Grattan Institute

Each year Grattan selects its best books of the past 12 months as recommended reading for the Prime Minister and all Australians over the summer holidays. In this summer series, we discuss some of the works on the list with the people who wrote them. In this special podcast, award-winning Mununjali author, Ellen Van Neerven, discusses their book Personal Score with Grattan associates Esther Suckling and Dominic Jones. The book is an expansive examination of race, gender and sexuality, told through the lens of playing sport. Read the full Prime Minister’s Summer Reading List: https://grattan.edu.au/news/prime-ministers-summer-reading-list-2023/ Read Personal Score: https://www.uqp.com.au/books/personal-score-sport-culture-identity

Each year Grattan selects its best books of the past 12 months as recommended reading for the Prime Minister and all Australians over the summer holidays. In this special summer series, we discuss some of the works on the list with the people who wrote them. In this special podcast, renowned Australian author Anna Funder discusses her literary non-fiction masterpiece, Wifedom. Hosted by Anika Stobart, Senior Associate, and Amy Haywood, Education Deputy Program Director. Read the full Prime Minister's Summer Reading List: https://grattan.edu.au/news/prime-ministers-summer-reading-list-2023/ Purchase Wifedom by Anna Funder: https://www.penguin.com.au/books/wifedom-9780143787112

The National Disability Insurance Scheme Review has published its final report. The report contains 26 recommendations and 139 actions, many of which relate to creating a unified system of support for people with disability. But does the review go far enough? Is it going to deliver better outcomes for people with disability that rely on the NDIS, while creating a plan to manage spiralling costs? Listen to host Kat Clay, in conversation with Sam Bennett, Disability Program Director, and Hannah Orban, Associate, about what the NDIS review means for disability services in Australia. Read the NDIS review: https://www.ndisreview.gov.au/resources/reports/working-together-deliver-ndis Donate to Grattan: https://grattan.edu.au/donate/

Last week, the OECD released the results of the program for international student assessment, better known as PISA. Every three years, hundreds of thousands of 15-year-old students from across the world sit tests in maths, science and reading. But what do the results show for Australia? And are our students doing better, worse, or about the same? Listen to Jordana Hunter, Education Program Director, and Nick Parkinson, Senior Associate, in conversation with host Kat Clay about the test and what the results reveal about Australia's education system.

From cars to homes to industry, hydrogen has been hyped as an all-encompassing solution to meeting Australia’s emissions targets. But is it the golden ticket to a net-zero future? With the National Hydrogen Strategy under review, it’s time to get truly strategic with hydrogen. Listen to energy experts Alison Reeve and Richard Yan discuss their new report, *Hydrogen: hype, hope, or hard work?*. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/hydrogen-hype-hope-or-hard-work/ Donate to Grattan: https://grattan.edu.au/donate

Each year, vaccines save thousands of lives. But in the wake of the pandemic, Australians are sick of hearing about vaccination. Amidst the misinformation on the internet and fatigue from government messaging, many of us have become complacent. New Grattan research shows that millions of older Australians at high risk of serious illness are missing out on essential vaccines, and certain groups of people are more likely to miss out than others. Listen to Peter Breadon, Health Program Director, and Ingrid Burfurd, Senior Associate, discuss their new report with host Kat Clay. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/a-fair-shot-ensuring-all-australians-can-get-the-vaccines-they-need/

It's no secret that Australian roads are in a state of disrepair, but it's a lesser known fact that three quarters of our roads are managed by local councils. Many councils are struggling to look after our roads, because they don't have the revenue, the capacity, or the expertise. In this podcast, Natasha Bradshaw, Marion Terrill, and Dominic Jones discuss their latest report, Potholes and Pitfalls, which investigates why local roads are in a state of disrepair and provides a roadmap to fix them. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/potholes-and-pitfalls-how-to-fix-local-roads/ Donate to Grattan: https://grattan.edu.au/donate/

Is tax reform in Australia an impossible dream? Danielle Wood addresses this question in her Freebairn Lecture, given in honour of Professor John Freebairn AO. In this special podcast presentation, she argues that tax reform is essential to rebuild the budget, improve equity, and break down the age segregation in the current tax system. Audio courtesy of the University of Melbourne Faculty of the Business and Economics. Read the full text of the speech: https://grattan.edu.au/news/tax-reform-in-australia-an-impossible-dream/

Salt is sneaking into Australian diets, worsening our health outcomes from salt-related diseases. And while Australia has a target to reduce salt intake by 30 per cent by 2030, our food policies lag behind other countries. But are our diets just a matter of personal responsibility? Or does the government have a greater role to play in reducing salt in our diets? Listen to Peter Breadon, Health Program Director, Lachlan Fox, Associate discuss Grattan’s latest report, Sneaky salt: How Australia can shake its salt habit. Hosted by Kat Clay. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/sneaky-salt/

Claudia Goldin, an economist who has shifted the world’s understanding of women’s labour market outcomes, discusses her research on the gender pay gap and the progressions that enable women to work. The podcast explores the implementation of paid parental leave in Australia, improving workforce participation through childcare, and Claudia Golden's contributions to economics.