The Symbolism of Oak Trees and Shared Stories

The Kurdish poet Behrouz Boochani and the Australian writer Arnold Zable explore the power of friendship as an act of resistance, nourishment and healing.

This event was recorded with the Faculty of Arts at the University of Melbourne 29 April 2025.

Speakers

Behrouz BoochaniKurdish-Iranian writer, journalist, scholar, cultural advocate, filmmaker, and public advocate for human rightsAuthor, No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison, and Freedom Only FreedomAdjunct Associate Professor in Social Sciences at the University of New South Wales, McGeorge Fellow, University of Melbourne

Arnold ZableAuthor, Jewels and Ashes, Café Scheherazade, The Fig Tree,The Watermill and moreWinner, Australia Council Award for a Lifetime Achievement in Literature, 2021

Nikos Papastergiadis (host)Cultural critic, essayist and author, John Berger and Me: A Migrant's EyeFormer Director of the Research Unit in Public Cultures at the University of Melbourne