Sydney Ideas

Economic Modelling now plays a significant role in the development of public policy development and the conduct of public debate in Australia. Modelling has been central to the case for and against the carbon tax, the mining tax and industrial relations reform. But the widespread use of economic modelling is not matched with widespread understanding of its strengths, weaknesses and vulnerabilities. When used well economic modelling can help policy makers understand the existence, and magnitude, of likely interrelationships; when used poorly it can conceal those same linkages; and when use dishonestly it can be used as a tool to dress up the self-interest of advocates as national interest. In this address Richard Denniss outlines the use and abuse of economic modelling in Australia and argue the case for a Code of Conduct for economic modelling.

To celebrate National Archaeology Week 2016 we present two talks on the topic of archaeology and heritage in the Pacific. Wasteland and Wonderland: Bikini Atoll - from atomic bomb testing ground to World Heritage Dr Steve Brown, Lecturer in Archaeology, Master of Museum and Heritage Studies program Sydney’s Missionary Connections to the New Hebrides (Vanuatu) in the 19th Century James Flexner, Lecturer in Historical Archaeology and Heritage, Department of Archaeology More info: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2016/archaeology_heritage_tropical_pacific.shtml

Since the global food crisis of 2007, agricultural land has become an attractive asset for large private corporations and state-owned entities wanting to secure food supplies. These investments have had varying effects. At times, they have been associated with forced removals of pre-existing landholders with weak tenure rights. On other occasions they have driven up local property prices and altered production priorities towards export markets. Either way, they have been implicated in creating a more vertically integrated food system aligned to global markets. This panel discusses these issues from international and Australian perspectives. PANEL: Emeritus Professor Geoffrey Lawrence, University of Queensland Dr Sarah Sippel, Senior Researcher, Centre for Area Studies, University of Leipzig, Germany Professor Bill Pritchard, Human Geography, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney A Sydney Ideas and Sydney Environment Institute event in the Food@Sydney series http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2016/food@sydney_series_2016.shtml

It is now well established that digital media has given rise to new forms of political speech. Just as importantly though, the new media environment has also created space for new types of listening. Media scholar Dave Karpf discusses the role that digital listening, measurement, and experimentation play in shaping the contours of ‘analytic activism’. More info: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2016/david_karpf.shtml

A look into how bottles are impacting on tap water provision and the implications of accumulating plastic waste on environments and bodies. SPEAKERS: Professor Gay Hawkins, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University; Assoc Professor Kane Race, Gender and Cultural Studies, the University of Sydney; and Kylie Yeend, Education, Engagement and Partnerships Manager at Sydney Water.

The Justice and Development Party (AKP) government, dominated by President Erdogan, has governed Turkey for more than a decade. Its initial democratisation agenda, however, has taken an authoritarian turn - with minimal tolerance for dissent. The lecture by Professor Umut Azak (Okan University, Istanbul) investigates the shifts in state-Islam relations within the context of a shrinking pluralist democracy in Turkey and the broader Middle East. The AKP’s state-led Islamisation and commitment towards creating a ‘devout generation’ are examined by locating the institutionalisation of ‘state Islam’ within the foundations established by the secular Kemalist Republic. More info: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2016/professor_umut_azak.shtml

Did you know that at the height of 2015 forest fires, Indonesia was emitting more carbon than the entire US economy? Kiki Taufik, the Global Head of Greenpeace’s Indonesian Forests Campaign outlines why protecting Indonesia's forests is critical to global efforts to stabilise the climate and preserve biodiversity. He analyses recent developments concerning Indonesia's forests, the creation of a new agency to protect peatland, the work of the anti-corruption commission, and Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s recent bans on new forest clearance and mining. Co-presented with the Sydney Environment Institute in association with Greenpeace Australia Pacific.

Leading theatrical designers Michael Scott-Mitchell and Nick Schlieper join Associate Professor Branka Spehar, who specialises in the psychology of visual perception, to present a panel discussion about light and colour effects and their implications for performance, architecture and visual perception.

This forum brings together two esteemed investigative journalists from overseas, Anna Nemtsova from Russia and Madhu Trehan from India, with Australian journalist Tom Dusevic and former NSW Premier Bob Carr. It will be moderated by David Marr, widely regarded as one of the country’s most influential commentators. Co-presented with the Australian Press Council as keynote event in the Press Council’s 40th Anniversary International Conference.

"Not too hot, not too cold" reads the prescription for a world that's just right for life as we know it. Finding evidence of life beyond Earth is one of the primary goals of science agencies around the world. The goal looms closer as a result of discoveries made by NASA's Kepler Mission. Find out more from Dr Natalie Batalha, NASA Ames Research Center and the Mission Scientist for NASA's Kepler Mission, as she describes the latest discoveries and the possibilities for finding inhabited environments in the not-so-distant future. This lecture took place at the University of Sydney as part of the 2016 Professor Walter Stibbs Lecture, an annual lecture by a distinguished astronomer of international standing. A Sydney Ideas co-presentation http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2016/dr_natalie_batalha.shtml