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The visit recent visit of the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand to Australia was dominated by talks of trade. Associate Professor Patrick Jory FAHA, an expert in Thai history and culture, examines the history of Thailand’s trade and diplomacy with its large and powerful neighbour, China.

Grants awarded under the 2026 Publication Subsidy Scheme will assist the publication of new research in the humanities from 9 early career scholars, exploring topics such as the experience and memories of Tamil refugees, a critical inquiry on dictionaries of ancient Egyptian language, and the history of girlhood in Australia.

With a new re-telling sweeping theatres, The Odyssey’s popularity is enduring. But why? Emeritus Professor Elizabeth Minchin OAM FAHA, a classicist specialising in the Homeric epics, breaks down the storytelling devices behind Homer’s ongoing appeal.

The Australian Academy of the Humanities has announced the eight outstanding early-career researchers who will receive 2026 Humanities Travelling Fellowships. Their projects address issues of national and international significance, from preserving the testimonies of Bosnian concentration camp survivors and tracing Aboriginal histories in the Vatican archives, to advancing ethical approaches to cultural repatriation and developing new ways to counter misinformation while respecting democratic values.

The 1950s gave us the FJ Holden, the Hills Hoist, the Melbourne Olympics, and … polio. While the first three have become icons of post-war Australia, polio is largely forgotten. Thanks to vaccination, it has almost disappeared from public memory—except for those whose lives were, and continue to be, shaped by it. Drawing on her mother’s experience of contracting polio in 1950, Professor Catharine Coleborne FAHA explores how oral histories help us understand the experiences of survivors and the profound social, cultural and medical impacts of the epidemic on post-war Australia.

Acknowledgement of Country

The Australian Academy of the Humanities recognises Australia’s First Nations Peoples as the traditional owners and custodians of this land, and their continuous connection to country, community and culture.