclear power. What have we learned from the worst nuclear accident in history — and what have we failed to learn?This conversation was presented by the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) and the Ukrainian Institute London.SpeakersSerhii PlokhyMykhailo S. Hrushevs'kyi Professor of Ukrainian History; Director, Ukrainian Research Institute at Harvard UniversityEglė RindzevičiūtėProfessor of Criminology and Sociology at Kingston University LondonJonathon TurnbullAssistant Professor of Human Geography at Durham UniversityDr Sasha Dovzhyk (host)Writer, Curator and Head of INDEX: Institute for Documentation and Exchange (Lviv, Ukraine). Editor of the London Ukrainian Review

Is President Trump a new Nero, or a contemporary Caligula? The Roman Empire was full of merchants of chaos, power-hungry emperors, epic wars, backstabbing, betrayals — the whole horror show. And it was a time of civilisational scale change. As we grapple with a rewriting of the world order,  does Ancient Rome have lessons for us today — about the building and breaking of empires, or the rise and fall of autocrats? Or are these sorts of comparisons with the past fraught with complication? Join Natasha Mitchell and guests at this Melbourne Museum event to coincide with the opening of the ROME: Empire, Power, People exhibition.SpeakersRhiannon EvansCo-host of the Emperors of Rome podcastAuthor, Utopia Antiqua: Readings of the Golden Age and decline at Rome (Routledge, 2007)Adjunct Associate Professor of Classics and Ancient HistoryLa Trobe University Nick BisleyAuthor, Asian Crucible: Globalization, Geopolitics and the Contest for the Future (Bristol University Press, 2026); The Belt and Road Initiative and the Future of Regional Order in the Indo-Pacific (Rowman and Littlefield, 2020), Issues in 21st Century World Politics, 3rd Edition (Palgrave, 2017) and Great Powers in the Changing International Order (Lynne Rienner, 2012)Professor of International RelationsPro Vice-Chancellor ResearchLa Trobe University Thanks to event producer Jennifer Brookings, Nick Marchand (Director of Global Engagement at Museums Victoria), and team the Melbourne Museum.

What happens to a community when it punishes its most vulnerable instead of protecting them Drawing on her own story of addiction, imprisonment, and recovery, as well as her frontline work supporting women behind bars and post-release, Tahlia Issac challenges the "tough on crime" narrative. The typical incarcerated woman in Australia is First Nations, a mother, a survivor of violence, and imprisoned for a low-level offence. Locking her up doesn't make communities safer — it makes them more fragile.This is the 2025 International Women's Day Address at the National Press Club of Australia.SpeakersTahlia IsaacFounder and CEO of Project: herself with lived experience as a woman in prisonEmma MacdonaldAssociate Editor or Her Canberra, an online media company, magazine, and community hub tailored specifically for women, and Canberra Convenor of Women in Media

Australians love a holiday in Southeast Asia. But our proximity to this region also makes it key to our national security and prosperity. Yet Australia has hitched its security and foreign policy wagon to an increasingly unpredictable United States, while China asserts in dominance in our own backyard. So are we taking Southeast Asia for granted?This conversation was recorded at Readings Bookshop on 23 March 2026.SpeakersMichael WesleyProfessor of International Relations and Deputy Vice Chancellor, Global Culture and Engagement, University of MelbourneFormer head of the Lowy Institute, former dean of ANU's College of Asia and the PacificAuthor, Blind spot: Southeast Asia and Australia's Future (Quarterly Essay # 101) and moreGeoff RabyFormer Australian diplomat to China 2007 — 2011Author, Great Game On: The Contest for Central Asia and Global Supremacy and more

Artificial intelligence has been defined as a cluster of technologies of and for the future. But like most humans, AI is built using what has happened in the past — scraping behaviours, experiences and other data to shape its outputs. In this sense, AI is a new kind of historian — but operating without guardrails, ethics, or any sense of doubt.This annual lecture for the History Council of Victoria, Can I Help You? Recognising and Improving Artificial Intelligence as History Maker was recorded on 16 October 2025.SpeakersMarnie Hughes-WarringtonBradley Distinguished Professor at the University of AdelaideCo-editor, History from Loss and The Routledge Companion to History and the Moving Image

It's Team 'Aliens Alive' versus Team 'Earthlings United'. Get out of this world, hear the arguments, and you decide. Was the X-Files really a documentary, or was Mulder deluded? Join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell from the stage of the 2026 World Science Festival Brisbane for an hilarious hour of science and comedy.TEAM ALIENS ALIVEDr Joel Gilmore (Team Captain)Energy specialist, physicist, science communicator, improv theatre buff, dancerDr Sara WebbAstrophysicist, author, and science communicatorAuthor of The Little Book of Cosmic CatastrophesSwinburne UniversityGeorgina HumphriesComedian, two time Raw Comedy finalistGeorgina's show Rogue at the 2026 Melbourne International Comedy FestivalTEAM EARTHLINGS UNITEDProfessor Tamara Davis (Team Captain)AstrophysicistPrincipal Investigator, OzDES (Dark Energy Survey)ABC TV documentary presenter, ultimate Frisbee and triathlon competitorUniversity of QueenslandNate ByrneMeteorologist, oceanographer. science communicatorABC TV Breakfast host and weathermanSean ChoolburraComedian, dancer, actorThanks to the event producers Dr Rob Bell, Jane O'Hara, Bec Redsell and the whole World Science Festival Brisbane team.