Understanding Australia – the vital role played by the National Archives with Director-General David Fricker

In this episode of the National Security Podcast, David Fricker, Director-General of the National Archives of Australia, joins two of the ANU National Security College’s resident historians — Dr William Stoltz and Associate Professor Sue Thompson – to talk about the vital role played by the National Archives.

Are the collections of the National Archives of Australia national security infrastructure? After almost a decade of leading the organisation, Director-General David Fricker certainly believes so. If they were destroyed, made inaccessible or manipulated, it would severely undermine faith in Australia’s national values, he argues on the National Security Podcast. In this episode, the Director-General — along with Dr William Stoltz and Associate Professor Sue Thompson — explore the vital role the National Archives plays in Australian life, what makes it unique amongst its international peers, the challenge of balancing secrecy with transparency, and much more.

Dr William Stoltz is the Senior Adviser for Public Policy at the ANU National Security College (NSC). He is responsible for mobilising the College’s research and resident expertise to influence and inform current public policy debates.

Associate Professor Sue Thompson is the Academic Convener at NSC and has extensive experience in academia, government, the media, and the non-government sector.

David Fricker is Director-General of the National Archives of Australia, President of the International Council on Archives and Vice-Chair of the UNESCO Memory of the World International Advisory Committee.

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