Afternoon Light

Andrew Hastie on 75 Years of ANZUS & the Challenges that Australia Faces Today: "What value do you bring"

After 75 years of the Australian-American Alliance, are we still pulling our weight?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Andrew Hastie to mark 75 years of the ANZUS Treaty and explore the myriad of challenges that Australia faces today. From unpredictable allies to deindustrialisation, the complacency with which we have coasted through the post-Cold War period will no longer keep us safe.
The Hon Andrew Hastie MP is Shadow Minister for Industry and Sovereign Capability, and the Member for Canning in the House of Representatives. Mr Hastie completed a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in History and Philosophy through the University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy. In 2006, he graduated officer training at the Royal Military College, Duntroon. In 2009, Mr Hastie deployed to Afghanistan as a Cavalry Troop Leader. In 2010, he was selected for service with the Special Air Service Regiment (SASR) as a Troop Commander, taking commands in maritime and special reconnaissance capabilities. He deployed to Afghanistan again in 2013 as a Troop Commander with the Australian Special Operations Task Group. During his service with the SASR, he deployed to various theatres in the Middle East and Indo-Pacific.
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Damien Wright on the Anzacs who fought in the Russian Civil War: "Tragedy... in that remote Russian forest so many years ago"

How early did Australia come to see Russian Bolshevism as a threat to the world?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Damien Wright to reveal the untold story of Anzac involvement in the Russian Civil War. Our nation's first battle against communism, which saw two Australians win the Victoria Cross, only for their heroism and sacrifice to be all but forgotten.
Damien Wright is a historian and author with a lifelong interest in Australian military history. He is a recognised expert on British military operations in Russia and author of the books, Churchill’s Secret War with Lenin: British and Commonwealth Military Intervention in the Russian Civil War, 1918-20 and Australia’s Lost Heroes: ANZACs in the Russian Civil War 1919. In 2019 he travelled to Russia with the grandson of Sergeant Samuel Pearse, VC, MM and held a commemoration on the 100th Anniversary at the site of his death and posthumous Victoria Cross action, the first time an Australian had visited the location in 100 years. His articles have been published in Journals of The James Caird Society, The Orders and Medals Research Society and commercial history magazines. He holds a Security, Terrorism and Counterterrorism degree and works in the international education sector.
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Michael Gawenda on the rise of antisemitism in Australia: "Growing up... I don't even think I knew what it was"

How did Australia go from being the 'golden land' to a place of persecution?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Michael Gawenda to unpack the horrific rise of antisemitism in Australia. Drawing on his own family history as Menzies era migrants, and recent experiences as a prominent Jew in Australia's media landscape.
Michael Gawenda is a multi-award winning journalist and former editor-in-chief of The Age - the only Jewish editor-in-chief in the newspaper’s history. In 2023 he published a memoir, My Life as a Jew, which won the Leslie and Sophie Caplan Award for Jewish Non-Fiction at the Shalom Australian Jewish Book Awards. He now provides regular commentary and reflections on his substack, Gawenda Unleashed.
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Joseph Healy on what Adam Smith would make of modern Australia: "We focus so much on what is counted and lose sight of what counts"

250 years after Adam Smith published The Wealth of Nations, have we in Australia forgotten the foundational economic lessons that Smith offered?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Joseph Healy to resuscitate the insights of famous Scottish Enlightenment thinker Adam Smith to help tackle Australia's current problems. From cost of living and housing crises to corporate cronyism and moral decline, Smith can help us understand why we've gone wrong, and what we can do to bring back not just our prosperity, but our vitality.
Joseph Healy is a career international banker and mental health entrepreneur. He was a co-founder and CEO of Judo Bank, a bank created to serve the needs of the SME economy - the baker, the butcher, and the brewer. He is also a co-founder and Executive Chairman of Malu Health Group, which specialises in mental health care. Joseph holds six master’s degrees in subjects covering financial economics, business studies, Chinese studies, and the psychology and neuroscience of mental health. He is the author of What Would Adam Smith Make of Modern Australia? How Lessons from the Past Provide Answers for a Better Future.
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Ben Saunders on the intent behind Australia's utilitarian Constitution: "The Character of the People"

Does Australia's utilitarian constitution reflect a lack of inspiration on the part of our founding fathers?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Ben Saunders to unpack the intent behind the framing of Australia's constitution. Something which eschewed grand value statements and a Bill of Rights, in favour of trusting the Australian people to 'breathe life' into the 'dry bones' of constitutional machinery. Under the understanding that it's ultimately the quality of the electors, rather than the theoretical designing of the institutions, that ultimately determines the success or failure of a democracy.
Dr Ben Saunders is an Associate Professor at Deakin Law School. Ben’s principal areas of research interest are constitutional law, especially executive power and responsible government, law and religion, and public sector governance. He recently published Responsible Government and the Australian Constitution: A Government for a Sovereign People (Hart Studies in Comparative Public Law, 2023). In 2024 he co-authored an Australian Journal of Politics and History article on ‘The Australian Constitutional Framers and the Languages of Virtue’, with Simon Kennedy.
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Lydia Khalil & Zachary Gorman on the Conditions for a Successful Democracy: "They go hand in hand"

Amidst seemingly unending crises of social cohesion, cost of living, and in the party system, how is Australia's democracy holding up?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Lydia Khalil and Zachary Gorman to unpack the conditions under which democracy thrives, and issues which currently threaten Australia's democratic health. Offering both timely warnings and enduring optimism about the strengths and weaknesses of Australia's political institutions 125 years on from Federation.
This discussion is based on the Robert Menzies's Institute's new policy paper, authored by the Institute's Historian Dr Zachary Gorman, which you can access here.
Lydia Khalil directs the Transnational Challenges Program at the Lowy Institute, overseeing the Digital Threats to Democracy Project. Her career spans governance, technology, and security, with expertise in terrorism and political violence. She is a Senior Research Fellow at Deakin University’s Alfred Deakin Institute, co-convening the AVERT Research Network, and leads the Crisis Points project at the Centre for Resilient and Inclusive Societies. Lydia has advised the US Department of Defense and New York Police Department.
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Bruce Kingston on the eccentricities, dominance and legacy of Queensland Premier Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen: "The truth is"

Before Dan Andrews, who was Australia's most polarising state premier?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Bruce Kingston to discuss one of Australian history's most beloved and bemoaned Queenslanders, Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen. The man who turned the Sunshine State into a modern economic powerhouse, yet who is contrastingly reviled for allegedly representing all of its maroon shades of reactionary conservatism.
Bruce Kingston has some 35 years experience in management, marketing and public affairs in Australia in corporate, consulting and government roles working in various States and Territories. He was Senior Director Community Partnerships with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority co-managing Australia’s largest community consultation program.  He has also been a University lecturer, a Ministerial speechwriter for two Ministers in Bjelke-Petersen Cabinets, a political campaign consultant and a restaurateur. He authored the Australian Biographical Monograph on Johannes Bjelke-Petersen.
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Denis Porter on the importance of the Coal Industry throughout Australian History: "We were desperate for more coal"

Did you know that Captain Cook's Endeavour was originally a coal ship?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Denis Porter to explore the crucial role the coal industry has played throughout Australian history, from the earliest days of British settlement right up until the present. A story of triumph and tragedy, in which economic growth and political controversy have often gone hand in hand.
Denis Porter was CEO of the NSW Minerals Council (1998 to 2001) and a senior staff member of the Council and the NSW Coal Association (1989 to 1998). He was also Joint Executive Director of the Australian Coal Association (1998 to 2001). Denis had an ongoing association with the coal industry after he left the Council, for several years as a consultant, and also as a trustee director of the industry superannuation fund, Mine Super, and as a director of Mine Super Services. He is the author of the two-volume history Coal: The Australian Story.
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Christina Twomey on Australia's treatment of our returned WW2 POWs: "Suffered on behalf of the nation"

Does offering financial support for Prisoners of War risk incentivising surrender?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Christina Twomey, to discuss how the Australian government dealt with returned World War II POWs who had been deeply scarred by their time spent in captivity. Revealing the brutal realism of military commanders who feared that offering too much assistance might reward surrender. But more importantly, uncovering the stories of the soldiers themselves, who were forced to document their trauma in order to try to win support.
Christina Twomey is Professor of History at Monash University. Her research focuses on the social and cultural history of war, with a particular interest in imprisonment and internment, gendered violence, trauma, Australia-Asia relations, humanitarian and aid programmes, and visual cultures of atrocity. Her most recent work focuses on Australia's Asian garrisons and regional engagement during the Cold War period. In 2018 she published The Battle Within: POWs in Postwar Australia.
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Hilary Silbert on Australia's first female parliamentarian Edith Cowan: "You will not get back"

What is the story behind the woman who appears on Australia's $50 note?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Hilary Silbert to uncover the remarkable life of Australia's first female parliamentarian, Edith Cowan. Who rose from the familial infamy of having a convicted murderer for a father, to become one of the most influential citizens in the history of Western Australia, and an inspiration to women across the nation.
Hilary Silbert was the inaugural Corporate Events Manager at the newly formed Edith Cowan University. An admirer of Cowan, Silbert has become an advocate for her memory and memorialisation, helping to organise the celebrations marking the centenary of her election to parliament in 2021. She is currently writing a full-length biography of Cowan, which will be the second ever to be published.
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