Podcast · Society & Culture

Big Ideas

by ABC Australia · English · Society & Culture

Your front row seat to big thinkers at the best live events, forums, and festivals. Feed your mind. Be provoked. One big idea at a time. Your brain will love you for it. We love hearing from you about the show or events you are planning. Get in touch! Email: [email protected] SMS line for ABC Rad

New episodes: Daily
Typical length: 55 min
Latest: 14 Oct 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

14 Oct 2026 · 59 minNew

AI, art, and staying human - is creativity at a crossroad? Evelyn Araluen, Steve Tolz, Kirra Pendergast

In a world where AI rules, what will it mean to be creative? First Nations poet and author Evelyn Araluen (The Rot, Dropbear) is already self-censoring because of AI theft. The characters in Steve Tolz's new novel A Rising of the Lights find weird ways to sabotage the robots amongst them. Digital safety expert and educator Kirra Pendergast is seeing AI reshape childhood - for better or worse - with an important warning for parents, carers, and educators. This event was organised by the 2026 Byron Writers Festival on Bundjalung Country. Speakers Dr Evelyn Araluen Goorie and Koori poet,…

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Earlier episodes 29 most recent

13 Oct 2026 · 55 minNew
China's one-child policy and a true tale of abduction, adoption and separated twins
In just 32 years, more than 160,000 children were adopted internationally under China's One-Child Policy. About half were sent to the United States — almost all of them were girls.Award-winning journalist Barbara Demick's latest book tells the story of twin sisters who were separated as toddlers, with one adopted by a family in Texas, while the other stayed with her birth family in rural China. This event was recorded live at the 2026 Sydney Writers' Festival at Carriageworks. Speakers: Barbara Demick Author, Daughters of the Bamboo Grove: From China to America, a True Story of Abduction,…
12 Oct 2026 · 55 minNew
Amitav Ghosh and Luke Kemp on learning from collapsed empires
From the fall of Rome to the climate crisis unfolding right now, history shows up a common pattern for how empires rise and fall. And two important factors are humans’ relationship with the natural world, as well as the unequal distribution of power and wealth. What can the wreckage of past civilisations teach us about avoiding our own? This event was recorded live at the 2026 Sydney Writers’ Festival at Carriageworks. Listen to Big Ideas – Why civilisations vanish Speakers Amitav Ghosh Indian-born novelist, essayist, and public intellectual Author of The Nutmeg’s Curse: Parables for a…
8 Oct 2026 · 55 min
Students and teachers are already using it — but should AI be in the classroom? With Eddie Woo and Leslie Loble
Artificial Intelligence is fundamentally reshaping education and learning in Australian schools, with 80 per cent of students and two thirds of teachers now using AI tools. So how can we take advantage of the technology, and avoid the risks? This event was recorded at the University of Technology Sydney on 17 June 2026. Speakers: Leslie Loble Industry Professor, University of Technology Sydney Chair of the Australian Network for Quality Digital Education, Chair of the Council on Early Childhood Development, Deputy Chair of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment & Reporting Authority Former…
7 Oct 2026 · 55 min
You Must Take Part in Revolution — journalist Melissa Chan and artist-in-exile Badiucao
If authoritarianism was pressing in, what personal choices would you make to resist? Foreign correspondent Melissa Chan and artist-in-exile Badiucao have collaborated on the gobsmacking new graphic novel You Must Take Part in Revolution. It's set in a dystopian near future. A proto-fascist USA is at war with the full-throttled techno-surveillance state of China, with Taiwan wedged in the middle. Three young characters confront questions of loyalty, legacy, and courage. But for Melissa and Badiucao, their fictional scenario started to feel all to real. They know. They've lived it. They join…
6 Oct 2026 · 55 min
Bones, CSI, X-Files step aside — here come the real forensic scientists
Forensics has gripped pop culture for decades. But what’s the reality of this job? From the crime scene to the laboratory, our expert panel examines the evidence, explains the science and reveals how the truth gets uncovered. In the real world, by people who do this work for a living. Forensics: The Science of Blood, Body Bags and Biohazards was presented at the World Science Festival Brisbane. The UQ Impact Series is presented in partnership with The University of Queensland. Speakers Inspector Donna Stewart Quality Manager of the Queensland Police Service’s Forensic Services Group Dr…
5 Oct 2026 · 55 min
George Megalogenis on the three shocks reshaping Australian politics
From the blue-collar man, to the professional woman. From the multigenerational Australian born citizen, to a predominantly migrant nation. From the inner city to the suburbs to the bush. Australia has changed. But have our politicians? This event was recorded at the Hawke Centre at Adelaide University on 20 August 2026. Speakers: George Megalogenis Political journalist, author, Three Shocks: Who We Are Becoming in the 21st Century, The Australian Moment (winner the 2013 Prime Minister's Literary Award for Non-fiction and the 2012 Walkley Award for Non-fiction), four Quarterly Essays, and…
1 Oct 2026 · 54 min
The legacy of Jane Goodall —from chimp whisperer to changing how science understands primates
Jane Goodall’s radical ideas that animals have individual personalities, relationships and even emotions reshaped how we understand primates. It also sparked fierce ethical debates that are still playing out today: Do great apes have rights? What responsibilities do researchers carry when studying minds so much like our own? Jan Goodall wasn't just a trailblazing scientist. She became one of the most influential conservationists of the last century and created the foundation of modern primatology. City of Science: Jane Goodall and Her Legacy was presented at the CUNY Graduate Center Speakers…
30 Sep 2026 · 54 min
The future of ageing — what will growing old be like in 2076?
Australia's population is getting older. In fact, by 2076, 45 per cent of us - that's 18 million people - will be aged over 65. What will ageing look like in 50 years time? Will science keep us healthier for longer? What role will older people play in the workforce, in the economy, and in our communities? Will robots wipe our bottoms, or keep us company? How will we respond to major health challenges—like dementia, already our leading cause of death— and the growing burden of chronic disease? This conversation explores the ethical and social challenges facing our ageing country, and the…
29 Sep 2026 · 54 min
Can we change the future by reimagining it?
What does the future look like to you? How can you prepare yourself for what's coming down the line? And how does what you do today, change what will happen tomorrow? Join three forward-looking thinkers for a conversation about how to shape a better tomorrow, today. The conversation Brave New Futures was recorded live at the annual 2026 WOMADelaide festival, produced and presented as part of their Planet Talks program, held on the traditional lands of the Guarna people. Speakers: Richard King Critic, cultural commentator and author, Brave New Wild: Can Technology Really Save the Planet?…
28 Sep 2026 · 54 min
Lyse Doucet —The history of Kabul’s finest hotel tells the history of a nation
The Inter-Continental Hotel on a hilltop above Kabul has watched Afghanistan’s modern history unfold from its windows. Built in 1969, it has survived Soviet occupation, multiple coups, a civil war, a foreign invasion and waves of Taliban rule. This is the story of that hotel and of Afghanistan itself, told through forty years of visits, world-making headlines, and the people who called the finest hotel in Kabul home. This event was recorded live at the 2026 Sydney Writers’ Festival at Carriageworks. Speakers Lyse Doucet BBC Chief International Correspondent and author of The Finest Hotel in…
24 Sep 2026 · 55 min
It's an ancient Hindu poem, so why does The Ramayana still resonate?
It's been called "The Odyssey of the East", and the ancient Hindu poem remains central to Asian cultures and traditions from India to Indonesia 2500 years after it was written. From the names of Thai kings, to traditional Javanese shadow puppets, the ancient temples of Cambodia's Angkor Wat to contemporary Indian politics, the journeys of Rama and his wife Sita are deeply embedded. Why does this story endure? The conversation The Ramayana reimagined: storytelling across cultures was recorded at the Art Gallery of New South Wales as part of the exhibition, Avatar: Forms of Vishnu, on until 5…
23 Sep 2026 · 55 min
Why literary giants like Margaret Atwood, Nobel laureate Han Kang and Amitav Ghosh wrote books that will never be read in their lifetime
The Future Library is filled with unpublished books written for readers yet to be born. Every year a new literary work is commissioned to be held in trust in a special room in the National Library of Norway. And in a forest just outside Oslo, 1,000 Spruce are growing - waiting until 2114 to fulfil their role: To be pulped and transform these unseen words into print. This hundred-year literary artwork by Scottish artist Katie Paterson is one of the most internationally acclaimed long-term cultural projects of our time. Presented at the National Library of Australia in partnership with the…
22 Sep 2026 · 55 min
When you trust social media influencers more than your GP — what can only go wrong?
From doctors spruiking untested therapies to celebrities selling "revolutionary wellness hacks", self-styled health gurus promise results traditional medicine can't. Social media transforms a healthcare system that struggles with GP wait times and short face-to-face appointments. Because when it comes to trust, it turns out fame competes surprisingly well with scientific evidence. Bad Influence: How the internet hijacked our health was recorded at the York Festival of Ideas. The festival is led by the University of York, UK. Speakers Dr Deborah Cohen Broadcaster, journalist and author of Bad…
21 Sep 2026 · 55 min
Alice Pung's Unpolished Gem and her conversations with the teenagers who've studied it
Alice Pung started writing her first published book as a teenager. Now, it's been read and studied by two generations of Australian teenagers through the school curriculum. On the 20th anniversary of her irreverent, loving memoir of her migrant family's 's everyday struggles and bittersweet triumphs, she reflects on the book's endurance and the various reactions it's provoked in her young readers. The 2026 EW Cole Lecture was recorded by The Wheeler Centre Australia's first dedicated centre for Books, Writing and Ideas. Explore more discussions like this one on The Wheeler Centre podcast —…
17 Sep 2026 · 55 min
ABC National Forum — migration and the kind of country Australia wants to be
Migration has shaped modern Australia, but as the country grows, debates around immigrants and multiculturalism are intensifying. Join David Speers for the ABC’s latest National Forum. We bring together Australians from all walks of life to ask: Is our migration system still working? And just what is our National Identity? It’s a big discussion about the kind of country we want to be. Panellists Dr Abdul Rizvi Former Deputy Secretary of the Department of Immigration John Anderson Former Deputy Prime Minister George Megalogenis Journalist and author Nyadol Nyuon Lawyer and human rights…
16 Sep 2026 · 57 min
Buying and Selling the Poor at The Festival of Dangerous Ideas — Rick Morton, Mark Considine, Emily Roy with Natasha Mitchell
Being poor has become big business in Australia, but not for people who need work. Billions spent. Millions of profits. But who's getting them? Why do unemployment and poverty continue to be stigmatised? And does the legacy of the Robodebt scandal live on? The Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability and Research concluded in a new excoriating report Who’s rorting who? The failure of outsourced job services that the system is "filling the pockets of private equity and millionaires" while leaving job-seekers without work. Three people close to the coalface join Big Ideas host…
15 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 15 min
Helen Garner reflects on five decades of writing — an ABC Radio National Top 100 Books countdown special
Helen Garner is one of Australia's most significant and renowned writers, known for her precise and observational writing style, disarming honesty and piercing curiosity about her fellow human beings. Here, she reflects on a lifetime of writing, from her groundbreaking 1977 debut Monkey Grip, to her work in the courtroom covering some of Australia's most shocking crimes, to her keen observations of daily life in her collections of letters and diaries. To celebrate ABC Radio National's Top 100 Australian Books countdown we bring you this celebration of Garner's immense contribution to…
14 Sep 2026 · 55 min
Why Diego Bonetto wants you to eat weeds
Foraging and eating wild food is nothing new in Australia. First Nations people have done it for over 50,000 years. Even your grandparents often still used to search for eatable weeds, mushrooms and nuts at the edge of their fields and in the woods. This knowledge is lost today. But attitudes to weeds have also changed. We don’t see weeds as a valuable resource anymore, only as a pest to get rid of. Is it time to change that and to rediscover the traditional knowledge of foraging? And what would that mean for how we manage our farmland in the future? Presented at the Lyrebird Festival…
10 Sep 2026 · 55 min
Feminist trailblazer Gloria Steinem with Natasha Mitchell and guests on travels that transformed them
Trailblazing feminist, political activist, journalist, and founder of Ms Magazine Gloria Steinem died this week at age 92 after a big life changing lives. In her memoir My Life on the Road she recounted how taking to the road fundamentally changed her understanding of the world and who she could be. Médecins Sans Frontières co-founder, French diplomat and novelist Jean-Christophe Rufin worked in war zones as a doctor and walked the Camino de Santiago as a pilgrim. Acclaimed poet and Yankunytjatjara woman Ali Cobby Eckermann found family, connection, and Country on a different kind of…
9 Sep 2026 · 56 min
Are kid's books too moralistic, worthy, or 'woke'? Andy Griffiths, Hilary Rogers, Tamuz Ellazam for Radio National's Top 100 Books
Blockbuster Australian children's authors Andy Griffiths (The Treehouse series), Hilary Rogers aka Maddy Mara (Dragon Girls) and bookseller Tamuz Ellazam join Natasha Mitchell to share the iconic kid's books they'll be voting for in ABC Radio National's Top 100 Books (vote now!) — and weigh in on current controversies in kid's literature. Have children's books become too moralistic, too obsessed with teaching kids how to behave, or with imparting Very Important Messages? Is there a tension between education and entertainment in kid's literature? And why does all this matter? How to vote in…
8 Sep 2026 · 55 min
Inside the life of Elizabeth II with royal biographer Robert Hardman
From the drama of her private world to the diplomacy of her position as queen. From the woman her family knew to the public figure the world saw. With unique access to royal family members, senior staff, and advisers Robert Hardman explores the parallel lives of Elizabeth as daughter, wife, mother and sovereign. Inside the Life of Elizabeth II was presented by the Royal Society of Arts, UK Speakers Robert Hardman British author, journalist and documentary filmmaker Author of Elizabeth II: In Private. In Public. The Inside Story. Emily Andrews Journalist and royal commentator
7 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 1 min
Tech activist Cory Doctorow says the internet's been enshittified. So is it too late to save it?
Leading tech critic Cory Doctorow coined the term "enshittification" to describe the slow decay of the digital platforms most of us are now forced to rely upon to operate in the modern world. So why and how did the internet get bad, and is it too late for people, countries and governments to reclaim technology as a force for humanity and the common good? This episode was recorded on 25 August 2026 at The Wheeler Centre, Australia's first dedicated centre for Books, Writing and Ideas, in partnership with RMIT University for Now or Never festival. Explore more discussions like this one on The…
3 Sep 2026 · 55 min
John Brack once painted his children. Now his adult daughter tells her story of life with the famous artist
She's the little girl in some of her father's most famous paintings, but life as the eldest child of artists John Brack and Helen Maudsley wasn't always easy. Clara Brack explores her childhood — and her parents' complex lives and relationship — in her new book The Secret Landscapes on not [pleasing your mother, which took her 20 years to write. This event was recorded at the Willy Lit Fest on 13 June 2026. Speakers: Clara Brack Author, The Secret Landscapes — on not pleasing your mother Gabriella Coslovich Award-winning freelance arts journalist (formerly of The Age), author, Whiteley on…
2 Sep 2026 · 59 min
Roman Krznaric on why the history of human solidarity offers us radical hope, even now
Philosopher Roman Krznaric, author of History for Tomorrow: Inspiration from the Past for the Future of Humanity, The Good Ancestor, and founder of the Empathy Museum has been looking backwards to help us all find a way forward. What he discovered in the global history of human solidarity and social movements was a wellspring of brilliant solutions to current challenges — democracy, fossil fuels, hyper-consumerism, water, AI, racism, even rage bait on social media, and more. Join Roman with Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell at the 2026 Byron Writers Festival to challenge the 'tyranny of the…
1 Sep 2026 · 54 min
Bob Spitz on the Rolling Stones and why all great music is a threat
From their earliest days as blues-obsessed kids living in freezing squalor, to the first taste of fame and the day they landed in the US and went stratospheric — and all the grit, glamour and gore in between. There are myriad revisions to the conventional narrative which underscore just how in control of their narrative the band has been up to now. But Bob Spitz got unique access to the group's friends and family. And he's sharing the details and examines a creative force whose power shows no signs of fading, over sixty years on. Presented at the Free Library of Philadelphia Speakers Bob…
31 Aug 2026 · 54 min
Stephanie Alexander with Adam Liaw on 30 years of The Cook's Companion
Since 1996, The Cooks Companion has been a bible for Australian kitchens, a reliable friend who can tell you how to boil an egg, bake some bread, roast a chook, whip up a lemon delicious pudding — and much, much more. What is it about this book that's made it such an enduring go-to for household cooks for generations? This event was recorded live at the Sydney Writers' Festival at Carriageworks on 21 May 2026. Vote now in ABC Radio National's Top 100 Australian Books. Speakers: Stephanie Alexander Author of 18 books including The Cooks Companion Founder of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen…
27 Aug 2026 · 58 min
Mick Herron, Suzie Miller and Benjamin Law on great adaptations — from the page to the stage to the screen, and back again
When a book becomes a hit TV series, or a play becomes a Hollywood film, what makes it a great adaptation? Meet the creators of these international smash hits as they take you behind the scenes, into the writers' rooms, and inside their creative minds. Suzie Miller's award-winning play Prima Facie has just become a Hollywood film starring Cynthia Erivo, while the sixth season of television's Slow Horses, based on Mick Herron's bestselling spy novels, starts next month. This event was recorded live at the 2026 Sydney Writers' Festival at Carriageworks. Speakers: Mick Herron Author, Slough…
26 Aug 2026 · 54 min
Should social media be banned for over-16s too!? The 2026 Beaker Street Festival Great Debate
Interesting idea or nanny-state gone way too far? If babies weren't born to doom scroll, why do we think grown-ups are? Don't miss our hilarious annual battle of brains and bravado with two teams and Big Ideas' host Natasha Mitchell at the Beaker Street Festival: where science meets art. Australia was the first country in the world to ban under-16s from social media. France just struck down a push for the same. Are adults immune to all the harms of these platforms? Should OVER-16s be banned too!? TEAM AFFIRMATIVE: "THE VIRAL INFLUENZAS" Dr Esmé Louise James, sex historian Returning debate…
25 Aug 2026 · 55 min
Kerry O'Brien on the perfect storm destroying our politics — with Richard Flanagan
Acclaimed journalist Kerry O'Brien has seen it all, but nothing like right now. And he's not mincing his words. On AI, neoliberalism, education, equality, gutless governments, and more. For over 50 years, he covered the world's biggest stories and changemakers, and asked tough questions of power. Hear why he thinks a perfect storm threatens our society and our politics, and what he thinks can be done about it. The 2026 Thea Astley Address was recorded at the Byron Writers Festival on Saturday 15 August 2026. Speakers: Kerry O'Brien Former ABC journalist, host, 7.30 Report, Four Corners,…

About Big Ideas

Big Ideas is a English society & culture podcast from ABC Australia. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: ABC Australia
Language: English
Category: Society & Culture
New episodes: Daily
Typical length: 55 min
Latest episode: 14 Oct 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id164330831

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