Curate Category: History

Want to be inspired by the stories of brilliant women? Join us to celebrate books that speak boldly about the vital role of women in leadership roles across the media, economics, history and space and technology sectors. At a time when the broligarchy of tech and space entrepreneurship looms large, the fields of economics and history are still dominated by men and we need voices in our media sector holding those in power to account, it’s time to cheer and rally around our panel of Elise Stephenson, Sita Sargeant, Catie Bradbear, Melissa Bray and Amy Remeikis for a conversation about the way women lead and why it matters more than ever.

As we look around the globe and see growing threats to democracy, more of us are asking ourselves – do we have effective electoral, legislative and legal systems and social norms here in Australia to guide and protect us? Is the Australian Constitution up to the task? Join this expert panel of legal and political scholars Rosalind Dixon, William Partlett and Kim Rubenstein in conversation with Adele Webb to discuss how we can best take part in our democracy as active citizens.

Entrepreneur Sanjeev Gupta was going to rescue the Australian, UK, European and US steel industries – and save the planet with green steel. He did none of these things, but he did get very rich. Hear the extraordinary story, told by former Media Watch host and Walkley Award-winning journalist Paul Barry in a live Follow the Money podcast recording with Ebony Bennett. We’ll ask: why do we buy into ‘corporate saviour’ myths? And what does it mean for communities left to pick-up the pieces?

Supported by The Australia Institute.

Wikipedia is one of humanity’s most underappreciated triumphs – a standout in the cesspool that is much of the internet – and it has been achieved by unpaid, amateur and mostly anonymous volunteers. Join Richard Cooke and Bernard Keane to foray into the Wonderful World of Wikipedia, its controversies and characters.

There is nothing like reading a beautiful letter. Postscript showcases treasures from the National Library of Australia collection: love letters; impassioned pleas; and words bearing witness to history. Our panellists Amy Remeikis and Kate Forsyth will read fascinating extracts from selected letters and speak to Lauren Smith about their experience responding to these treasures with missives of their own.

Please note – Michael Winkler is no longer appearing at Canberra Writers Festival.

We’re fascinated by the lives of first responders: paramedics, firefighters and police officers. What draws people to these intense professions? How does what they see reshape them? Martin McKenzie-Murray has had three life stories entrusted to him by experienced first responders. He joins Nigel Featherstone in conversation and together they’ll traverse danger, camaraderie, trauma and its aftermath.

As Australia seeks to bolster its defence forces in an increasingly volatile world, what do service personnel who challenged militarism and the Anzac legend have to teach us? Mia Martin Hobbs, Joan Beaumont and Carolyn Holbrook argue we need to hear these voices as we think about the future of Australian military service, the AUKUS pact and the new world of drone warfare.

Many of us have fond memories of formative times in libraries – minds opened by the shelves of treasures, research projects unleashed and novels deliciously enjoyed in peace. Let's traverse the importance of the local libraries in our country towns to the great libraries of the world. This is a conversation between Chris Hammer, Sophie Gee, Corey Tutt and Phillipa McGuinness about these special spaces and the mighty works they’ve unleashed, and now house, for all to enjoy.