The Grapevine

On this episode of The Grapevine, Kulja and Dylan get on the line with journalist and author,  George Megalogenis to shed some light on the federal budget in the context of the current state of the economy and Australia's reliance on WA's mineral trade with China. 

And then author and journalist Margaret Simons calls in to discuss the role that Independent candidates may play in the imminent federal election. Simmons explores the influence of the cross-bench in detail in her piece in The Monthly, 'Independants and the balance of power'.

On this episode of The Grapevine, Kulja gets on the line with executive director of Refugee Legal, David Manne, to talk about the Federal Government finally accepting New Zealand's offer for resettling refugees and asylum seekers after nine years of offshore detention. Manne explains where things are currently at with the deal and what a new government should focus on if elected.

And Transport and Cities Program Director at the Grattan Institute, Marion Terril, calls in to discuss how “pork-barrelling politicians are wasting taxpayers’ money”, which the think tank breaks down in their new report, Roundabouts, overpasses, and carparks: Hauling the federal government back to its proper role in transport projects.

Then, Saudi Arabian activist, exile and cyber security expert, Manal al-Sharif, gets on the line to talk about how technology can be used to control populations and curtail their rights.

Presenter Dylan Bird is joined by Walkley Award winning journalist Jeff Sparrow to discuss whether battling back-to-back natural disasters is distracting Australians from fighting the climate crisis which he explores in his column in The Guardian.

Then, PhD candidate at Melbourne Graduate School of Education Alicia Flynn and climate youth activist Varsha Yajman explain the Australian Journal of Environmental Education special issue, which Flynn co-edited, on the impact that the school strikes had on climate politics and education in Australia.

Financier Satyajit Das talks about his new essay Fortune’s Fool: Australia’s Choices. Das looks at the fundamental issues facing Australia, leaving no stone unturned in his analysis of our economic and institutional woes. 

And animal law expert Katy Barnett phones in to talk about the philosophy and practice of animal-related law that her new book, Guilty Pigs: The Weird and Wonderful History of Animal Law that she co-authored with Jeremy Gans explores.

On this episode of The Grapevine, Kulja and Dylan are joined on the line by CEO of VCOSS, Emma King, to discuss how the State government has backflipped on a proposed levy on property development that would be used to fund social housing.

They also talk with former secondary school principal Chris Bonnor about the book he co-authored with Tom Greenwell, Waiting for Gonski: How Australia failed its schools. The authors explore the growing correlation between social disadvantage and educational under-achievment, and look at some possible solutions to this worsening problem.

Then, senior researcher and writer for the Institute for Local Self Reliance, Ron Knox, gets on the air to break down the acquisition of Bandcamp by Epic Games and what that could mean for the “noble and sometimes successful attempt at recreating the brick and mortar record store online”.

Kulja and Dylan are joined by urban planning expert Dave Nichols, who delves into the significance of the names of places, the convoluted origin of the name of Melbourne, and the truth behind the English lord that is the city’s namesake.

AFLW player Libby Birch discusses the opportunity for the inequality in AFLW player wages to be addressed when the current AFLW collective bargaining agreement expires in October; Former Greens senator Scott Ludlam talks about how corporate interest has undermined democracy all over the world, and how new research from the Australian Democracy Network has analysed how state capture operates in Australia; And the king of the sticks Jim White calls in to talk about his new outfit Springtime with Gareth Liddiard from The Drones and Chris Abrahams from The Necks. White talks about their upcoming EP, and their upcoming shows as they hit the road around Australia. 

On this episode of The Grapevine, Kulja and Dylan get on the line with Cam Walker to discuss Origin’s early closure of Australia’s largest coal fired power plant, Eraring in NSW which will now close in 2025.

Then, journalist and co-founder of Declassified Australia, Anthony Lowenstein, calls in to break down Australian corporate exploitation in Afghanistan, ‘Mystery surrounds how an Australian mining company sought access to Afghanistan’s 3-trillion treasure house of untapped minerals’.

And author Ed Coper talks about his book Facts & Other Lies: Welcome to the Disinformation Age and outlines some tips on how to combat misinformation, conspiracy theories and practicing good social media hygiene.

Finally, founder of Tibi Access, Dina Bassile, discusses improving accessibility in the live music scene for people with disabilities, and their upcoming gig ‘Groove Tunes’ at the Corner Hotel on Saturday March 19. 

On this episode of The Grapevine Kulja and Dylan get on the line with Walkley award winning journalist and author Jeff Sparrow to break down Defence Minister Peter Dutton’s anti-China rhetoric in the context of Russia’s threats to invade Ukraine and how this aggressively hawkish national security stance may impact the Coalition at the election.  

Then, Hannah McLeay from Greenpeace Australia dials in to talk about the launch of the Green Electricity Guide, which is designed to help Australian’s make a difference when it comes to climate change through the choice of their energy provider. McLeary talks through how power suppliers are ranked, gives an overview of ‘green power’, and provides an update on where green power is at the moment in the wake of Powershop’s sale to Shell.

And with sport back on the courts, Kulja and Dylan speak with Dr Ryan Storr about the project he co-founded, ‘Rainbow Roadmap’. Launched by Proud2Play, this project is a sector-wide initiative in partnership with VicSport to promote LGBTQIA+ inclusion across sport and recreation in the state.

The Grapevine is back for 2022!  For their first show of the year, Kulja and Dylan get on the line with author and journalist Elle Hardy to discuss her new book Beyond Belief - How Pentacostal Christianity is taking over the World which is out now via Newsouth Books. Hardy exposes the Pentecostal agenda: not just saving souls but transforming societies and controlling politics.

Then, research fellow from RMIT’s school of design, Jordan Lacey, calls in to talk about The Sonic Gathering Space a sound design installation in the CBD set up to work out how people’s moods are changed by a city’s ambience. You can sit amongst plants taken from four of Victoria’s national parks and listen to the ambient sounds of those parks.

And Aleasha McCallion from the Monash Sustainable Development Institute, gets on the horn to discuss the pollution created by the pandemic that her article in The Conversation explores, Have you stopped using reusable fabric masks? Here’s how to cut down waste without compromising your health.

On the final episode of The Grapevine for 2021, Kulja and Dylan get on the line with Melbourne author and broadcaster Tony Wilson for the fifth, and very prestigious, Speakolies awards! They analyse and break down the good, the bad, and the ugly of the most iconic speeches of the year that Tony has curated on his website speakola, and discuss the art of oration. 

Thank you to the listeners and the subscribers for making this year possible, we couldn’t do this without your support. 

On this episode of The Grapevine, Kulja gets on the line with Cam Walker from Friends of the Earth to talk about some of the biggest moments in climate politics in 2021. Walker discusses Labour’s new climate policies, including their announcement that they would increase emissions reduction targets if elected.

Plus, Dr Catherine Williams, research director at the Centre for Public Integrity calls in to talk about what the updates and amendments to the Victorian Pandemic Bill mean.

And correspondent-at-large for Crikey, Guy Rundle, phones in to talk about his new book, ‘Between the Last Oasis and the next Mirage: Writing on Australia’, where he breaks down some of the most iconic moments in Australian Politics in the 2010’s.