A Big Dialogue: The State of the Arts in The Lucky Country?
When: Wednesday 13 November, 5.30-7.30pm
Where: Louie Louie, Verity Lane Market, Canberra
Price: $20 – $40 per ticket (concessions available)
Register here.
The Academy, in association with Australian Dialogues, will present a Big Dialogue on arts policy on the eve of our 2024 Symposium.
The Big Dialogue format has developed over the past four years as a successful, trusted platform for better public discussion of contentious policy issues by people with different viewpoints.
‘The aim of argument, or of discussion, should not be victory, but progress.’ Joseph Joubert
A panel, moderated by Kelly Burke, arts reporter for The Guardian Australia, including Lyndon Terracini AM OSI, former Artistic Director Opera Australia and former Queensland Minister for the Arts, Ian Walker, will engage in an in-depth, long-form, enlightening discussion. It will probe issues about funding, governance, and sustainability for the Arts sector in Australia. Australian Dialogues work by putting different points of view in conversation with one another.
Held in the hub of Verity Lane Market – ticket holders can stay on for dinner and drinks, with a range of cuisine on offer. Snacks are included in the ticket price and there will be a cash bar onsite.
The event is co-presented with Australian Dialogues.
Moderator
Kelly Burke is the Arts Reporter at Guardian Australia, a role made possible with a Balnaves Foundation grant. She started her media career with The Sydney Morning Herald in the 1990s and spent almost two decades at the paper filling various reporting and editorial managing roles. Kelly worked as a government media adviser at both state and federal levels before joining Guardian Australia in 2020.
Speakers
A lawyer for 35 years, Ian Walker was Brisbane Managing Partner and National Board member of his international firm before being elected as a Queensland State MP from 2012 – 2017. He was appointed Assistant Minister for Planning Reform and, subsequently, Minister for Science, IT, Innovation, and the Arts. He served as a member of the School Council of the Anglican Church grammar School (Churchie) and as President of the Churchie Foundation. He has held positions both at Diocesan and National level with the Anglican Church. He was a Trustee of the Brisbane Lord Mayor’s Community Trust from 2005-2010. He has had a long association with the arts, having previously chaired the Board of Camerata (Qld’s Chamber Orchestra), and is now President of Queensland Youth Orchestras. He maintains an interest in science and innovation, and from 2017-2020 was a member of the External Engagement Board of the Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation within QUT. He is a Life Member of the Urban Development Institute of Aust. (Qld) and holds the Distinguished Service Award from the Federal Liberal Party of Australia. He is currently engaged in the McKinnon Institute for Political Leadership within Monash University. He and Heather have 2 children and 4 grandchildren.
More speaker details to be announced for this session.
About The Australian Dialogues
The Australian Dialogues is Australia’s first dedicated bridging organisation and a growing corner of the public square – a wholly independent, neutral, intergenerational, volunteer-based, not-for-profit project to model and facilitate discussions about big ideas and issues.
Australian Dialogues aims to demonstrate that productive discussions can still be had between people with opposing or widely divergent views, and support other organisations to do similar, pushing back against the polarisation and deteriorating discourse which is making good policy harder to achieve, and damaging society generally.
It is inspired by Braver Network in America and is an initiative of The Brisbane Dialogues Inc., Australia’s first dedicated bridging or civil discourse organisation.
