• Culture

    Room to dream


    Alexander Howard |  January 19, 2025


    Best known for films such as Eraserhead, Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive and the hugely influential television series Twin Peaks, American director David Lynch has died at the age of 78.


  • Politics and Policy

    Preparing for Trump


    Malcolm Davis |  January 19, 2025


    How should Australia react to the likely geo-political priorities of Donald Trump’s second term in power?


  • China

    The shape of things to come


    Bill Sweetman |  January 19, 2025


    In the past Chinese military aviation relied on crude copies of Soviet planes. Today’s Chinese airforce fields large numbers of modern aircraft based on stolen Western designs. Tomorrows Chinese airforce may take the lead, just as China has in other areas of techology, and the “J-XX” may be the shape of things to come.


Latest Story

  • Labor pledges 3 days of free child care

    Michelle Grattan     |      December 11, 2024

    Anthony Albanese will promise a re-elected Labor government would guarantee three days of subsidised child care without people having to undertake an activity test.

  • Te Tiriti o Waitangi

    Dominic O'Sullivan     |      December 10, 2024

    As New Zealand’s controversial Treaty Principles Bill goes to a Parliamentary Select Committee Hearing it’s worth considering whether te Tiriti o Waitangi really does undermine liberal democracy as the Bill’s proponents say.

  • Firebugs

    Open Forum     |      December 10, 2024

    Arson, rather than climate change, is the direct cause of around 40% of Australia’s bushfires,but prevention of deliberately lit conflagrations is mostly absent from emergency, public health and climate action plans.

  • Remaking healthy cities

    Jinhee Kim     |      December 10, 2024

    Australia drifted away from the Healthy Cities movement it helped start. It can still get back on track.

  • Albanese must step up on anti-Semitism

    Michelle Grattan     |      December 9, 2024

    Labor has been lukewarm in its condemnation of anti-semetic attacks and vandalism but despite the temptations posed by an approaching election, the parties need to unite behind combatting this scourge before social cohesion is further undermined.

  • After Assad

    Ali Mamouri     |      December 9, 2024

    With its Russian and Iranian allies stretched and distracted elsewhere, a swift assault by rebel forces has brought about the humiliating fall of Syria’s brutal Assad regime.

  • Tomorrow’s Army today

    Marcus Schultz     |      December 9, 2024

    The head of Australia’s army, Lieutenant General Simon Stuart, has laid out his vision for a more effective and accountable service.

  • Feed the world

    Open Forum     |      December 8, 2024

    Increasing heat, droughts, floods, and salinization caused by climate change are lowering the amount of edible food produced by our staple crops. Since taking over more land for agriculture isn’t sustainable, our only path forward is to adapt the crops themselves to the new conditions.

  • Mapping the world with AI

    Fahimeh Abedi     |      December 8, 2024

    Geospatial AI could transform healthcare and disaster management, but we need comprehensive guidelines and laws to mitigate misinformation and safeguard users.

  • Living in Australia

    Dominic Redfern     |      December 8, 2024

    Arts Project Australia has been supporting artists with intellectual disabilities for more than 50 years and a new exhibition showcases their work.

  • Australians want more accessible political reporting

    Aljosha Karim Schapals     |      December 7, 2024

    There’s more news, more politics and more people ignoring both than ever before, so could changes in the way politics is reported encourage more people to stop avoiding it and get better informed?

  • Turning hydrogen hype into action

    Henry Campbell     |      December 7, 2024

    The Australian government envisions Australia as a renewable energy superpower, and the “Future Made in Australia” policy commits billions to building a domestic hydrogen industry, but when will it actually happen?