Regardless of where people are born or the communities they belong to, equal access to healthcare should be a fundamental human right. In our age of pandemics, and with healthcare inequality widening, how can we make healthcare access equitable? Esteemed jurist and legal scholar Michael Kirby has tirelessly advocated for equal access to healthcare over his lengthy career. As a pioneering AIDS activist, member of the WHO’s Global Commission on AIDS from 1988 – 1992, and respected legal mind, Kirby’s focus in recent years has also included decriminalising homosexuality and sex work, and reducing the cost of life-saving medications. Hear Michael Kirby in conversation with journalist Geraldine Doogue as they discussed his life and career, focusing on what we have learnt from the HIV/AIDS epidemic, how we have applied those lessons during recent pandemics, and how we can build support for egalitarian global healthcare. Presented by the UNSW Centre for Ideas, The Kirby Institute and supported by UNSW Medicine & Health.   ABOUT THE DAVID COOPER LECTURE The David Cooper Lecture honours the legacy of The Kirby Institute’s Founding Director, Professor David Cooper AC. Professor Cooper passed away in 2018 and was an internationally renowned scientist and HIV clinician, who laid the foundations for Australia’s ongoing global leadership in the fight against the global HIV epidemic.    To make a donation to support David Cooper’s incredible vision for equitable access to healthcare visit unsw.to/DavidCooperMemorialFund.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hear from world-leading epidemiologist and Dark Winter author Raina MacIntyre as she examined pandemics through the lens of history, what lessons we have learned, and how we might navigate the new frontiers of biosecurity. She provided a glimpse into quantum advances in genetic engineering and synthetic biology, and considered calls for a cross-disciplinary, global approach to safeguard our future.This event was presented by the Sydney Writers' Festival and supported by UNSW Sydney.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Floods. Fires. Plague. We’ve seen them all in the past few years, fuelling a renewed sense of an unpredictable world. Add to this the galloping pace of technological change (ChatGPT anyone?) and it is easy to feel overwhelmed. What shocks lie ahead? And what kind of resilience do we need to build to ensure we are prepared? Hear from three thinkers as they discuss climate change, health, technology, and look over the horizon to explore what is to come. Joëlle Gergis, Norman Swan, and Toby Walsh appeared with Julianne Schultz.This event was presented by the Sydney Writers' Festival and supported by UNSW Sydney. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Waste has a bad reputation. Rubbish, unwanted, disgusting, gross. But when we hold our noses as we scuttle past an overflowing bin in the street, we are passing by a world of recycling opportunities. In nature there is no such thing as garbage, it's a series of complex circular eco systems where everything has a purpose, and nothing is left to waste – so why should our lives be any different? According to material scientists, it doesn’t have to be. Rather than bury our trash or toss it in the bin, we should be excited by the idea of creating something entirely new – the idea of a used can, a discarded tyre or a smashed iPhone is a gateway to a brave new world of recycled products, like components for 3D printers, green ceramics and home furnishings. So, think twice next time you discard your plastic water bottle because it may actually hold the secrets to unlocking a greener type of steel. In under 10 minutes, or the time it takes to melt an aluminium can, material scientist and engineer Veena Sahajwalla explains why not everything belongs in the bin. For more information, visit unsw.to/VeenaSahajwalla.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Millions of Baby Boomers lucked out with affordable homes, free uni, jobs for life and a franking credit-fed retirement. Millennials and Gen Z are faring less… well, fairly. They’re stuck on a hamster wheel of insecure work, saddled with student loans and crammed into share houses paying off Boomers’ mortgages. How did we get here and how do we fix it? Comedian and I, Millennial: One Snowflake’s Screed Against Boomers, Billionaires and Everything Else author Tom Ballard, and economist and Gen F’d?: How Young Australians Can Reclaim Their Uncertain Futures author Alison Pennington plot the path ahead with economist Richard Holden (From Free to Fair Markets: Liberalism after COVID-19) and host Jessica Irvine.This event was presented by the Sydney Writers' Festival and supported by UNSW Sydney. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than 264 million people worldwide have depression. But for many people struggling with severe or treatment-resistant depression, standard therapies may not work. So what if there are new treatments that could be effective? Recently there has been a renaissance of interest in psychedelics as possible treatments for mental disorders – everything from ketamine, to MDMA and psilocybin – the psychoactive ingredient in ‘magic’ mushrooms. These medicines have powerful mind-altering properties with the potential to treat severe mental disorders when combined with psychological therapy. Some early studies have returned positive results, but there remain large gaps in our knowledge regarding effectiveness and safety… But where to from here? Could psychedelics play a role in managing mental health? For more information, visit unsw.to/AdamBayesFODI This talk was a part of Unthinkable, an event of short talks in the 2022 Festival of Dangerous Ideas.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can we reclaim our attention from a world preoccupied by our data productivity?   In her book, How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy, Jenny Odell argues that reconnecting with our body and physical environment may be our most important form of resistance from society’s preoccupation with productivity, and the invasion of the internet and social media on our time.   Following a solo talk by Jenny Odell, AI expert Toby Walsh, reporter Cam Wilson, and technology journalist Ariel Bogle joined Odell for a discussion on what we can do to resist the profit-driven tech landscape.This event was presented by the UNSW Centre for Ideas and Sydney Writers' Festival.  For more information, visit https://unsw.to/JennyOdellPodSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When the Black Plague swept the world, a mere cough could mean a death sentence. It took centuries for us to better understand infectious diseases, however when COVID-19 arrived, we were just as vulnerable as we were all those years ago.   Scientists have long been sounding the alarm bells that a global pandemic could arrive at any time, and yet when it finally did, governments were ill prepared and millions died. COVID-19 wasn’t the first global pandemic, and it certainly won’t be the last… so how can we prepare our medical arsenal to ensure we’re better equipped next time. Because, as UNSW student Felicity-Tram Tu tells us, the next devastating pandemic could be just around the corner.   For more information, visit unsw.to/FelicityTramTu. This talk was a part of Fresh Blood, an event of short talks in the 2022 Festival of Dangerous Ideas.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the coronation of King Charles III in May, many Australians are reflecting on our relationship with the Crown and what it means for our country's future. Australia is a very different country now than it was 100 years ago, and the idea of a monarchy resonates differently today for our vast multicultural population.  A hushed conversation has been stirring for some decades now, but since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II it’s reached fever pitch – orbiting the central question: what is Australia’s national identity? As our government strives to be more progressive, how can we reconcile the complex relationship between the Crown and Indigenous Australians, and the impact of colonisation on the ongoing struggle for recognition and reconciliation.  Join us for an evening of thought-provoking conversation with Craig Foster, former Socceroo and Co-Chair of the Australian Republic Movement, Megan Davis, Cobble Cobble woman and Pro Vice-Chancellor Society at UNSW Sydney, and Nyadol Nyuon, Director of the Sir Zelman Cowan Centre at Victoria University, in a lively panel discussion hosted by constitutional expert and UNSW’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor, George Williams. Together they will explore the benefits and challenges of severing ties with the Crown, the role of the Commonwealth in Australia's future, and what steps we can take to make this a reality.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

500 years ago, scientists made the groundbreaking discovery that opium could be used for the treatment of pain. But since then, we haven’t actually made a whole lot of progress. Opioid based medications remain by far the best for treating short term acute pain, but long-term chronic pain is a different story.   Our best answer for chronic pain remains an indefinite, perpetual prescription of pills, which have a range of debilitating side effects and carry severe risks of addiction and abuse. Given that pain is something we have all experienced in our lives, isn’t it time to come up with some different solutions? With a better understanding of how pain actually works, thanks to neuroscience, some radical new treatments are in the works that will help us move beyond prescription painkillers. Jack Hamilton shares these developments. For more information, visit unsw.to/JackHamilton. This talk was a part of Fresh Blood, an event of short talks in the 2022 Festival of Dangerous Ideas.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.