Big Ideas

Public intellectual, Clive Hamilton, argues China is engaged in an ideological struggle with the West, including Australia. He believes China's ruling Communist Party is deliberately subverting democracy and employing "discourse control".  Paul Barclay speaks to him about his new book, "Hidden Hand".

Water is the essence of life. As climate change delivers extreme weather and changes rainfall patterns, water managers are employing new technology to track and trace every drop. And in the ocean, the rising temperature of the water threatens to destroy coral reefs. To climate-proof corals, scientists have decided to take radical measures to speed up the development of resilient corals.

Do you think that we are today worse off than previous generations? There is no easy answer and it very much depends on what aspects of life and society you look at. On Big Ideas, a panel of social commentators tackles the question: Have we seen better days?

There used to be a strict dividing line between public and private lives in Australia. That was until the 1970s when the personal became political. Women’s liberation and the gay and lesbian movement moved the boundary line between private and public life. In the 1970s gender, sexuality, domestic violence and reproductive freedom became the subject of political debates and a royal commission. Historian Michelle Arrow looks at how 1970’s activism remade Australia and its legacy for contemporary debates.

COVID19 seems like a contagious virus without parallel, but Australia has been hit by devastating pandemics before. This panel discussion examines the history of viruses and vaccines and their impact on Australian society and science.

The right to vote is likely the most important right and means for change in a democracy. But the electoral process in the US puts up obstacles that make it hard for minority groups to cast their vote: increased paperwork and cost or absurd ID requirements. Stacey Abrams calls for robust voter protections in the US, an elevation of identity politics and engagement in the census.

The fashion industry thrives on consumers wanting to buy new clothes but the manufacture and disposal of clothes places a big toll on the environment. What does it take to make fashion more sustainable? And the positives and negatives of living through this pandemic. Shopping, learning and working from home has its benefits and drawbacks and these experiences will shape our post-Covid world.

We need our economy and lifestyle to be sustainable but sustainability is a contested idea and it's hard for people to change. Rather than waiting for governments to mandate the changes business and local communities are taking the initiative. It requires action at all levels to reach our climate change targets. The pandemic is a crisis but also an opportunity to prioritize sustainability as we rebuild the economy. It's also a time to nurture our ability to respond to the unexpected.

The United States has become a divided country. Racial conflict, income inequality, hyper-partisan politics, and a narcissistic social media culture, now characterise contemporary America, according to author and journalist, Nick Bryant.

How will the global economy recover from this pandemic? Developed countries are scrambling to shore up their economies. So will the environment and developing nations be the losers? Economist Jeffrey Sachs is an advocate for the UN Sustainable Development Goals and head of the Lancet Commission on Covid. He says the pace of the recovery depends on the development of a vaccine and a change to the divisive and fractured nature of global politics.