The idea of "freedom" is one that's often used in relation to the economy: we have "the free market" and "free trade agreements", freedom from regulation, from government intervention, and so on. But whose freedom are we talking about, and at whose expense? This event was recorded at the Perth Town Hall on 14 August 2024. Speakers Joseph Stiglitz Professor, Columbia University Business SchoolAuthor, The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society Ebony Bennett Deputy Director, The Australia Institute ..read more

Just over a decade ago democracy was within reach in Myanmar, but now the country is in danger of becoming a failed state. So what happened, and what keeps hope for the country alive? This event was recorded on 18 July 2024 at The Wheeler Centre, in partnership with PEN Melbourne, and RMIT Culture. Speakers Ma Thida Writer, human rights activist and doctorAuthor, A-maze: Myanmar's struggle for democracy: 2011-2023, Prisoner of Conscience: My Steps through Insein (2016) and many moreChair, Writers in Prison Committee, PEN InternationalFellow, Writers-in-Exile Programme, PEN Germany Dr Michelle ..read more

It's a tough time to be a parent. From screens, to mental health, neurodiversity, gender, diet and schooling, this generation is in unchartered territory in many ways. So what does the evidence tell us that will give parents the best chance to raise happy healthy children, without killing themselves in the process? This event was recorded at Waverley Library in Sydney on 8 August 2024. Speakers Norman Swan Presenter, Health Report, ABC Radio NationalAuthor, So you want to know what's good for your kids? Cassie McCullagh Presenter, The Bookshelf, ABC Radio National ..read more

From soy to oat to almond, plant mylks are all the rage. But is it possible that we've misunderstood and unfairly maligned old fashioned cow's milk? Speakers Matthew Evans Farmer, Fat Pig FarmsAuthor, Milk: the truth, the lies and the unbelievable story of the original superfoodHost, Gourmet Farmer, SBS Nick Haddow Bruny Island Cheese CoAuthor, Milk Made: A book about cheese ..read more

It was the stuff of scifi blockbuster movie The Terminator in the early 1980s, but now lethal autonomous weapons systems are actually being used in conflict zones around the world. And the arms race is on to develop more effective, more deadly killing machines, that don't need human inputs to do their job. This event was recorded at Human Rights Watch in Sydney on 4 June 2024. Speakers Mary Wareham Deputy Director, Crisis, Conflict and Arms Division, Human Rights WatchCo-Laureate (with Jody Williams), Nobel Peace Prize, 1997, for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) Daniela Gavsh ..read more

We all love a bargain, but what is the real cost of those books we buy online or in a supermarket for 12 dollars or less? Should Australia adopt a fixed book price common in Europe? How can we support and grow an industry that nourishes our minds and souls. A conversation on the challenges facing the Australian book industry.  Presented at the Sydney Writers Festival. Speakers Ray BonnerPulitzer Prize winning author, journalist, co-owner of Bookoccino, the Northern Beaches bookstore Richard FlanaganAward winning Australian author, latest book Question 7, Penguin  Olivia Lanchester&nb ..read more

The connections between the Caribbean and Australia go back to white settlement, with deep links to the slave trade and British colonialism. What does it mean to be a writer of Caribbean descent in modern Australia? And how can the act of writing and storytelling enable a new sense of belonging and home? This event was recorded at the Callaloo and Wattleseed Symposium at the University of Western Sydney on 3 May 2924. Speakers Maxine Beneba Clarke Author, The Hate Race, Foreign Soil, poetry books Carrying The World, How Decent Folk Behave, and children's books including When We Say Black Lives ..read more

10 humans in length, weighing 50 small cars, and with a bite that could take out two of you in one bite. This beast was BIG. But if Megalodon was so mighty, why did it disappear? Tim Flannery and his daughter Emma have written a book about the mystery of the giant extinct shark, and he joins Natasha Mitchell with two other fossil aficionados, palaeontologists Erich Fitzgerald and Cheng-Hsui Tsai, to take you into a very different watery world of wilderbeasts.   Speakers: Professor Tim Flannery Paleontologist, conversationist, climate change advocate Co-author, Big Meg: The ..read more

A new generation of female and non-binary intellectuals are using social media to share their scholarship and reach younger audiences. It's a tricky balance — juggling their followers' expectations and reactions, both bouquets and brickbats, maintaining their rigour, and making a living from these algorithmically-gamed corporate platforms. Meet the new influencers. Presented by the Sydney Opera House Speakers Hannah FergusonFounder & CEO of cheekmedia.co Sisonke MsimangWriter, activist and Guardian columnist Mary McgillivrayArt historian and visual content maker Bri Lee (host)Author, journ ..read more

Could our continent's ancient past help solve future food security crises? Or even offer new treatments for skin cancer and inflammatory bowel disease? Tasty on your dinner plate, potentially transformative for your health — First Nations experts explore the rich potential of traditional bush foods and Indigenous plant knowledge. Presented at the World Science Festival Brisbane. Speakers Suzanne ThompsonFounder & Managing Director of Yambangku Aboriginal Cultural Heritage and Tourism Development Corporation; Chair, Australian Native Foods and Botanicals Madonna ThomsonChairperson, BushTukk ..read more