Sydney Ideas

A phenomenal mathematician, Hanna Neumann achieved her success in the face of the Nazis, an imprisoned husband, and entrenched misogyny. She arrived in Australia in 1963 to take academic positions at the Australian National University, and was made chair of pure mathematics in 1964, making her the first female Professor of Mathematics in Australia. Her most widely known work 'Varieties of Groups' was published in 1967. Dr Peter Neumann OBE describes the life of his mother, Hanna Neumann, and her long and distinguished career as a female mathematician in the early part of the 20th century.

The civil war in Syria has entered its seventh year. With death toll estimates ranging from 220,000 to 400,000 casualties and more than 11 million civilians internally displaced or seeking refuge abroad, it has been described as the world’s deadliest conflict of recent times. In this forum, a panel of experts will explore political, cultural and humanitarian dimensions of the Syrian tragedy. The panel focuses on questions relating to allegations of genocide, the use of archaeological and historical monuments as ‘weapons of war’, and the causes and consequences of failures to prevent atrocity crimes in Syria and elsewhere. The discussion also considers the limitations of our capacity for empathy towards ‘distant others’ and the implications for effective action towards peace and human rights. SPEAKERS - Dr Ross Burns has published two books on the history and monuments of Syria Monuments of Syria (2009); and Damascus; A History (2005). - German born Syrian-American composer and pianist Malek Jandali has spo

What is the impact of Hillary Clinton's loss and will it discourage or motivate women to become more politically engaged? In conversation with Geraldine Doogue, current host of ABC Radio National’s Saturday Extra, Anna Greenberg who has over 15 years of experience polling in the political, non-profit and academic sectors, charts a way forward for women in politics in both the United States and Australia. A Sydney Ideas and US Studies Centre event at the University of Sydney on 21 June 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/women_politics_anna_greenberg.shtml

What does it mean to urbanise? Are industrialisation and urbanisation two aspects of the same process? How do villages have a chance to thrive if a state is determined to urbanise the country? Drawing on cases in the peri-urban area of the Pearl River Delta, this talk by Professor Luigi Tomba, Director of the China Studies Centre, The University of Sydney, discusses aspects of China’s rapid urbanisation. It will explore strategies that village collectives have put in place to defend their economic, social and cultural autonomy in the face of the desire of the state to both claim control of ever greater portions of the country’s collective land, and to urbanise as much as possible of the population. Held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 20 June, 2017 http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/professor_luigi_tomba.shtml

Belkis Wille is senior Iraq researcher in the Middle East and North Africa division, Human Rights Watch. She discusses the worsening situation for civilians in Mosul, the prospects of justice for victims of ISIS abuses, the prospects for reconciliation in Iraq, and why the international community including Australia should do more to ensure respect for human rights in Iraq. Held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 15 June 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/belkis_wille.shtml

Professor Yolanda Moses, Fulbright Distinguished Chair in Cultural Competence, National Centre for Cultural Competence. Based on an article ‘Confronting the Trump Effect on Our Campuses’, recently published in Inside Higher Education, Fulbright Distinguished Chair in Cultural Competence, Professor Yolanda Moses will discuss institutional commitments to diversity, social justice and inclusion in today’s current political climate. She will make the case that an “America first “policy clashes with the core values of contemporary higher education in the U.S., and suggest some strategies and practices to resist the proposed “closing of the American mind.” Held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 9 June 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/professor_yolanda_moses.shtml

Carlos Ghosn, one of the world’s most influential business leaders and was the first executive to run two Fortune Global 500 companies simultaneously, discusses the future of the automotive industry, the importance of innovation in business, and what it takes to be a truly global leader. Mr Ghosn has been the industry's leading advocate for sustainable transportation; Renault and Nissan were the first automakers to launch a range of affordable zero-emission vehicles. He is also leading the Alliance’s pioneering effort to develop autonomous-drive and connected-car technologies and services. Presented by the Australian Lebanese Foundation in partnership with the University of Sydney Business School and Sydney Ideas This event was held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 8 June 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/carlos_ghosn.shtml

The challenges that face schools are not simple but there are local, national and international models that may provide some pathways to changing school learning and teaching practices, leadership and governance. This panel considers how schools and schooling can benefit from new models and approaches to learning. They draw on international experience, emergent models (such as the 4Cs) and discuss the role of technology in enabling and potentially impeding learning. Speakers: Professor Michael Anderson, School of Education and Social Work; Mrs Robyn Evans principal, Casula Public School; Dr Miranda Jefferson , Teaching Educator, Catholic Education Office Parramatta; Mr Greg Whitby, Executive Director of Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta; Dr Phil Lambert PSM (panel chair. Held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 8 June 2017. http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/ESW_deans_lecture_series.shtml

We think we know civil war when we see it. Yet ideas of what it is, and what it isn’t, have a long and contested history, from its fraught origins in republican Rome to debates in early modern Europe to our present day. Defining the term is acutely political, for ideas about what makes a war “civil” often depend on whether one is a ruler or a rebel, victor or vanquished, sufferer or outsider. Calling a conflict a civil war can shape its outcome by determining whether outside powers choose to get involved or stand aside: from the American Revolution to the war in Iraq, pivotal decisions have depended on such shifts of perspective. A panel of historians, lawyers and philosophers respond to David Armitage’s book 'Civil Wars: A History in Ideas', in which he offers a unique perspective on the roots and dynamics of civil war, and on its shaping force in our conflict-ridden world. Speakers: Professor David Armitage, Lloyd C. Blankfein Professor of History, Harvard University; Associate Professor Maartje Abbenhuis

In the last 50 years museums have slowly changed from exhibitions ‘about’ Indigenous peoples to exhibitions by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander curators. As the University of Sydney embarks on the building of the new Chau Chak Wing Museum, we consider what are the next steps and continue to question how exhibitions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander collections can engage all visitors meaningfully. Speakers: Sharni Jones, Manager of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander collections at the Australian Museum Stephen Gilchrist, Associate Lecturer Department of Art History, University of Sydney Rodney Kelly, Gweagal activist for the repatriation of ancestral collections to Aboriginal ownership Amanda Reynolds, Stella Stories artist, curator, cultural consultant and editor Matt Poll, (panel chair) Assistant Curator, Indigenous Heritage, Macleay Museum, Sydney University Museums A 2017 Reconciliation Week at the University of Sydney event, co-presented with the Macleay Museum. Held on 31 May

What’s wrong with our kidneys? And what we are doing about it at the University of Sydney. Professor Steve Chadban reviews the state of the nation in terms of kidney health and discusses the spectrum of kidney disease in the Australian population. He then turns to the lab to explore potential solutions for key problems in kidney health. From the lab he next moves to the clinic to examine the impact of specific interventions for people with kidney disease. Finally he returns to the population level to observe the impact of treatments for kidney disease on outcomes. Held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 31 May 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/21st_century_medicine_2017.shtml

A Sydney Writers’ Festival event presented with the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Susan Faludi is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and the author of the bestselling Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction, Stiffed: The Betrayal of the American Man, and The Terror Dream: Myth and Misogyny in an Insecure America, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism. Her most recent book, In the Darkroom, won the 2016 Kirkus Prize for Non-Fiction and was named one of the top ten best books of the year by The New York Times. Faludi's work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Harper’s, and many other publications. For this special Sydney Ideas event, Susan Faludi is in conversation with the University of Sydney student Anna Hush. Anna Hush is an Honours student in Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. She has been a vocal advocate for institutional change

Associate Professor Muireann Irish, School of Psychology and Brain and Mind Centre at the University of Sydney, gives a fascinating overview of her work exploring autobiographical memory and future thinking across various dementia syndromes. She highlights the cognitive mechanisms and neural networks that need to be functional to support these sophisticated cognitive processes and the devastating effects of losing these uniquely human functions. Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia 2017 Paul Bourke Lecture A Sydney Ideas event co-presented with the School of Psychology in the Faculty of Science, and the Brain and Mind Centre. Presented as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 16 May, 2017 http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/2017_paul_bourke_lecture_muirann_irish.shtml

The extraordinary growth of the past thirty years is due to unprecedented globalisation and accelerating technological change. Connectivity has been associated with rising creativity and accelerating change. The speed, scale and complexity of this integration has far-reaching implications for business and for individuals and societies. Professor Ian Goldin (Oxford University Professor of Globalisation and Development) identifies the drivers of global growth, showing why emerging markets are likely to continue to grow at high levels for the coming decades. Rising life expectancy and collapsing fertility around the world has dramatic consequences for pensions, retirement, dependency and employment patterns. Meanwhile, advances in artificial intelligence and robotics is transforming the nature of work and has the potential to replace significant numbers of jobs and widen inequality. Held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 15 May 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/professor_ian_goldin.sht

Pain is both personal and global and despite all that we know about its origins and treatments, countless people live with chronic pain. In this health forum, University of Sydney experts will highlight new treatments and share insights that are changing people’s lives for the better, especially for those experiencing pain linked to chronic diseases such as arthritis, cancer, injuries, and brain disorders. Held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 10 May, 2017 http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/health_forums_2017.shtml

With an audience of over 180 million viewers each year, the Eurovision Song contest is one of the longest running and most watched television events in the world. Since its inception in 1956 it has been used as a vehicle to unite Europe, but throughout its history Eurovision has also highlighted deep divisions in the European project. With this year’s theme ‘celebrate diversity’, politics threatens to loom larger than ever. Will Brexit mean ‘nul points’ for the United Kingdom? Will tensions between Russia and this year’s host country, the Ukraine, derail the contest? Has Eurovision contributed to the rise of populism? Why exactly is Australia competing? Anika Gauja and Julia Zemiro take us behind the glitter and glamour to reveal what Eurovision can teach us about identity, power and conflict in Europe today. Presented by Sydney Ideas on 9 May 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/eurovision_european_project_forum.shtml

Part of the 21st Century Medicine Lecture Series. Professor Guy Thwaites, an academic infectious diseases physician and clinical microbiologist, whose research interests focus on severe bacterial infections, including meningitis and Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection, and tuberculosis, gives lecture on antimicrobial resistance and the misuse of antimicrobials. Presented by Sydney Ideas on 3 May 2017 http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/21st_century_medicine_2017.shtml

From 1799 to 1804 Alexander von Humboldt made an extraordinary trip through Spanish America, a trip that resulted in a scientific and an aesthetic vision of the terrestrial globe. Fascinated by the exuberant vegetation and wildlife he encountered in the tropics, he investigated how they varied with the specific physical conditions of different regions. Humboldt carried with him an impressive array of the latest scientific instruments that he used to measure the physical parameters of the environments through which he travelled. He also regarded his own body as an instrument through which to register these varying conditions, recording his own sensations alongside the readings of his physical apparatus. These corporeal perceptions were further tied to his aesthetic perceptions as a part of a cultivated sensibility. Physical instruments, bodily sensations and aesthetic perceptions together afforded total views of regions of the Earth, of the interplay of physical powers and landscapes, and of their characteri

Early in her life Chido Govera realised the importance of food to community. Mushroom farming enabled her not only to feed her family in Zimbabwe and attain independence, but to create a healthier environment through managing food waste. For many years Chido has shared her unique skills and experiences with women throughout Africa and globally as an educator and mentor. Chido joins Sydney Ideas for a conversation with University of Sydney researcher Alana Mann to discuss how engagement in small scale agro-ecological methods of farming can empower women, benefit the environment, and contribute to food sovereignty and food security. Presented by Sydney Ideas on 2 May 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/food@sydney_series_2017.shtml

A special presentation by leading human right scholars, Emeritus Professor Gillian Triggs, President of the Australian Human Rights Commission and Professor Samina Yasmeen, University of Western Australia, with Professor Shahram Akbarzadeh, Deakin University They discuss the topic of human rights today in the face of rising Islamophobia for the launch of the Australian Association of Islamic and Muslim Studies (AAIMS),an inter-disciplinary network of scholars at Australian universities. Hosted by Assoc Professor Lily Rahim, University of Sydney Presented by Sydney Ideas on 28 April 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/human_rights_rise_of_islamophobia_AIMMS_launch.shtml