Historian Frank Bongiorno returns to his birth town of Nhill in north-western Victoria for the first time in more than 25 years to reflect on the historical complexities of a rural region ‘transformed by migration’. Tracing the arrival of the Bongiorno family from Italy in the late 1800s he explores how the migrant experience has shaped rural Australia.

In our final Pick of the year, Chris Bowen, Zali Steggall and Hollie Hughes give us their recommendations of things we should read, watch and listen to over summer.

Could the war in Afghanistan have been won? A new book The Ledger: Accounting for Failure in Afghanistan outlines how the West could have avoided defeat and the betrayal and moral collapse that resulted. Authors David Kilcullen and Greg Mills join us.

With the younger generation likely to be worse off than their parents and grandparents for the first time in living memory, what sort of policy changes should governments consider to make their lives easier? And is there the political will?

Intergenerational fairness advocate and co-founder of Think Forward Sonia Arakkal joins us.

In 2018 John Denton AO became the first Australian to lead the International Chamber of Commerce in Paris. He joins us to discuss what it’s been like to hold this position during a global pandemic, what needs to happen to revive and improve the global economy going forward, and the role of business in tackling some of the other major problems of our time.

Leading global strategy advisor Dr. Parag Khanna discusses the future of migration in a world where demography, economics, politics and particularly our climate are undergoing major shifts.

Have you ever considered booking one of the great train rides of the world? A new book "Ultimate Train Journeys: World' by travel writer Tim Richards, taps into the rebirth of this mode of travel due to environmental concerns.

Aboriginal mental health researcher Professor Juli Coffin has taken out top honors at Western Australian Mental Health Awards in recognition of her ground breaking work providing young indigenous people with trauma-informed support by harnessing the healing power of horses.

Facing competition from China and Russia, this week US President Joe Biden held a Summit for Democracy. Whether it will have a lasting impact remains to be seen, but it has prompted discussion about what’s really at the heart of democracy’s dysfunction. Guests: Edward Luce, US national editor and columnist at the Financial Times and Sheri Berman, professor of Political Science at Barnard College, Columbia University.

This December is the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Soviet Union; how is its demise understood decades afterwards?