Big Ideas

You've got half an hour with Lou Reed/ Nick Cave/ Courtney Love: what do you ask them? Three of Australia's best music writers share their craft, and reveal what it's like to sit down with some of music's biggest names.This event was recorded on 2 November 2024 at the Art Gallery of Ballarat.Original broadcast on January 23, 2025.SpeakersStuart Coupe Author, journalist, radio broadcaster, music commentator, publicist at Stuart Coupe PublicityJane Gazzo Music Journalist, TV Presenter, Author ( her new book is I Hear Motion), MC, Public Speaker, founder and presenter Action Time Vision - ATVMichael Dwyer Music journalist, lecturer and member of David Bowie ukulele tribute band The Thin White UkesZan Rowe (host) ABC Music correspondent, Double J and Take 5 hostFurther information:The exhibition From Medieval to Metal: The art & evolution of the guitar is on at the Art Gallery of Ballarat until 2 February 2024

Two of Australia’s most influential and legendary storytellers, author Tim Winton and filmmaker Rachel Perkins, join Natasha Mitchell at WOMADelaide’s Planet Talks to discuss the power of stories and the role of artists to create change in the world.Original broadcast on April 2, 2025.SpeakersRachel PerkinsMulti-award-winning filmmaker, and founder of Blackfella filmsDirector, presenter, co-writer, co-producer The Australian Wars series (available on SBS On Demand)Co-director, co-writer, co-producer First AustraliansTim WintonMulti-award-winning author of Juice, Dirt Music, Cloudstreet and more.Patron of the Australian Marine Conservation Society Host and writer, Ningaloo Nyinggulu series (available on ABC Iview)Activist, Protect Ningaloo and Exmouth Gulf campaignThis event was recorded live at the annual 2025 WOMADelaide festival produced and presented as part of its Planet Talks program, held on the traditional lands of the Kaurna people. Thanks to Planet Talks producer Rob Law.

Populism is part of American political history. It has been and still is the dominant vocabulary of dissent. But the current resurrection of authoritarian politics in the US is different. While the two parties could absorb populist movements in the past, this time populism has absorbed the party.Presented at the American Academy in BerlinOriginal broadcast on April 1, 2025.SpeakerJefferson CowieJames G. Stahlman Professor in American History at Vanderbilt UniversityAmerican Academy in Berlin, Axel Springer Fellow — Class of Spring 2025

How many times have you checked your phone today? How many tabs are open in your web browser? Do you feel in control of your attention? In the digital age, attention is now a commodity. Can practices like meditation and mindfulness help us feel more free to focus on what really matters?This event was hosted at the Brunswick Ballroom by the Sophia Club in partnership with the University of Melbourne's Contemplative Studies Centre.Original broadcast on March 18, 2025.SpeakersJess HuonMeditation trainer, authorised Dharma teacher, writer (The Dark Wet)Nicholas Van DamDirector of the Contemplative Studies Centre at the University of MelbourneAssociate professor, School of Psychological Sciences, University of MelbourneBrigid Hains (host)Editorial director, Aeon MediaMatthias Schack-Arnott Musician

Satyajit Das presents a provocative examination of the use and abuse of images of wild animals, and how they shape our relationships with the natural world. These pictures can create an impression of abundance and untouched ecosystems, and lull us into a false sense of security, at a time when the natural world faces ecological calamity.The Attenborough Effect — Shaping Our Relationship With Wild Animals was presented by the Australian National Maritime Museum.Listen to the rest of our special series Animals — Us and Them?Original broadcast on February 20, 2025.SpeakerSatyajit DasAuthor of Wild Quests. Journeys into Ecotourism and the Future for Animalsformer banker, recognised as one of the world's leading financial thinkers.

Prepare to have your mind blown with a sweeping saga that connects human evolution, brains, genes, art, music, creativity, knowledge, dyslexia, autism, Indigenous memory systems, and more. A big, beautiful and biological saga about how to learn like a human again. Joining Natasha Mitchell are Australian Senior Memory Champion, scientist and author Dr Lynne Kelly with artist Jane Rusden and musician and educator Hilary Blackshaw. This event was hosted by the 2024 Mountain Festival in Macedon, Victoria.Original broadcast January 20, 2025.SpeakersDr Lynne KellyScience writerAuthor, The Knowledge Gene: the incredible story of the supergene that gives us human creativity (Allen and Unwin, 2024)Author, The Memory Code (Allen and Unwin, 2016) Adjunct Research Fellow, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, La Trobe UniversityHonorary Fellow, School of Physics, University of MelbourneHilary BlackshawMusician and musical educatorBendigo Musical Instrumental ProgramJane RusdenArtist

Historian Sarah Churchwell takes you on a gripping and confronting journey into America's recent past to explain its extraordinary present, starting with dark story at the heart of that American classic Gone with the Wind. Knowledge lies at the heart of a healthy democracy, and its many custodians include libraries, universities, cultural institutions, and a free and independent media. So what happens when these institutions are intimidated, dismantled or destroyed, as is happening in America, under the government of President Donald Trump?This event was recorded at the University of Technology Sydney's Vice Chancellor's Democracy Forum on 14 May 2025.Original broadcast on June 17, 2025.SpeakersSarah ChurchwellProfessor of American Literature and Chair of Public Understanding of the Humanities at the University of LondonAuthor, The Many Lives of Marilyn Monroe, Careless People: Murder, Mayhem and The Invention of The Great Gatsby, Behold, America: A History of America First and the American Dream, and The Wrath to Come: Gone with the Wind and the Lies America TellsDirector, Being Human festival and Living Literature event seriesJudge, Man Booker PrizeAnna Funder (host)Author, Wifedom, Stasiland and All That I AmLuminary and Ambassador, University of Technology SydneyRoy Green (host)Emeritus Professor and Special Innovation Advisor at University of Technology SydneyFormer Dean of the UTS Business SchoolChair of the UTS Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing HubFurther informationFrom Gatsby to Huck Finn — American literature in an age of polarisation - Sarah Churchwell on Big Ideas, ABC Radio National 4 November 2024

After five nominations, Ruthie Foster has taken home the 2025 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album - affirming her status as an American music legend. In this intimate conversation, she shares what made her want to be a singer; the roles of her grandmother and mother in her life; why faith is so important to her and why she wants to sing about real people. And much more…A Heartlands Conservation presented at the Blue Mountains Music Festival.Original broadcast May 12, 2025.SpeakersRuthie FosterAmerican singer-songwriter of blues and folk music. 2025 Grammy Award winner for Best Contemporary Blues AlbumGregg Borschmann (host)Writer, radio producer and oral historian for the National Library of Australia

When you enter your childbearing years, it can feel like everyone from the treasurer, your mum, and probably your Instagram reels really wants you to have a kid. But is it the right decision? Few women escape this conundrum of modern family-making, and unfortunately there is no easy or simple answer. But in this talk presented by the Sydney Opera House at the All About Women Festival 2025, you’ll get the context, prompts and profound reflections to help you think through this decision, whether it’s in your own life or for someone you love. Original broadcast on June 26, 2024

Meet two men who will change the way you think about an experience most of us fear but will be touched by in some way. In Patting the Shark, surfing writer Dr Tim Baker describes his wild ride to reclaim a sense of control and agency after a cancer diagnosis. Celebrated author and GP Peter Goldsworthy’s memoir The Cancer Finishing School started out as a journal but became so much more.They join Natasha Mitchell for intimate an intimate, revelatory, funny, and generous conversation about the Big C and how medicine needs to change. This event was hosted by the 2024 Queenscliffe Literary FestivalOriginal broadcast on January 22, 2025.SpeakersDr Tim BakerJournalist, editor, patient advocate, and facilitator of the Peter Mac Book GroupResearch Fellow, Prostate Cancer Research Group, Monash Biomedical Discovery InstituteAuthor, Patting the Shark: A surfer's journey — learning to live well with cancer (Ebury Australia/Penguin, 2022)Dr Peter GoldsworthyGP, author, librettist, poetAuthor, The Cancer Finishing School —lessons in laughter, love, resilience (Penguin, 2024)

Are fermented foods really good for us? Do antibiotics destroy our gut flora? And have you heard about poo transplants?Our gut is teeming with trillions of microbial cells, and we are learning more all the time about how this affects everything from our digestion, to immunity, to mental health.So crack open your kombucha, because these leading researchers will cut through the noise with some hard facts and pioneering science about the microbiome.This event was recorded at the World Science Festival Brisbane 30 March 2025.Original broadcast on June 25, 2025.SpeakersPaul GriffinProfessor of Medicine, Clinical Unit Head and Director of Infectious Diseases, University of Queensland and Mater HospitalFelice JackaDistinguished Professor in Nutritional PsychiatryFounder and director, Food and Mood Centre Deakin UniversityAuthor, There's a Zoo in my PooGene TysonMicrobial ecologist, bioinformatician, and founder, Centre for Microbiome research, Queensland University of TechnologyDr Norman Swan (host)Presenter, Health Report and What's That Rash? ABC Radio National

Doctor Who has acted as a mirror to more than six decades of social, technological and cultural change. It's been able to evolve and adapt more radically than any other fiction. Why we are so addicted to fiction, and why does this wonderful wandering time traveller mean so much to so many. This talk was provided by the York Festival of Ideas. The Festival is led by the University of York, UK.Original broadcast on July 21, 2025.SpeakerJohn HiggsAuthor of Exterminate/Regenerate: The Story of Doctor Who (Weidenfeld & Nicolson 2025)

The connection between body and mind is well established. But mental health expert Daniel Fung also includes the soul in this 'ecosystem' that shapes your overall wellbeing. He envisions a future for mental health services, that is person-centred, holistic and consciously uses digital tools and social media.Beautiful minds, Loving hearts: Asian Mental Health Ecosystems in 2050 was presented at TheMHS (Mental Health Services) conference 2025 in BrisbaneListen to Big Ideas — How to overcome the fear and anxiety that are holding you backSpeakersDaniel Fung - CEO Institute of Mental Health, SingaporeBarbara Disley - Board Member, TheMHS Learning NetworkFurther informationMindline - digital first-stop touchpoint for mental health in Singapore

From innocently conning controversial radio duo Kyle and Jackie O as a kid, time in a Zambian convent as a teen, to nearly becoming an air traffic controller before finding her real passion - helping others find their voice - Astrid Jorgensen has quite a story to tell. Her new memoir is called Average At Best. She is anything but. She is anything but. 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. But to call Astrid Jorgensen a choir conductor doesn’t really capture the incredible global phenomenon she’s created. She’s the founder, composer, and host of Pub Choir, described as the “world’s biggest one night stand in song”. This event was organised by Northern Books in Castlemaine and held at the Fitzroy Town Hall in Naarm/Melbourne.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)

Australia now has its first treaty with this country's first peoples. After nearly a decade of formal consultation and negotiation, the Victorian Statewide Treaty has become law, and will come into effect from early December. This address outlines the long road to achieving the treaty, why it's important, and what comes next.The 25th Dr Charles Perkins Oration was recorded on 28 October 2025 at the University of Sydney.SpeakersNgarra MurrayCo-chair, Victorian First People's Assembly

Humans are by nature creative, but how do we turn a spark of inspiration into something more tangible? Author Emily Maguire draws inspiration from some of the world's most creative minds — from Lin Manuel Miranda, to Susan Sontag, to explore the ingredients of a truly creative life.The 2025 Colin Roderick Memorial Lecture, hosted by the Foundation of Australian Literary Studies at James Cook University in partnership with the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, was recorded on 29th July 2025 in Townsville.SpeakersEmily MaguireAuthor, Rapture, An Isolated Incident, Love Objects, and moreTeacher of writing, Writing NSWThe Vanya QuartetElder Conservatorium, University of AdelaidePlaying Saoirse, composed by Belle Smibert

As we grow older, changes to our bodies and minds are inevitable. But what if science could help us age better? Our experts on Big Ideas uncover the latest science behind healthy brain aging. What's possible in the fight against cognitive decline and dementia? How might you live a longer, healthier, and more meaningful life?Presented by Sydney Ideas, the talk program at the University of SydneySpeakersAssociate Professor Eleanor DrummondSenior Lecturer (Neuroscience), School of Medical Sciences, University of SydneyOlivier PiguetNHMRC Leadership Fellow and Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology, University of SydneyGilbert KnaggsSociology PhD candidate, University of SydneyElfy Scott (host)award-winning journalist, podcaster, and presenter

When acclaimed Australia author Christos Tsiolkas was invited to give the 2025 Ray Mathew Lecture at the National Library of Australia, he had in mind what he wanted to say, as difficult as it was. Then he got a rage-filled message from a longtime friend. How did Christos respond? Is fence-sitting an indulgence in an ethically troubled, divisive, dislocated world? Or, is 'speaking across the fence' something writers and other creatives can offer us?"We're urged at all times — and for every occasion — to take a position. Yet is there a utility, both practical and ethical, in taking a breath, a pause, and refusing to land definitively on a stance?" — Christos TsiolkasSpeakerChristos TsiolkasAuthor of The Slap, The In Between, Barracuda, DamascusPlaywright and screenwriterFurther informationMore about the annual Ray Mathew Lecture, including the transcript and video of the 2025 lecture

From The Don to Warny, the Gabba to the G, from its legacy of British colonialism, to the Asian powerhouse nations of today — cricket is not just a sport, but also a reflection of the societies who play it. Drawing on a wealth of writing about the sport, including novels, biographies, and media reporting, this lecture explores the cultural and historical legacy of cricket.This event was recorded at the Australian Catholic University on 30 October 2025.SpeakersPaul Giles Professor of English, Australian Catholic UniversityGideon Haigh Journalist and author of The Cricket War, The Summer Game and On WarneEditor and host, Cricket Et Al podcast and newsletterOpening batsman, South Yarra Cricket Club

Born in apartheid South Africa, she became the country's first female high court judge. She sat on the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and helped to establish sexual violence and rape as war crimes in international law. At a time of global conflict and instability, the work and achievements of Navi Pillay are a reminder of what can be achieved when accountability trumps impunity, when the law defeats lawlessness, and justice prevails over injustice.The 2025 Sydney Peace Prize Lecture, hosted by the Sydney Peace Foundation, was recorded at the Sydney Town Hall on 6 November 2025.SpeakersNavi PillayFormer Chair of the United Nation's Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian TerritoryFormer United Nations High Commissioner for Human RightsFormer President and Judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for RwandaSouth Africa's first female High Court JudgeChris SidotiMember of the United Nation's Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian TerritoryFormer Australian Human Rights CommissionerFormer Chair of the Australian Law Reform CommissionRawan ArrafFounder and Executive Director of the Australian Centre for International JusticeNour Haydar (host)Journalist and co-host, Full Story, Guardian Australia

Young Australians are losing faith that our politics, our civic institutions and the mainstream media are working for them. Why is this? And how can our democracy adapt to win back the trust and engagement of new generations?The 2025 Speaker's Lecture was recorded at Parliament House on 27 October 2025.SpeakersHolly Rankin - Musician and recording artist Jack River, founder, Sentiment, director, Teach Us ConsentMilton Dick - Speaker of the House of Representatives, Labor Member for OxleyFurther information:SOS Democracy with Niki Savva — Can politicians and journalists do better?2024 Speaker's Lecture - Big Ideas, ABC Radio National, 15 October 2024

Are our universities facing an existential crisis by trying to be too many things? Places for learning, research, the production of new knowledge, the production of job-ready graduates, and profit-making enterprises? Does everything they do have to produce a tangible, measurable, practical, or profitable outcome? Should they also foster intellectual life and the pursuit of ideas just for curiosity's sake? Or is that an elite, outdated mission? Who gets to judge what knowledge is deemed useless or useful? Join Big ideas host Natasha Mitchell with guests to mark the 25th anniversary of the Institute of Advanced Studies at the University of Western Australia.SpeakersAssociate Professor Oron Catts, Academic lead of the Institute of Advanced Studies, pioneering artist and founder of Symbiotica: The Centre of Excellence in Biological ArtsDr Jessyca Hutchens, Palyku woman, art historian, indigenous studies lecturer and co-director of the Berndt Museum, University of Western Australia.Terri-Ann White, former founding director of the Institute for Advanced Studies, former head of UWA Publishing, and founder of the independent publishing house UpswellFurther readingThe Usefulness of Useless Knowledge by Abraham Flexnor (Harpers, 1939)Famous educator and reformer Abraham Flexnor was founder of the first Institute for Advanced Study in 1930. Albert Einstein was a member of its founding faculty and at least 37 Nobel Laureates have found an intellectual home there since.

We often hear about "failing schools", but what if it is us, the Australian community, who are failing them? Public school advocate Jane Caro argues that Australia's pursuit of school choice, and the tax payer funding that enables it, has come at a huge cost to the school system, to children's education, and to our broader society.The 2025 Dymphna Clark Lecture at Manning Clark House was recorded on 26 August 2025.SpeakersJane Caro — Author, The Mother, Lyrebird, What Makes a Good School? and more, columnist, commentator, former advertising copywriter, academic, public schools advocate

Join ABC's Mon Schafter and four incredible speakers as they share honest, powerful stories about revealing their identities on their own terms. From fear to freedom, isolation to community - this is a conversation about truth, courage, and connection. Held in recognition of 40 years of ACON, it celebrates every journey of coming out and shines a light on personal stories, collective resilience, and the power of being seen.SupportIf this conversation raises any concerns for you, QLife is an Australia-wide anonymous and free peer support service for LGBTIQ+ people. Call 1800 184 527 or webchat 3pm-9pm every day at qlife.org.auABCQueer’s list of LGBTQIA+ community support services in Australia.SpeakersNina OyamaAustralian comedian, writer, actress and directorJi WallaceAustralian trampoline gymnast and Olympic silver medallistZoe TerakesAustralian actor; author of Eros: Queer Myths for LoversDr Atari MetcalfGP in NSWMon Schafter (host)Walkley Award-winning journalist, presenter and producer, founding editor of ABC Queer

If you're a feminist, or pro-civil or gay rights, does that make you "woke"? And if you're not, does that mean you should be cancelled, or abused online, or lose your job? So many of our public debates nowadays are divided along these lines, but is there a better way?This event was recorded at the 2025 Melbourne Writers Festival. To explore more Melbourne Writers Festival talks, visit mwf.com.au.SpeakersAC Grayling Philosopher, author, Discriminations: Making peace in the culture wars, and many more, Principal of Northeastern University London, and its Professor of PhilosophyEsther Anatolitis (host) Editor, arts and culture advocate, leader, commentator, author, When Australia Became a Republic, former Meanjin editor

Friends are different from family. We choose them and they choose us. Philosophers long wondered about what makes friendship such a distinctive relationship in our lives. Is being a good friend a kind of moral virtue? Can friends help us find our true selves? What about the dark and difficult side of friendship — toxic friends and frenemies? How is the love between friends different from romantic love? Join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell and guests at the Sophia Club, a live philosophy event series held in Melbourne, London and New York. It is produced by Aeon Media, publishers of Aeon and Psyche.SpeakersMark Alfano — Professor of philosophy at Macquarie University, author of Moral Psychology: An Introduction, and Nietzsche's Moral Psychology.Dr Peter Knight — multi-award winning composer, trumpeter and electroacoustic musician, former artistic director of the Australian Art Orchestra.Sunny Kim — internationally renowned South Korean-born vocalist, composer, improviser, and senior lecturer in the jazz and improvisation at the University of Melbourne.Thank you to Sam Dresser (senior editor), Brigid Hains (editorial director and co-founder), and colleagues at Aeon Media.

To deal with China as a major trading partner, and also a national security threat requires understanding the history that made China what it is today. That history is shaped by resistance and different waves of uprising. How have governments dealt with these movements? How do they influence politics today?China: Past, Present, Future was recorded live at the 2025 Sydney Writers' Festival.Listen to Big Ideas — Behrouz Boochani and Arnold Zable: The language of resistanceSpeakersLinda JaivinAustralian author, cultural commentator, essayist and translatorAuthor of Bombard the Headquarters! China's Cultural RevolutionLouisa LimAward-winning journalist who reported from China for a decade for NPR and the BBCAuthor of Indelible City: Dispossession and Defiance in Hong KongEdward WongAmerican journalist and diplomatic correspondent for The New York TimesAuthor of At the Edge of Empire: A Family's Reckoning with ChinaPeter Hartcher (host)Australian journalist and the Political and International Editor of The Sydney Morning HeraldAuthor of Red Zone: China's Challenge and Australia's Future

The United States has long been famous for its world leading universities. But in the face of research funding cuts, government attacks on free speech, DEI and the right to protest, and the persecution of foreign students, could all that be changing?The speech, Poison Ideas: Universities and other Antidotes to Authoritarianism, was recorded at the 2025 conference of the Australasian Council of Deans of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (DASSH) representing 350 deans and associate deans from Australian and New Zealand universities.SpeakersSimon Adams - President & CEO, Centre for Victims of Torture, Professor of Human Rights, Murdoch University

The Western world is supposed to stand for values like freedom, justice and human rights, a commitment to meet wrongdoing with consequence, guided by rules and obligations. How then, do we reconcile that with Western governments' and media's support of and complicity in the horrors in Gaza? How do we witness the bloodshed and destruction, and yet look away?This conversation was recorded at the Canberra Writers Festival on 26 October 2025.SpeakersOmar El Akkad Author, One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, and novels The American War and What Strange ParadisePeter Greste (host) Professor of journalism, Macquarie University, Author, The Correspondent

Build more houses. That'll fix Australia's housing crisis won't it? If you listen to governments, you'd sure think so. Under the National Housing Accord, all governments have agreed to support a target of building 1.2 million new, well-located dwellings in 5 years. But will that increase housing affordability, availability, quality, security of tenure, and the growing gap between the haves and have-nots? What's missing from this picture?Join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell at the 2025 National Housing Conference with guests debating the rhetoric, reality and policies around housing supply.This event was organised by the Australian Housing and Urban Institute (AHURI), hosts of the National Housing Conference.SpeakersDavid ReynondsChief Executive, Department of Housing and Urban DevelopmentGovernment of South AustraliaProfessor Rachel Ong ViforjLeading housing policy researcher and advisorJohn Curtin Distinguished Professor of EconomicsCurtin UniversityDr Tim WilliamsGlobal Practice Leader, CitiesFormer advisor to five consecutive UK housing ministersFormer CEO, Committee of SydneyArchitecture firm GrimshawHost, The Grimshaw podcast Further informationProductivity Commission report on housing construction productivity (2025)The Economics of Housing Supply: key concepts and issues (August 2024)The State of the Housing System 2025: National Housing Supply and Affordability Council's second annual report.Housing policy reporting by ABC NewsHousing research reports and analysis by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI)Housing analysis by the Grattan Institute

Whitlam's dismissal and following double dissolution 50 years ago, was arguably the most tumultuous period in Australia's political and constitutional history. This political crisis raises key questions about constitutional change and the robustness of Australia's current democracy. What are the lessons? And could it happen again?Presented at the National Archives of AustraliaSpeakersAnne TwomeyProfessor Emerita of Constitutional Law at the University of Sydney Law SchoolFrank BongiornoProfessor of history, Australian National UniversityFrom 2026, Donald Horne Professor of History and Public Ideas and Director of the new Centre of Public Ideas at the University of Canberra Dr Brendan LimBarrister and author of Australia's Constitution after WhitlamPaul Barclay (host)Broadcaster and former presenter of Big Ideas

In the 1930s, New Zealand-born, Cambridge educated Arthur Dale Trendall carved a niche for himself as the world's foremost expert in the study of ancient South Italian vase painting. How then, did he end up leading a crack team of code-breakers working in Melbourne to decipher Japanese messages for the Allies during the Second World War?This lecture was recorded at Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance in partnership with La Trobe University's Trendall Research Centre.SpeakersDr Gillian Shepherd — Director of the A.D. Trendall Research Centre for Ancient Mediterranean Studies, Senior Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History at La Trobe University

When it was founded in 2015, openai — the company behind Chat GPT — had a mission to develop artificial intelligence tools that would benefit humanity. But somewhere along the way, that mission changed. While the use of AI in our daily lives is increasingly pervasive, the technology's toll on the environment, human rights, copyright, privacy and workers and resources in the global south is starting to mount. In her new book, leading AI reporter Karen Hao details the AI industry's pursuit of progress at any cost.This conversation was recorded at RMIT University in partnership with Readings Bookshop on 5 September 2025.SpeakersKaren Hao Author, Empire of AI: inside the reckless race for total domination, former Wall St Journal reporter, former senior AI editor at the MIT Technology Review, lead at the Pulitzer Centre's AI spotlight series, one of Time Magazine's Top 100 people in AI in 2025Kobi Leins (host) Lawyer, academic, AI governance and digital ethics advisor, author, New War Technologies and International Law: The Legal Limits to Weaponising Nanomaterials

ABC Radio National's CITIZEN JURY takes hard, hot-button issues affecting a community — and places citizens at the centre of finding solutions. It's citizen-driven democracy in action!Tasmanian salmon is on dinner plates across Australia. It's a 1.4 billion-dollar industry producing jobs for Tasmanians, and more than 70, 000 tonnes of fish annually — with plans for expansion. But salmon farming has also become a lightning-rod for locals concerned about its environmental impact — on water quality, wild species, and then there was the mass mortality event last summer which saw over 1 million salmon die and smelly fatty fishy globules wash up on local beaches. Join BIG IDEAS host and science journalist Natasha Mitchell in the historic town of Franklin in the Huon Valley with three Citizen jurors, two expert witnesses, and a live audience of passionate locals — including salmon workers and activists — as they listen, debate, and share solutions on this fraught issue.CITIZEN JURORSJohn StanfieldLifelong recreational fisher in Tasmania, former army employee, now works in healthFounder, RecFishTas (Recreational Fishing in Tasmania) Facebook GroupPeter GrahamSculptor, former mining industry geologistSecretary, Port Huon Progress Association Lives near a salmon company's hatchery facilityDr Rayne AllinsonHistorian, former university academic, authorFirst-time environmental campaigner and state election candidate after mass salmon die-off polluted her local beach in 2025. Employed by newly elected MP Peter George's electoral office in 2025.EXPERT WITNESSESProfessor Jeff RossSenior researcherFisheries and Aquaculture CentreInstitute of Marine & Antarctic StudiesUniversity of Tasmania Christine Coughanowr Water quality management consultantCo-chair, Tasmania Independent Science CouncilFounder and former director, Derwent Estuary Program partnershipINDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVEDr John WittingtonCEO, Salmon TasmaniaFormer CEO, Blue Economy Cooperative Research Centre (CRC)Former Secretary of the Department of Primary Industries, Parks Water and Environment, TasmaniaAUDIENCEMembers of the Huon Valley community and surrounds. The call-out for audience was made on ABC Hobart, ABC Radio National, and The Cygnet. Huon & Channel Classifieds.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThanks to Huon Valley Council for granting the ABC access to The Palais Theatre in Franklin for this event.Thanks to Jo Spargo and the ABC Hobart team for supporting this Citizen Jury event.Thanks to Huon Aquaculture staff for a tour of their hatchery facility and salmon pens for the Citizen Jury members and ABC Citizen Jury team.FURTHER INFORMATIONTasmanian Salmon Farming Data (Salmon Portal)Fin-Fish Farming in Tasmania Legislative Council Inquiry report (2022)How many salmon farms are there in Tasmania — and who owns them? (ABC News, 2025)Massive fish deaths in Tasmanian salmon farms to be investigated (ABC 730, 2025)Tasmanian salmon industry reeling from largest-ever fish deaths event as EPA launches investigation (ABC News, 2025)

In 1975, aged just 29, she wrote a bestselling book that changed Australia. Since then, she's courted controversy and acclaim, but Anne Summers has never given up the fight for gender equality.This conversation was recorded live at the 2025 Sydney Writers' Festival.SpeakersDr Anne SummersAuthor, Damned Whores and God's Police, Ducks on the Pond: An Autobiography 1945-1976, The Misogyny Factor, and many moreProfessor of domestic and family violence, University of Technology SydneyJournalist, editor, political advisor, advocateDr Alecia Simmonds (host)Associate Professor in Law, University of Technology SydneyAuthor, Courting: An Intimate History of Love and the Law, and Wild Man: The True Story of a Police Killing, Mental Illness and the LawFurther information:Tenacity and two squat houses — how an Australian movement was born for women leaving violenceBig Ideas, ABC Radio National, Monday 6 May 2024Baby boycott — the fertility crisis and the big decisionBig Ideas, ABC Radio National, Thursday 26 June 2025

When people say or do the wrong thing, we have laws and a legal system that should be able to deliver consequences and, hopefully justice. But in this digital age, the human instinct to inflict punishment in the court of public opinion has reached fever pitch. So do we want to live by mob rule, or the rule of law?The 2025 James Merralls Fellowship in Law Lecture, hosted by the University of Melbourne Law School and the Victorian Bar, was recorded on 4 September 2025.SpeakersSue Chrysanthou Defamation barristerJames Waters (host) Commercial law barrister

For all of human history, space has been a place of mystery, awe and fascination. But unless you're an astronaut, a billionaire, or a pop star, most of us will never have the opportunity to travel there — except in our minds. This conversation features two writers who've used the perspective of space to explore our humanity, Earth's place in the universe, and the meaning of it all.The conversation, Out of this World was recorded live at the 2025 Sydney Writers' Festival.SpeakersSamantha Harvey Author, Orbital (2024 Booker Prize winner) and many moreCeridwen Dovey Writer of fiction, creative non-fiction and science, filmmaker, author of Only the Astronauts and many moreAshley Hay (host) Writer, editor, facilitator, mentor, author of A Hundred Small Lessons, and many more

Have you ever visited an art gallery full of wonder, ready to be inspired, only to leave feeling like it was all a bit over your head? You're about to meet one writer whose new book of essays rejects the over-complication and gets to the messy, human heart of art.What Artists See is a collection of essays from award-winning arts writer and critic Quentin Sprague, canvassing twelve contemporary Australian artists whose works span sculpture, painting and architecture, and the stories are just as diverse as the mediums.This talk was recorded at the ANU Drill Hall Gallery on 27 August 2025.SpeakersQuentin SpragueArts writer and critic, author of What Artists See, Ken Whisson: Painting and Drawing and The Stranger Artist: Life at the Edge of Kimberley Painting (2021 Prime Minister's Literary Award for non-fiction)Mark McKennaProfessor of history, University of Sydney, author, The Shortest History of Australia, Return to Uluru, From the Edge: Australia's Lost Histories, Looking for Blackfellas' Point and An Eye for Eternity: The Life of Manning Clark, (winner, Prime Minister's Literary Award for non-fiction)

When a child is born, so too is a mother. This idea, known as "matrescence", was first conceived in the 1970s by American medical anthropologist Dana Raphael. Parenting in 2025 looks very different in many ways, the scientific evidence now supports the theory that women undergo radical physiological, psychological and social changes during pregnancy, childbirth, and motherhood.This conversation was presented by the Sydney Opera House at the 2025 All About Women Festival.SpeakersLucy Jones Science journalist and author, Matrescence: On the Metamorphosis of Pregnancy, Childbirth, and MotherhoodGina Rushton (host) ABC journalist and author, The Parenthood Dilemma, Procreation in an Age of Uncertainty

He was undefeated in battle and established one of the largest empires in history. But his legacy goes beyond his military conquests. He increased trade between East and West, spread the Greek civilisation and founded cultural centres that still thrive today. Learn more about Alexander the Great's life, personality and impact with a fresh perspective on his reign, including the vital roles that other figures played in historical events and new insights into how and why historical interpretations have changed.This talk is provided by the York Festival of Ideas. The Festival is led by the University of York, UK.SpeakerDr Stephen HarrisonLecturer in Ancient History, Swansea University, Author of Alexander the Great: Lives and Legacies

She became the third ever woman to win a Nobel Prize in Physics in 2018, and the first in 50 years. This is the story of how Donna Strickland became a "Laser Jock", and why she's now on a mission to restore trust in science.This event was recorded at the Centre for Ideas at the University of New South Wales.SpeakersDonna StricklandProfessor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Waterloo, Canada2018 winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics (with Gérard Mourou)Tegan Taylor (host) Presenter, Life Matters and What's that Rash? ABC Radio NationalFurther information:About Donna Strickland, 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics

Ziggy Ramo is an award-winning musician and author whose latest book titled Human?: A lie that has been killing us since 1788 weaves song, visual art and personal history to present a new way of looking at this country’s past. Led by Mparntwe and Alice Springs-based poet Laurie May, Ziggy reflects on the project and where it took him at the Byron Writers Festival.Each chapter of Human? is a multi-media journey, the richness of the art forms matches the depth of the topics covered – both personal and political to Ziggy. SpeakersZiggy Ramo Wik and Solomon Islander artist and author of Human?: A lie that has been killing us since 1788Laurie May Mparntwe and Alice Springs-based poet and spoken word performer

2025 is a landmark year for Australian privacy law. The new statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy came into effect in June this year. This could be a breakthrough providing you with a better way to protect your privacy interests through the court system. Big Ideas digs deep into its origins, its inspirations, and its potential future.Presented at the Queensland University of Technology.SpeakersEmeritus Professor Barbara McDonaldProfessor of Law, University of Sydney Law School; led the 2014 Australian Law Reform Commission Inquiry on Serious Invasions of Privacy in the Digital Era.The Hon Justice Peter Applegarth AM KCFormer barrister and Judge of the Supreme Court of QueenslandMark Burdon (host)Professor of Law, Queensland University of Technology, QUT's Digital Media Research CentreFurther informationNew statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy

This rollicking history traces the evolution of the London stock exchange, from the Transatlantic slave trade to modern day missions to Mars, arguing that the financial markets wield the power to bring down governments, and shape our societies, for better and for worse.This lecture was recorded at the Australian National University.SpeakersPhilip Roscoe Author, How to Build a Stock Exchange: The Past, Present and Future of FinanceProfessor of Management, University of St Andrews, Scotland

She's on a bank note (British 10 pounds), and a bath soap (Suds and Sensibility), and she also wrote some of the most beloved novels in English literature. Why has Jane Austen become such an enduring cultural force, and what makes us return to her works time and time again?This event, celebrating 250 years since Jane Austen's birth, was recorded at the National Library of Australia on 20 August 2025.SpeakerSusannah Fullerton President of the Jane Austen Society of Australia, guide, ASA Cultural Tours

Is the end of the world nigh, or just the end of the world as we know it? Are we set to doom-scroll our way to apocalypse? Or is this the moment we wake up to ourselves, change course, and save the planet? Don't miss this hilarious battle of brains and bravado when two teams join Big Ideas' host and science journalist Natasha Mitchell at Hobart City Hall for the annual Beaker Street Festival Great Debate. Have our multi-crises of climate change, over-consumption, over-reliance on vulnerable technologies, and [insert your favourite impending disaster here] finally brought us to the brink? Or do we just love a good challenge, the hairier and scarier the better!? You decide the winner. Your life could depend on it.TEAM AFFIRMATIVE - The Three Horsewomen of the ApocalypseDr Esmé Louise James (Team Captain)Sex historian and TikTok star Host of the Kinky History podcast and Sextistic showsAuthor of Kinky History: A Rollicking Journey Through Our Sexual Past, Present, and Future (2024)Kitana MansellProud Palawa womanBusiness Development Manager of Tasmania's first Aboriginal native food business Palawa KipliDr Kate BoothHuman geographer and Associate Professor in Urban & Regional PlanningLeader of the Critical Collapse Studies research program.University of Tasmania TEAM NEGATIVE - The TransformersHannah Moloney (Team Captain)Tasmanian host of Gardening Australia on ABC TVCreator of Good Life PermacultureAuthor of Good Life Growing: How to Grow Fruit and Veg Anywhere in Australia (2023) and The Good Life: How To Grow A Better World (2025)Toby WalshScientia Professor of Artificial IntelligenceChief Scientist, UNSW.AI Institute, University of NSWAuthor of The Shortest History of AI (2025), Machines Behaving Badly: The Morality of AI (2022), Faking It: Artificial Intelligence in a Human World (2023)Gretta PeclProfessor of marine ecology, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), University of TasmaniaDirector of the Centre of Marine SocioecologyA lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reportsThanks to Dr Margo Adler, Executive Director of the Beaker St Festival: a week long celebration of science and art in Nipaluna/Hobart each August.Thanks to the house band Stevie and the Bunsen Burners and the whole festival team.

Conflict and great power rivalries are on the rise, democracy is in retreat, and multilateral institutions created to maintain global cooperation appear increasingly toothless. So is the world as we've known it coming to an end? And if so, what will replace it?This speech was recorded at the University of Queensland on 17 September 2025.SpeakerAndrew PhillipsProfessor of international relations and strategy with the University of QueenslandAuthor, War, religion and empire: The transformation of international orders, Outsourcing empire: how company-states made the modern world and more

The Democratic Party in America is in an identity crisis. It's shifting priorities to claw back grounds from the Republicans. But is it too little, too late? How can the Democrats respond to a radicalising and increasingly authoritarian-minded Republican Party? The Future of America's Democratic Party presented by the American Academy in BerlinSpeakersJacob S. HackerStanely B. Resor Professor of Political Science, Co-Director of the Ludwig Program in Public Sector Leadership at Yale Law SchoolPaul PiersonJohn Cross Distinguished Professor of Political Science, University of California at BerkeleyDaniel Benjamin (host)President of the American Academy in Berlin

From Rodrigo Duterte, to Narendra Modi, to Donald Trump, strongman leaders around the world are harnessing big tech to consolidate their power. Social media is also being used to energise and organise resistance movements, but is the bad increasingly outweighing the good?The 2025 Southeast Asia Oration Media Freedom and Democracy in Southeast Asia was held at the University of Melbourne, in partnership with Asialink, the Asia Institute, and the ASEAN Australia Centre.SpeakersMaria Ressa Filippino journalist, co-founder and CEO of online news site Rappler, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, author, How to Stand Up to a DictatorLaura Tingle Global Affairs Editor, ABCNicholas Coppel Former Australian Ambassador Myanmar, author, Myanmar's Digital Coup, President of the Australia Myanmar InstituteDr Ken Setiawan Senior Lecturer in Indonesian Studies at the Asia Institute, University of MelbourneProfessor Michael Wesley (host) Deputy Vice Chancellor (Global, Culture and Engagement), University of Melbourne

If a stiff dose of medical misinformation is what you're after, look no further than the White House right now. And, on social media and in online forums, countless conspiracy theories reign supreme. In this "post-truth" era, has science lost its authority, or have we lost sight of what scientific proof actually involves? From debates over the origins of our species to conspiracies surrounding the origins of COVID19, Dr Elizabeth Finkel goes where others fear to tread to lift the lid on how science works. Join her with Big Ideas' host Natasha Mitchell at this event hosted by the Royal Society of Victoria and Black Inc Books.SpeakerDr Elizabeth FinkelScience journalist, biologist, author, former editor of popular science magazine CosmosAuthor of Prove it: A scientific guide to the post-truth era (Black Inc Books, 2025), The Genome Generation (2011), Stem Cells: Controversy at the Frontier of Science (2005).