2022 Sydney Ideas

2022. It's a new year yet the same-old. Off the back of the pandemic, there was talk of a Great Reset, a chance to turn a crisis into an opportunity. But looking at the state of play today – in politics, human rights, climate action and widening inequality – has this vision for a paradigm shift fizzled?

To get some perspective, we bring together leading thinkers from a range of fields to share their take on how the world might change – or could change – for the better, by the end of year. 

FEATURING
– Dr Arianna Brambilla, Senior Lecturer in Architecture and Co-chair of the cluster Building Efficiencies of the Smart Sustainable Building Network
– Associate Professor Melody Ding, epidemiologist and population behavioural scientist working at the intersection of physical activity, epidemiology and chronic disease prevention
– Dr Arunima Malik, Senior Lecturer in the Integrated Sustainability. Her expertise is in big-data modelling to quantify sustainability impacts at local, national and global scales
– Jananie Janarthana, community organiser and campaigner 
– Dr Sandra Peter, Director of Sydney Business Insights at the University of Sydney Business School
– Fenella Kernebone, Head of Programming for Sydney Ideas, hosts this conversation.

For further links and resources, including a transcript, visit the Sydney Ideas website: https://bit.ly/3p47p3G

This public talks event was recorded on 17 February, 2022.

The shape of things to come

What can the 24 hour economy look like and how might it help future proof the city?

FEATURING: 
– Michael Rodrigues, 24 Hour Economy Commissioner 
– Sara Saleh, writer and poet
– Jess Scully, author, curator and City of Sydney Deputy Lord Mayor
– Carla Theunissen, Senior Manager, Place Activation and Strategy for Sydney Olympic Park
– Steph Harmon (host), Culture Editor of Guardian Australia

The recording for this podcast is from a live Sydney Ideas public talks event that was held virtually on Wednesday 2 March, 2022. 

For more information and resources, including the transcript, visit the Sydney Ideas website: https://bit.ly/3tffsNG

Lights on: bringing the nightlife back to our city

Hear from young people and academic experts, including a leading US researcher, who are driving research that is changing the out-of-home care system, using creative methods for social change.

FEATURING:
– Billy Black, Fostering Lifelong Connections Advisory Group – Expert by Experience
– Professor Amy Conley Wright, University of Sydney
– Bobby Hendry, Fostering Lifelong Connections Advisory Group – Expert by Experience
– Professor Peter J. Pecora, University of Washington
– Tegan Whittaker, Fostering Lifelong Connections Advisory Group – Expert by Experience
– Host: Professor Judith Cashmore AO, University of Sydney

The recording for this podcast is from a live Sydney Ideas public talks event that was held virtually on Thursday 10 March, 2022.

For more information and resources, including the transcript, visit the Sydney Ideas website: https://bit.ly/3CMnCjP

Young people as experts: creating change in out-of-home care

How can artificial intelligence help us solve tough mathematical problems? 

Delve into the surprising ways that AI can enhance our human intuition with esteemed Australian mathematician Professor Geordie Williamson and MC Adam Spencer.

To see the beautiful images and graphs Geordie refers to in his talk, watch the video here: https://bit.ly/3qcTKrE

The recording for this podcast is from a live Sydney Ideas event that was held on Tuesday 15 March, 2022.

For more information and resources, including the transcript, visit the Sydney Ideas website: www.sydney.edu.au/sydney-ideas

Maths, AI and intuition

In the aftermath of devastating climate disasters like Australia’s recent east-coast floods, how do communities – those at the centre of the crisis and those on the periphery – support each other emotionally during times of climate distress?

Hear from climate emotions experts and residents of Lismore. 
– Maddy Braddon, community organiser
– Professor James Bennett-Levy, mental health expert
– Aidan Ricketts, academic and environmental activist
– Samuel Savage, emergency services coordinator
– Jeanti St Clair, journalism lecturer and storycatcher
– Moderator: Dr Blanche Verlie, social scientist

The recording for this podcast is from a live Sydney Ideas online event, presented in collaboration with Sydney Environment Institute, held on Thursday 21 April, 2022.

For more information and resources, visit the Sydney Ideas website: https://bit.ly/395MYOC

To connect with research, news or join upcoming events at the Sydney Environment Institute, visit https://sei.sydney.edu.au/

A flood of emotions

Sydney Ideas welcomes back Professor Frank Pasquale (Brooklyn Law School), a leading author and academic on the law of artificial intelligence (AI), algorithms, and machine learning. He is joined by local experts to unpack the challenges and advantages of AI and how it is changing medical practice.

The potential for AI and its ability to improve how healthcare is delivered is well documented. From supporting the patient experience and how they access healthcare services, to assisting practitioners in avoiding errors, AI can enable healthcare systems to offer better care to more people. However, we’ll only take full advantage of what AI has to offer, with wise policy choices.

How can governmental and other authorities better support the development of quality AI for diagnosis and clinical decision making? Do we have the systems in place to make the meaningful changes needed for doctors and hospital administrators to take genuine advantage of the potential of AI? What are the challenges they face? 

Hear from Frank Pasquale, author of New Laws of Robotics: Defending Human Expertise in the Age of AI (Harvard University Press, 2020) followed by a conversation with Associate Professor and Paediatric Anaesthetist, Justin Skowno and Professor of law and a specialist at the intersection of law and technology, Kimberlee Weatherall (moderator).

This Sydney Ideas event was held online, on Monday 25 July 2022. 

To view the event page, please go to this link: https://bit.ly/3ONVKA0

How AI Is Changing Medical Practice

We know we must end sprawl and densify our cities, but are tall towers the answer? Can the skyscraper solve our affordable housing problem? Does high density necessarily mean high-rise, and do such developments stack up environmentally – or do they exacerbate issues such as urban heat? What are the wider benefits or disbenefits of hyper-density in terms of urban design, street making, community cohesion or accessibility? Join Saving Sydney author Dr Elizabeth Farrelly and a panel of experts for a robust discussion on whether Sydney should ‘go up or go out’, and whether this is even the right question.

PANEL
Dr Fiona Foo, Cardiologist 

Professor Cathy Sherry, Law School and Smart Green Cities, Macquarie University

Tim Sneesby, Manager Strategic Planning,  Waverley Council  

Professor Michael Chapman, Chair of Architecture and Design, University of Western Sydney  

CHAIRED BY
Dr Elizabeth Farrelly, author, journalist and Henry Halloran Research Trust Writer in Residence

108. Saving Sydney

Water security is one of the most contested issues facing urban and regional communities across Australia. For growing inland cities like Canberra, conventional assumptions and approaches to water supply, catchment management, and urban planning must be reimagined in the context of climate change. This special event hosted in partnership with the Planning Institute of Australia examines the increasingly complex debates surrounding water security and asks whether and how inland cities can ever achieve true urban resilience.  

This event is co-hosted with the Planning Institute of Australia.

SPEAKERS
Professor Barbara Norman, Foundation Chair of Urban and Regional Planning and Director of Canberra Urban and Regional Futures (CURF), the University of Canberra

Danielle Francis, Manager Policy and Strategy, Water Services Australia

Dr Jason Alexandra, Research Fellow, Transformational Climate Adaptation and Water, ANU Institute for Climate, Energy & Disaster Solutions, ANU Institute for Water Futures.

Dr Danswell Starrs, Water Science, Monitoring and Modelling Manager at ACT Government

CHAIRED BY
Dr Maxine Cooper FPIA, FEIANZ, Adjunct Prof UC, Chair ACT & Region Catchment Management Coordination Group, Chair Landcare ACT, and Deputy Chair National Landcare Network.

109. Contested Climate

The evidence shows that increasing new housing production alone won’t solve the affordability crisis. At this special event, the NSW Minister for Housing and Homelessness, the Hon. Rose Jackson MLC and a panel of experts from industry, academia, and community sectors, will outline strategies for unlocking affordable supply, from social housing to the ‘missing middle’. 

KEYNOTE ADDRESS
The Hon. Rose Jackson MLC, Minister for Housing, Homelessness, Mental Health, Youth, the North Coast, and Water

PANEL
Katie Stevenson, Executive Director Property Council of Australia NSW

Mark Degotardi, Chief Executive Officer, Community Housing Industry Association NSW

Dr Catherine Gilbert, the University of Sydney

Emma Greenhalgh, CEO National Shelter 

CHAIRED BY
Professor Nicole Gurran, Director, Henry Halloran Research Trust

110. From Social Housing to the Missing Middle

How do we move the needle on mental health outcomes? Alastair Campbell and leading experts discuss what can be done to influence the appropriate social and political responses.
Known for his role as communications director for former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair, Alastair Campbell has emerged as a prominent advocate for mental health action around the world.

In this Sydney Ideas public talk, Alastair shares brief reflections and then joined on stage by NSW Minister for Mental Health and Youth, The Hon. Minister Rose Jackson MLC; business leader Sam Mostyn AO (Chair of Beyond Blue); and youth mental health leaders Tanya Dearle and Zsofi de Haan. 

Our esteemed panel explore ways of moving forward and creating action to enhance mental health services and outcomes for all. 

Professor Ian Hickie AO, Co-director of Health and Policy at Brain and Mind Centre, hosts this event.

This event was held on Monday 4 March 2024 at the University of Sydney and was presented with Brain and Mind Centre and Matilda Centre.

Alastair Campbell: Setting The Mental Health Agenda

Infrastructure planning is intrinsically political – but are there significant differences between how we expect infrastructure planning to occur and the reality of how it plays out? Are our current approaches to the relationship between planning and power working?

In this fifth episode, we build on learnings from Victoria and consider the politics behind infrastructure decisions with Dr James Murphy, drawing on the latest book, ‘The Making and Unmaking of East-West Link’. We consider the roles of electoral strategy, the making of political rationale, and community resistance to ask how we might better unpack the way we think about infrastructure politics.

Informed by: Murphy, J. C. (2022). The making and unmaking of East-West Link. Melbourne Univ. Publishing.

Host: Dallas Rogers (University of Sydney)

Guest: James Murphy, Crystal Legacy (University of Melbourne)

This podcast series is sponsored by the Infrastructure Governance Incubator, a three-year (2020-2023) collaborative research platform—funded by the Henry Halloran Research Trust—across three universities (The University of Sydney, The University of Melbourne, and Monash University), and in partnership with Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) NSW & Victoria.

Audio recording and editing by Mikayla McGuirk-Scolaro and Dallas Rogers.

111. The Politics of Infrastructure Governance

This final episode of the Infrastructure Governance Incubator series focuses on a plenary discussion centred around the findings of the ‘Infrastructure Governance Incubator’ - a multidisciplinary collaborative research project across three universities – which took place at the State of Australasian Cities conference in December 2023.

This discussion sought to contribute to a renewed research agenda for Australasian infrastructure governance, considering the current state of governance challenges and potential future directions. It draws on findings from the Incubator’s case study of the Western Sydney Parkland City in New South Wales, Australia, across multiple critical issues discussed across this podcast series: planning on unceded First Nations land, accountability and social legitimacy, collaborative governance and integration, and power and politics.

Panel members:
A/Prof. Tooran Alizadeh, Dr. Rebecca Clements, A/Prof. Glen Searle, A/prof Dallas Rogers, Elle Davidson (University of Sydney), Crystal Legacy (University of Melbourne), Liton Kamruzzaman (Monash University).

Discussant: Jago Dodson (RMIT)

This podcast series is sponsored by the Infrastructure Governance Incubator, a three-year (2020-2023) collaborative research platform—funded by the Henry Halloran Research Trust—across three universities (The University of Sydney, The University of Melbourne and Monash University) and in partnership with Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) NSW & Victoria.

Audio recording and editing by Mikayla McGuirk-Scolaro.

112. The State of Australasian Cities Conference

Explore how the arts are transforming health and education to improve care and wellbeing with acclaimed playwright Wesley Enoch, poet Selina Tusitala Marsh, nursing professor Brendan McCormack and host Claire Hooker (CREATE Centre).

This podcast is a recording of a live public event held on 21 March 2024. For more links and resources, including the transcript, visit Sydney Ideas website: https://bit.ly/4a5GeLf

Art of good health and wellbeing

Delve into the history, science, and beauty of the natural world with Australian author James Bradley, Professor of Marine Biology Maria Byrne, ocean and climate advocate Tishiko King and host Helen Sullivan (Guardian Australia).

This event was held live at the University of Sydney on 8 March 2024. For more details and resources, visit the Sydney Ideas page: https://bit.ly/49wNNtl

Oceanic narratives: Interweaving past, present and future

Sydney Ideas is the University of Sydney's premier public lecture series program, bringing the world's leading thinkers and the latest research to the wider Sydney community.

How AI Is Changing Medical Practice

Sydney Ideas

Related tracks