Progressive Ideas Worth Sharing

As tensions between the US and China rise, what are the implications for our future security and prosperity? What are the risks of a war over Taiwan? What is the place of AUKUS in all of this? How should we handle this difficult situation? The Australia-China relationship is our most important foreign policy issue. China is our key trading and investment partner and an increasingly powerful influence in our region. Amidst growing anxiety, it is becoming difficult to find balanced and contextualised analysis.

On Tuesday 19 May, Eva Cox, Patron of Australian Fabians, gave an address via Zoom as the guest speaker during the WA Fabians AGM on "Privatisation, the State and COVID-19".

On 18 June 2020 Professor Geoff Gallop gave this address via Zoom for WA Fabians on deliberative democracy and the work of the newDemocracy Foundation.

Linda is one of Australia's most well-known union leaders. She's been at the forefront of some of our biggest industrial campaigns from supporting workers during the collapse of Ansett and Virgin through to the ASU's equal remuneration campaign. Linda is also the Chair of the Chifley Research Centre, a director at Statewide Super and former vice-president of the ACTU. Linda will draw from the collective experience of union members as we talk about: Virgin Australia's collapse - protecting workers, strong unions and the role of government. Job Keeper, Job Seeker, casual and international workers - what needs to be done to protect non-permanent employees. Keeping our social, community sector and other frontline workers safe, and remunerated, during a crisis. How Unions and progressive organisations can work together to deliver the bold social and economic reform our country desperately needs. Plus - your questions!

How will COVID-19 Shape the Progressive Agenda for Australia's Future

Join the Australian Fabians and Andrew Leigh MP as we talk through the topic of 'How will COVID-19 Shape the Progressive Agenda for Australia's Future'.

This address by Dr Jim Stanford, Director, Centre for Future Work based at The Australia Institute was co-hosted by UnionsWA and The Australian Fabians in WA. It was delivered in Perth on Wednesday 3rd April 2019.

Reports of the death of democracy may be greatly exaggerated. However, there is mounting evidence that many people are losing trust in our democratic institutions. Today people in countries we regard as non-democratic often have greater confidence in their governments to act in their interests than we do. Observers pin the blame on our out-of-touch governments, corrupt media and politicians, big corporations and a growing gap between rich and poor. More than a few disaffected citizens are meanwhile attracted to new populisms because they feel dragged down by economic dissatisfaction, broken promises, decline and injustice. In his talk, John Keane will survey recent trends to suggest that democracy urgently needs reimagining if it is to address the dangers and opportunities posed by current global realities. His talk will offer a radically new interpretation of the twenty-first century fate of democracy and why, despite everything, it may survive the current anti-democratic trends and remain a global ideal. Renowned globally for his creative thinking about democracy, John Keane has been described by the ABC as one of 'Australia's great intellectual exports'. He is Professor of Politics at the University of Sydney and at the Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin (WZB), and Distinguished Professor at Peking University. He is the Director and co-founder of the Sydney Democracy Network. Keane has contributed to The New York Times, Al Jazeera, the Times Literary Supplement, The Guardian, Harper’s, the South China Morning Post and The Huffington Post. His latest book, The New Despotisms, on the global rise of despotism and the decline of democracy in the West, is to be published by Harvard University Press in early 2020.

This address on the 2019 European election and the rise of the right was delivered by Natalie Mast to the 2019 WA AGM of Australian Fabians on 14th July. Ms Mast, a Fabian member, completed her PhD on the influence of institutional design upon the organisation of parties and the behaviour of members in the European Parliament. The slides used during the presentation can be downloaded here: https://www.fabians.org.au/wa_fabians

On 10 June, 2019 WA Fabians hosted, with support from CGM Communications, a 2019 Federal Election Analysis with presentations from William Bowe, Channel 9, ABC radio election and Crikey commentator and political blogger 'The Poll Bludger' as well as from Karen Luscombe of WA Opinion Poll. The PowerPoints can be downloaded from here: https://www.fabians.org.au/wa_fabians