Sydney Ideas

What can the 24 hour economy look like and how might it help future proof the city? FEATURING: – Michael Rodrigues, 24 Hour Economy Commissioner – Sara Saleh, writer and poet – Jess Scully, author, curator and City of Sydney Deputy Lord Mayor – Carla Theunissen, Senior Manager, Place Activation and Strategy for Sydney Olympic Park – Steph Harmon (host), Culture Editor of Guardian Australia The rec...

2022. It's a new year yet the same-old. Off the back of the pandemic, there was talk of a Great Reset, a chance to turn a crisis into an opportunity. But looking at the state of play today – in politics, human rights, climate action and widening inequality – has this vision for a paradigm shift fizzled? To get some perspective, we bring together leading thinkers from a range of fields to share the...

Hear from researchers at the University of Sydney Nano Institute (Sydney Nano), who are working at the cutting-edge of nanoscience. Professor Zdenka Kuncic shares how the research team is delivering cures for neurological diseases by rethinking interventions in the nervous system. Dr Shelley Wickham is working on a project building autonomous, programmable robots that can detect disease early for...

How adaptable are our big city birds to the urban environment and what impact we humans are having on them? Discover some significant citizen science projects and how you can get involved. Drawing on the latest research, in this Sydney Ideas event you will hear powerful short talks about our local birdlife. Featuring: – Professor Dieter Hochuli, ecologist at the University of Sydney, on the brush...

As Australia looks to reopen, and in the week NSW emerges from lockdown, we examine the path to reopening and how we can rebuild Australian society looking forward. Drawing upon the work of the Open Society, Common Purpose taskforce hosted at the University of Sydney, we ask: What do we need to get right? Featuring: – Professor Catherine Bennett, epidemiologist, Deakin University – Dr Nick Coatswo...

How do changes to our sleep and body rhythms affect our health, wellbeing and diseases of the brain? In the lead up to Mental Health Month, discover some fascinating new research emerging from the University of Sydney and beyond. Fran Kelly, Breakfast presenter on ABC Radio National, moderates an expert panel featuring: – Associate Professor Sean Cain, circadian rhythms expert from Monash Universi...

After being involved in two decades of occupying the country, what responsibilities does Australia owe to the people of Afghanistan? What more needs to be done by the Australian and other allied governments? This conversation brings together Afghan Australians Mujib Abid who recently escaped from Kabul with his family, and Shukufa Tahiri, former Policy Officer with the Refugee Council, as well as...

A philosopher, an improv comedian, a psychologist and an economist walk into a Sydney Ideas webinar... to discuss happiness. Can we find ways to be happier than we were before, while in the face of ongoing uncertainty and a global pandemic? Happiness. There are entire industries dedicated to helping us find it. Endless social media advice, self-help books and gurus promising health, wealth and hap...

Vaccines offer a way out of COVID but its success is not without challenges. How do we overcome the gaps in understanding so that we’re backing the best chance we have in keeping ourselves and the community safe? Facilitated by ABC’s Tegan Taylor (co-host of Australia's chart-topping health podcast, Coronacast), this discussion is grounded in the science, with insights from experts from the Facult...

What does lockdown 2.0 mean for younger people and how does it impact on their mental health? Hear from our panel of passionate mental health experts and leaders including: – Dr Marlee Bower, Research Fellow at the Matilda Centre, whose work explores social determinants of mental health and understanding loneliness; – Lucinda (Lucy) Brogden AM, Chair of National Mental Health Commission – Swapnik...

Hear from Kate Crawford, Honorary Professor at the University of Sydney and one of the world's foremost scholars on the social and political implications of artificial intelligence. Timed for the Australian launch of her new book, 'Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence', Kate speaks with Fenella Kernebone to explore how artificial intelligence is not obje...

COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the world we live in. Moving forward, how might we navigate work, health and wellbeing, and safety with COVID as an ongoing and evolving factor in the long-term? Hear from academic experts at the University of Sydney, as they share insights into lessons from the pandemic and what it might mean for us all into the future. We discuss: – What we’ve learned about COV...

During the pandemic last year, many of us delayed our health check-ups, from going to the dentist to cancer screenings, and much more. This has major flow on effects across all parts of society. So this discussion is the health check we need today: What issues were left unaddressed by Australia's pandemic response? How do we reset the agenda, and rethink the health system - to provide better care,...

It's been a big year. We’ve put together a few of our key talks, with leading thinkers from the University of Sydney and beyond to reflect on 2020 and what might lie ahead in 2021. Take a listen, and dive into the longer talks. Sydney Ideas will be back with more talks and ideas in the new year! FEATURING: – Mark Scott AO, The road ahead [00:00:00] – Professor Tim Soutphommasane, Combating viral p...

Black holes are the most mysterious objects in the universe; matter and space folded into an enigmatic knot from which not even light can escape. The 2020 Nobel Prize awarded research into black holes, thinking about the unthinkable, and seeing the unseeable. But just what did these extraordinary scientists do? Tune in as we try to unravel the puzzle. FEATURING – Professor Geraint F. Lewis, Univer...

The science and economics tells us sustainable energy alternatives make sense. So, what’s the missing link in the path to a clean and prosperous future? FEATURING: – Matt Kean MP, NSW Minister for Energy and Environment, offers perspective into the economic impacts and benefits of investing in alternative energy sources. – Professor Anita Ho-Baillie, John Hooke Chair of Nanoscience and a world lea...

This year has seen a complete restructure of how society conducts its business. The shift from traditional "face-to-face” work environments has been both unsettling and disruptive. But for some, particularly people with blindness or low vision, it’s proof that flexible or alternative working is a marker of both efficiency and productivity. We bring together a panel of individuals with lived experi...

It has never been more important to be sharing Indigenous knowledge. So many solutions to the problems we face today can be found in that wisdom. Bruce Pascoe delivers a lecture on Indigenous farming and land management. The 'Dark Emu' author is also joined in a conversation with plant breeder and agricultural scientist Dr Angela Pattison. Professor Lisa Jackson Pulver, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Ind...

COVID-19 has ushered in a global economic slump, which may lead to a global depression. But is the coronavirus just the trigger for a financial crisis that was waiting to happen? Globalisation and the economic policies of recent decades have produced a fragile system best described as rentier capitalism, characterised by a global class structure with rapidly growing precariat, and an increasingly...

How is the shift to digital shaping workplaces, cultures and employment opportunities? Explore future ways of working that are truly inclusive of people with disability. FEATURING – Dr Manisha Amin, CEO of Centre for Inclusive Design – Professor John Buchanan, University of Sydney Business School – Dr Sheelagh Daniels-Mayes, University of Sydney School of Education and Social Work – Charles Humble...

Shaun Gladwell’s practice engages personal experience and a wider speculation of art history to examine the dynamics of contemporary culture. Shaun transposes forms of urban expression such as skateboarding, graffiti, BMX bicycle riding, break-dancing and extreme sports into the multiple mediums of his practice. These performances, videos, paintings, photographs, sculptures and virtual reality wor...

In Australia, you need to be 18 to vote, 16 to drive a car, 13 to get a Facebook account. But the current age of criminal responsibility is 10. An estimated several thousand children under 14 appear in court on criminal matters each year. The vast majority of these are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander backgrounds. Apart from the undeniable long-term social costs, keeping young people in pri...

This special Sydney Ideas conversation marks the 10th Annual Robert Dixon Memorial Animal Welfare Symposium and explores a series of critical questions regarding companion, performance and wild animals. Considering we don't euthanise humans, how do we navigate through the ethics of conduct in this space and the potential conflicts of interest? Our panel discuss factors that influence end-of-life d...

If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s the need to be agile and pivot. How do we prepare our current workforce, and the next generation of graduates, for an uncertain future? What skills will be critical? Hear insights leaders at some of Australia's top tech and management firms. FEATURING – Alison Cairns, Technology Advisory Practice and NSW Education Industry lead at EY – Angela Murphy, Chief Exec...

Dr Bronwyn Bancroft is a proud Bundjalung Woman and Artist. Bronwyn has been exhibiting nationally and internationally for over three decades, and has illustrated and/or written 40+ children’s books. Bronwyn is in-conversation with Nicholas Tsoutas, curator, writer and arts consultant. The 'Art of influence' series features pioneering Sydney College of the Arts alumni, as they reflect on their car...