Society & Culture

On 24 September 1989, the Canberra Raiders defeated the Balmain Tigers in the grand final of the New South Wales Rugby League Premiership. In the days following the win, Canberra was flooded in a sea of green celebration. On the 30th anniversary of this memorable game, the Library’s Director of Exhibitions, Dr Guy Hansen, will discuss how success on the sporting field added a new dimension to Canberra’s identity and changed how the city was seen beyond its borders.

‘Migrant rights’ was a familiar term in the 1960s and 1970s before the introduction of a state multicultural policy. At the forefront were groups within the Italian and Greek communities that worked with trade unions to lobby for better pathways to citizenship, housing, community services and workplace conditions. Dr Alexandra Dellios will be discussing the rich community memory of migrant rights activism. Dr Alexandra Dellios is cultural historian in the Centre for Heritage and Museum Studies and is a National Library of Australia Fellow.

Join us for a special event to celebrate the many achievements of Alexander von Humboldt – a polymath, geographer, naturalist and explorer, and the first person to describe the phenomenon and cause of human-induced climate change. On the 250th anniversary of his birth, the National Library of Australia will host a discussion with expert scientists to discuss von Humboldt’s impacts on the world of science and how they are still effecting leading experts today. Professor Gabrielle McMullen AM, President of the Australian Association of von Humboldt Fellows, will introduce us to the life and work of von Humboldt, before our panel discusses the impacts of his work more widely. On our panel: Dr Judith Reinhard (Head, Science and Innovation - Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Australia)Emeritus Professor Hans Bachor (Research School of Physics, Australian National University) Professor Timothy J Entwisle (Director and Chief Executive of Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria) Facilitated by Lish Fejer (ABC Radi

Anne-Louise Willoughby worked as a journalist in a career that spanned thirty years in Western Australia, first training as a newspaper cadet in the 1970s before moving to magazine publishing with Australian Consolidated Press. As a freelance journalist, she was a feature writer for Australian newspapers and contributing WA editor to Belle Magazine. Anne-Louise has worked as a lecturer and tutor in creative writing at the University of Western Australia with a particular interest in memoir and biography. About Nora Heysen: A Portrait The life of artist Nora Heysen was defined by an all-consuming drive to draw or paint. The first woman to win the Archibald Prize, and Australia’s first female painter to be appointed an official war artist, Heysen’s post-war portraiture and still lifes sustained a lifelong career. In 1989, aged 78, after years of artistic obscurity, she re-emerged on the Australian art scene, and the nation’s major art institutions restored her position as a significant Australian artist. Extens

R. G. Casey’s Governorship of Bengal (1944-1946) was a short wartime appointment in a province troubled by famine, the threat of invasion, and rising communalism, prior to its partition in 1947. Drawing on the diaries of Casey and his wife Maie, Associate Professor Kama Maclean will focus on Casey’s attempts to ameliorate the effects of the famine, which included working with Australian civil society organisations who lobbied to raise funds for famine relief. Kama Maclean is an Associate Professor of South Asian and World History at the University of New South Wales, author, and editor. Kama is a 2019 NLA Fellow supported by the Harold S Williams Trust.

In the 2019 Kenneth Myer lecture, Professor Peter Greste drew on his own experience of imprisonment in Egypt to examine the global political forces that have undermined press freedom both abroad and here in Australia. He considered how we got the laws that created the problem, the media’s own role in getting us there and how we might be able to fix it. Professor Peter Greste is UNESCO Chair in Journalism and Communication at the University of Queensland. He came to academia after a 30-year career as a foreign correspondent for the BBC, Reuters, CNN and Al Jazeera. He is best known for being charged with terrorism offences in Cairo while he worked for Al Jazeera. Their case became a fight for press freedom and since his release in 2015, he has become an advocate for journalists worldwide. His campaigning earned him numerous human rights awards and in 2017, with two colleagues, he established the advocacy group, the Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom. This event was generously supported by The Myer Foundation.

In his stunning new book, World Heritage Sites of Australia, a tribute to nature and cultural heritage, Peter Valentine captures the majesty and panorama of Australia’s 19 world heritage sites. Don’t miss this chance to hear Peter discuss this ambitious project, with one of Australia’s most celebrated and dedicated environmentalists, former Greens’ leader Bob Brown. This new book is a celebration of the exceptional contribution Australian sites make to humanity’s collective legacy, and an entreaty to preserve them for future generations.

Sam Lebovic will explore the transnational history of media deregulation in the age of cable and satellite television, focusing particularly on the intertwined histories of Australian, British and U.S. media politics in the 1970s and 1980s. Understanding the history of those decades, he will suggest, is the key to understanding the rise of the chaotic and fractured media landscapes of our present moment. Sam Lebovic is Associate Professor of History at George Mason University, and is a 2019 National Library of Australia Fellow, supported by the Minerals Council of Australia.Sam Lebovic headshot 

With the recent boom in family history research, many Australians are discovering that long-held family myths and mysteries can cover hidden truths about our past. Ashley will talk about her work mapping and analysing the Library’s collection of self-published family histories and examine how families use inherited secrets, stories, and memories to both reproduce and challenge silences about Australia’s colonial history. Dr Ashley Barnwell is a Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Melbourne and a 2019 National Library of Australia Fellow, supported by the Stokes Family.nla.cat-vn2451559

Matthew is a former chef and now farmer, so uniquely placed to write about where our food comes from, and the ethics around eating meat. A hugely emotive topic, that is hitting headlines at the moment, but Matthew manages to convey all angles and sides to this complex issue with empathy, wisdom, and objectivity, while still maintaining his core message that ‘Meat eaters need to confront the reality that something dies in their name, and that they should be comfortable with the way it’s done. But that non meat eaters need to reconcile the fact that more suffering happens outside the farm gate than inside.’ Utterly compelling this is an extraordinary book and one that is sure to spark intense conversation and debate.

NAIDOC Week celebrations (NAIDOC originally stood for ‘National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee’) on 7-14 July are held across Australia each July to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC is celebrated not only in Indigenous communities, but by Australians from all walks of life. The week is a great opportunity to participate in a range of activities and to support your local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. We were joined by Dr Lynette Riley, Aunty Diane Riley-McNaboe and Shannan Dodson for part two of our NAIDOC Week event. They discussed the struggles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in campaigning for their rights and recognition of their cultures.Listen to part 1, with Dr Elizabeth Burrows. 

NAIDOC Week celebrations (NAIDOC originally stood for ‘National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee’) on 7-14 July are held across Australia each July to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC is celebrated not only in Indigenous communities, but by Australians from all walks of life. The week is a great opportunity to participate in a range of activities and to support your local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. Join Dr Elizabeth Burrows in part 1 of this presentation as she discusses her research. Carry on to Part 2 with Shannan Dodson, Lynette Riley and Diane Riley-McNaboe for a seminar about the struggles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in campaigning for their rights and recognition of their cultures.

  We have always shared our cities with nature—from magpies and remnant bushland to the fish in urban rivers. Yet in spite of this, and a long tradition of nature study and environmental education in Australia, fears that city children are alienated from nature have intensified in recent years. Using interviews and works from environmental advocates, Associate Professor Andrea Gaynor explores the changing role of urban nature in Australian children's experiences and education from the mid-1960s to the 1990s. Andrea Gaynor is the 2019 National Library of Australia Fellow supported in memory of Averill Edwards. Image: Andrea Gaynor

  Professor Marcia Langton, Dr James Rose and Dr Len Smith discuss Digital Curation in the Indigenous Data Network. Based at the University of Melbourne, the Indigenous Data Network was created in 2017. Its dual purpose is to strengthen local Indigenous communities’ agency in managing their data and to strengthen policy and decision making. The Network aims to archive orphan data sources and increase visibility of existing data; work with government agencies and non-government organisations to ensure Indigenous communities’ access and ownership of data; ensure that official data collection reflect Indigenous priorities; and coordinate educational programs to ensure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have expertise in data science.  Joint event with Digital Preservation and AIATSIS.

  Canberra Light Rail Project Director, Meghan Oldfield, discusses life before Canberra, family and being a woman in the rail industry. About Meghan Oldfield:  Meghan Oldfield is currently acting as the Executive Group Manager for City Operations in City Services. Prior to this she was the Project Director for Light Rail Stage 1 in Canberra and has also worked on projects for TriMet, the public transport agency for Portland Oregon, USA. She also served as an Executive Director at the South Australian Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure in Adelaide. In association with the Australian Women's Archives Project.  Image: Meghan Oldfield, image supplied. 

  Between them, Geoff Pryor and David Pope have over 50 years of cartooning experience. In this conversation, they will discuss their experiences in editorial cartooning at The Canberra Times. Facilitated by Inked: Australian Cartoons curator Dr Guy Hansen, Pryor and Pope will also turn their keen satirical eyes to politics and the changes they have seen in Australia’s newspaper industry. Geoff Pryor was the editorial cartoonist for The Canberra Times from 1978 to 2008. During his 30-year career, Pryor often drew seven cartoons each week for the newspaper. Pryor was also cartoonist for The Saturday Paper until his ‘second retirement’ in December 2018. David Pope replaced Pryor at The Canberra Times in 2008, a position he still holds. Before this, he worked as a freelance cartoonist and illustrator for many years. Image: David Pope (b.1965), How Your Weekly Cartoon Is Produced (detail) 1997. Courtesy David Pope

  Beginning with Poems of the Atomic Bomb by Sankichi Tōge in 1951, Japan continues to produce literary and pictorial narratives of Hiroshima and Nagasaki - preserving memories of the catastrophe so it wouldn't be repeated. Dr Yasuko Claremont explores responses to atomic bomb literature, including the work of Professor John Whittier Treat, author of Writing Ground Zero.  2019 National Library of Australia Fellowship in Japan Studies supported by the Harold S Williams Trust.  Image: Poems of the Atomic Bomb by Sankichi Tōge. Cover detail by Gorō Shikoku (reproduced with permission)

  How might we best catalogue historical maps featuring words from both Aboriginal languages and English? What does it take to decolonise our view of historical maps? Spatial scientist and researcher from the University of Sydney, Dr Bess Moylan shares her research into how historical maps can be reviewed to give them a wider audience, and make them more useful when investigating Aboriginal cultural landscapes.  Dr Moylan is the 2019 Fellow in Curatorial Research supported by the Patrons and Supporters of the Library’s Treasures Gallery Access Program.  Image: Western Australia, Department of Lands and Surveys & Johnstone, Harry F. (1909), Map of Western Australia, 1909, nla.obj-229850710

  Warning: This audio contains strong language which may be offensive to some viewers. Viewer discretion is advised. Throughout the twentieth century, many gay Australian writers and artists left Australia—some of them would never return. Literary scholar Dr Ellen Smith explores the relationship between expatriatism and queer identity in mid-twentieth-century Australian writing through a number of case studies of writers whose decision to leave Australia can be linked to their sexuality. About Dr Ellen Smith  Dr Ellen Smith is a literary scholar interested in the global contexts of Australian literature, and a lecturer in Gender Studies and Australian Literature at Deakin University.  Dr Smith is the 2019 Fellow supported by the Ray Mathew and Eva Kollsman Trust for Research in Australian Literature. Image: Dr Ellen Smith

  Already optioned for a film, Meg Keneally's first solo novel, Fled - based on the extraordinary life of convict Mary Bryant - tells the historical adventure of the only female convict to successfully escape the colony.  About the book, Fled  Jenny Trelawney is no ordinary thief. Forced by poverty to live in the forest, she becomes a successful highwaywoman – until her luck runs out. Transported to Australia, Jenny must tackle new challenges and growing responsibilities. When famine hits the new colony, Jenny becomes the leader in a grand plot of escape, but is survival any more certain in a small open boat on an unknown ocean? In partnership with Echo Publishing Melbourne Australia. Image: Meg Keneally, courtesy Brendan Fredericks Publicity & Management