How are organisations and industry utilising the UN Sustainable Development Goals to envisage a better future? To understand the challenges – and consider possible solutions – the University of Sydney has launched a new program of innovation and impact, "Connect For: A Better Future". Hear an insightful discussion marking the launch of the program and delves deeper into the key issues at play. FEATURING: - An introduction by Belinda Hutchinson AC, University of Sydney Chancellor - A panel discussion with Louise Herron AM, CEO of Sydney Opera House, and Innes Willox, Chief Executive of Australian Industry Group; facilitated by Professor Duncan Ivison, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research)at the University of Sydney - Closing remarks by Dr Michael Spence, University of Sydney Vice-Chancellor and Principal Connect For: A Better Future runs from July–September 2020. Learn more about the program here: https://bit.ly/3jqOVGf TRANSCRIPT available here: https://bit.ly/39Yq9ZE

COVID-19 has revealed the precariousness of our lives and systems. How can employment & education help us temper the long term impacts of continued social distance. As we start talking about rebuilding, many are left vulnerable, facing uncertain futures. How can we ensure the cracks don’t become chasms and instead develop a plan that supports an inclusive future and supports social cohesion? Our panel tackle these big questions and consider how we rebuild, or at least think about the future. THE SPEAKERS – Professor John Buchanan, University of Sydney Business School – Professor Allan Fels AO, University of Melbourne – Emeritus Professor Geoff Gallop AC, University of Sydney – Sam Mostyn, non-executive director and sustainability advisor – Professor Jaky Troy, Director, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research at the University of Sydney. – Professor Ian Hickie (Moderator), Co-director of the Brain and Mind Centre For more information, visit the Sydney Ideas website: https://bit.ly/2MJred8

Against the backdrop of COVID-19, what's been going on with China and the US, and what does this mean for the global economic and strategic landscape? We discuss civil unrest in the US, trade wars, situation in Hong Kong, and more – with Chinese politics scholar Minglu Chen, Asia-Pacific security expert Jingdong Yuan and political scientist David Smith. Bill Birtles, ABC's China Correspondent, moderates this conversation. For more information, including the podcast transcript, visit our website: https://bit.ly/2LsUpAl

'In this together' is the theme for National Reconciliation Week 2020 in Australia. Professors Jaky Troy and Lisa Jackson Pulver, lawyer Teela Reid and GUIR founder Ken Zulumovski, come together to discuss whether true reconciliation is achievable, without Australia first meeting the objectives of truth and justice. For more information and further resources, including the transcript, visit our website: https://bit.ly/2XfAhHI

As we start down the long road of recovery there are many discussions being had about how we live, work and rebuild. In this, we need to have a discussion about Australia’s economic future – and the role education and research will play in our recovery, rebuilding and reimagining. This conversation brings together leaders in government, higher education and finance to consider the complex issues – and potential solutions – for a recovery. THE SPEAKERS – Dr Michael Spence AC, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sydney – Cathryn Carver, Executive General Manager (Client Coverage) at NAB – Mark Scott AO (moderator), Secretary of the NSW Department of Education For more information and further resources, including the transcript for the podcast, visit our website: https://bit.ly/2XdLus3

Vaccines have controlled or even eradicated some of the world’s most serious diseases. But the success of immunisation is limited by motivational and practical issues. Scientists are currently working hard to develop a vaccine for COVID-19, yet the safest and most effective vaccines won’t be of any use if the public will not, or cannot, take them. On International Nurses Day, Professor Julie Leask gave a talk about current research into routine immunisation and the critical role of nurse and midwives in influencing vaccination uptake. Julie is a social scientist specialising in immunisation and an advisor to the World Health Organization. She is based at the University of Sydney Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery (Sydney Nursing School). Professor Donna Waters, Head and Dean of the Sydney Nursing School provided the introduction. For further resources, including the transcript, visit our website: https://bit.ly/2xCcEQA

As we start to chart a COVID-19 recovery course, there are a number of complex issues to consider. Last week, the Australian government announced and released the COVIDSafe app, designed to help us all to return to some sort of normal. Since its release, there've been a lot of discussion about the functionality and security of the app. The purpose of this conversation is to give you access to expert insights and facts. Our panel will consider questions such as, how is this going to work? Can it keep us safe? And also what are the risks to us all if we do download it, or if we don't? THE SPEAKERS: – Professor Robert Slonim, behavioural economist from the School of Economics – Associate Professor Adam Dunn, Head of Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health in the School of Medical Sciences – Associate Professor Jeanne Huang, international law expert from the Sydney Law School – Dr Suranga Seneviratne, Lecturer in Security at the School of Computer Science – Anna Burns (moderator), Sydney Ideas For further resources, including the transcript, useful links and ways to give back, visit our website: https://bit.ly/2SN4bBJ

COVID-19 has put health firmly at the top of the agenda. While we’re practising physical distancing to maintain our physical health, how do we maintain our wellbeing and cope constructively through this time? THE SPEAKERS – Professor Maree Teesson, Director of the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use and NHMRC Principal Research Fellow at the University of Sydney – Dr Lexine Stapinski, Senior Research Fellow, Clinical Psychologist and Lead in Intervention and Implementation at the Matilda Centre WHAT WE COVER
 – Concerns for community wellbeing: fear of the virus; impacts of isolation; and long-term impacts (1.45) – What can we do right now? Practical steps and coping mechanisms (5.00) – Work-life balance: juggling multiple roles and responsibilities (8.50) – Dealing with financial stress and job loss (10.30) – Working remotely, productivity and role of managers (14.30) – Social anxiety and impacts of social distancing (17.40) – Managing our passive digital and screen time (18.40) – Avoidance and alcohol use (21.00) – Support for health care workers (27.30) – Support for young people (28.50) - Giving ourselves time and space, and strategies for politely declining invitations to connect (35.50) – Riding the rollercoaster of emotions (37.30) For further resources, including the transcript, useful links and ways to give back, visit our website: https://bit.ly/2Vnfimh

As the COVID-19 situation unfolds, now is the time to rethink how we do things, during this pandemic and beyond. What could a digital present and future look like for mental health? Hosted by The University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Centre and facilitated by ABC broadcaster Dr Norman Swan, this conversation will ask how can the mental health system to best support communities and consider a mental healthcare transformation, beyond tele to DigiHealth. For more information, including the transcript, speaker slides, and useful resources, visit the Sydney Ideas website: https://bit.ly/3a3ZRUo WHAT WE COVER – Professor Ian Hickie: overview of the landscape (00:01:00) – Dr John Torous: international perspective, research at Harvard (00:09:00) - Samuel Hockey: user perspective and co-design, and lived experience (00:21:00) – Professor Frances Kay-Lambkin: access and connection (00:28:00) – Julie Sturgess: North Coast Primary Health Network case/model; how its adopted technology (00:34:00) – Dr Peggy Brown: digital standards (00:38:00) – Professor Pat Dudgeon: insights on Indigenous populations (00:42:00) – Dr Michael Millard: digital platforms and THIS WAY UP (00:45:00) – Professor John Mendoza: the scene in Adelaide (00:47:30) – Dr Angelo Virgona: unique opportunities (00:52:00) – Dr Michael Moore: what are the risks related to telehealth (00:55:00) – Dr Sebastian Rosenberg: barriers and inequities around access (00:58:00) – John Feneley: meeting needs and demand in the long-term (00:60:00) – Julius Ajayi: use of digital platforms with patients in mental health care (01:04:00) – Associate Professor Elizabeth Scott: how she is flipping her specialist clinic with technology (01:06:30) – Dr Haley LaMonica: use of technology by older persons (01:09:30) – Jason Trethowan: waitlists and digihealth (01:11:30) – Professor Frances Kay-Lambkin: examples of young people and peer support online programs (01:15:00) – Dr Danny Rock: insights into PORTS project as an example of digital transformation (01:17:00) – Professor Ian Hickie: key ideas and big questions to think about (01:22:00)

We're peeling back the layers of language and cognition and how it relates to COVID-19. Particularly at this time, the way we talk about the disease and the current situation, can be helpful or harmful, comforting or confusing. What should we be conscious of? We speak with Nick Enfield, Professor of Linguistics at the University of Sydney. WHAT WE COVER – From "mild" to "extreme" cases: the need for nuance – Unpacking the idea of "the new normal" – Exercising cognitive literacy, or what Hugo Mercier terms 'open vigilance' Access the transcript: https://bit.ly/2V0VLa3 For more info, head to the Sydney Ideas website: sydney.edu.au/sydney-ideas.