Big Ideas

From the world's oldest continuous living culture, to the arrival of Captain Cook, the goldrush to the ANZACs, from Federation to elections to referendums, and beyond, our understanding of Australian history has evolved dramatically over recent years. Six esteemed scholars have six minutes each to wrestle with how our past unites, divides, and defines us. Who will win?
The Great Debate was recorded for Social Sciences Week with the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and the National Library of Australia.
Speakers
Affirmative team
Frank BongiornoProfessor of historyDirector of the University of Canberra's Centre of Public IdeasAuthor, Dreamers and Schemers: A Political History of Australia and more
Jakelin TroyNgarigu woman from the Snowy Mountains of NSWProfessor of AnthropologyDirector of Indigenous Research at the University of Sydney
Georgina DownerCEO of the Robert Menzies Institute, University of Melbourne
Negative team
Michelle ArrowProfessor of modern history, Macquarie UniversityPresident of the Australian Historical AssociationAuthor, Women and Whitlam: Revisiting the Revolution and more
Vonda MaloneFormer member of the Queensland Truth Telling and Healing InquiryFormer CEO of the Torres Strait Regional AuthorityFirst female Mayor of the Torres Shire Council
Dan WoodmanProfessor in Sociology at the University of Melbourne
Judges
Richard HoldenProfessor of Economics, University of NSWFormer school debating champion
Chris UhlmannPolitical contributor, Sky News, columnist, The Australian
Kate Darian-SmithPresident of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia

He’s been called a “hypercapitalist”, a “new authoritarian” and a “post fascist”. Twelve months into Donald Trump’s second term as United States President, he has certainly reshaped the country and the world in ways that have shocked and surprised. So how should we understand his political ideology? 
The conversation Is It Fascism Yet? was recorded at the Sydney Opera House on 28 September 2025. 
Speakers
Jason Stanley  Professor of Philosophy and Linguistics, Chair of American Studies at the University of Toronto Author, How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them, Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future, and more 
M. Gessen  Opinion writer for the New York Times Author, Surviving Autocracy, The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia and more 
Anna Funder (host)  Author, Wifedom, Stasiland, All That I Am 
 Further information:
One Year of Trump. The Time to Act Is Now, While We Still Can. M.Gessen, The New York Times, 18 January 2026
Why I Fled Trump's AmericaJason Stanley, Zeteo, 26 July 2025

Don't miss meeting these four resilient women creating the change they want to see in the world. At 20, Monique “Mermaid” Murphy’s had a catastrophic accident. Two years later she won Silver at the Paralympics. At 21, Larisha Jerome turned homelessness into buying her first home. Now she advocates for financial justice for other First Nations people. At 14, Nasteho Mukhtar arrived in Australia with her mother and siblings as a refugee from Somalia. Now the social enterprise founder, poet, and Muay Thai fighter helps other women find their power. At 16, Claudia Kurowski is Cairns Young Woman of the Year, a charity-founder, youth parliamentarian, and wants young people to consider politics. Their stories will WOW you, as they join Natasha Mitchell on stage at the WOW (Women of the World) Australia School’s Day in Meanjin/Brisbane.
Speakers
Larisha Jerome Proud Jarowair, Wakka Wakka and Wulli Wulli womanman Chair, Jarowair Aboriginal Corporation Board director, the Happy Boxes Project Founder, Liberate with Larisha Monique Murphy Silver medal-winning Paralympian swimmer Nasteho Mukhtar Program coordinator, ETHNI Co-founder and manager, Maua Boutique Claudia Kurowski Year 12 student, Cairns State High School 2025 Cairns Young Woman of the Year Co-founder of the youth-led charity, the Gratitude Initiative Parliamentarian and Youth Minister of the Health, YMCA Queensland Youth Parliament.
Thank you to event producers Kaylah Tyson and Jo Pratt.

He jumped off a plane, exchanged the notorious briefcase on a park bench and got his identity blown by an asset under torture. Sounds like fiction? But the real stories still differ remarkably from novels and films. A discussion about the realities of espionage and the stories that surround it - filled with intrigue and hidden truths for your ears only. 
Spies, Lies and Secretes was recorded live at the 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival at Carriageworks. 
Speakers
Ben MacintyreBestselling author of books including The Siege, Colditz, Agent Sonya, SAS: Rogue Heroes, The Spy and the Traitor, Agent Zigzag, Operation Mincemeat and A Spy Among Friends 
Jack Beaumont (pseudonym)Former operative of the French foreign secret service, the DGSE, Author of The Frenchman and Dark Arena  
Matthew Condon (host)Prize-winning Australian novelist and journalist

DNA testing has helped family history researchers fill in the blanks in their family trees. While that can be a good thing, it can also lead to unexpected consequences. From "non-parental events", to big data hacks, to unauthorised use of DNA in criminal investigations, this is everything you need to know about genetic genealogy.
This event was recorded at the State Library of NSW for Family History Month 2025.
Speakers
Claire Aird Journalist, presenter of the podcast series, Secrets We Keep: Should I Spit?
Vanessa CassinEducation Manager, Society of Australian Genealogists
Professor Tanya Evans Director of the Centre for Applied History, Macquarie UniversityPresident of the International Federation of Public HistoryAuthor, Family History, Historical Consciousness and Citizenship: A new social history and more
Adria Castellucci (host)Lead, Family History team, State Library of New South Wales
Further information:
How a church-run DNA donation led Michael to be falsely accused of murder SBS News, 6 July 2025