Shows / Big Ideas
Big Ideas
Your front row seat to big thinkers at the best live events, forums, and festivals. Feed your mind. Be provoked. One big idea at a time. Your brain will love you for it. We love hearing from you about the show or events you are planning. Get in touch! Email: Bigideas@abc.net.au SMS line for ABC Radio National: 0418 226 576 Airs Monday to Thursday 8pm, repeated Tuesday to Friday 12pm, on ABC Radio National.
Episodes
Big IdeasIs our university system broken?
Students are dropping out, academics are burning out, so is enough being done to save higher education? It's a multibillion-dollar sector, employing and…
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The radicalisation of boys — Jess Hill, George Megalogenis, Thomas Mayo with Natasha Mitchell at Byron Writers Festival
Some boys are being radicalised by misogynist online subcultures like the 'Manosphere' and the 'incel' (involuntarily celibate) scene. Parents are anxious and…
Big IdeasThe AI Con — unpacking the artificial intelligence hype machine
Is the world really in the midst of an AI revolution, or is it all just clever marketing, powered by immense amounts of money, capital and hype? This episode…
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Barry Jones and Kerry O'Brien — on complexity, politics and love
Barry Jones and Kerry O'Brien - Two titans of Australian political and social commentary share insights into how to think well, how to act well and how to make…
Big IdeasTradwives — cosy cottage core fantasy, or something more sinister? With Megan Agnew, Rosie Waterland, Beverley Wang and Nakkiah Lui
They cook, make babies, and look impossibly perfect while doing it.Tradwives are using social media to redefine femininity and womanhood… or are they just…
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My Sister and Other Lovers — Esther Freud with Natasha Mitchell at Byron Writers Festival
Esther Freud’s first semi-autobiographical novel Hideous Kinky became a film starring Kate Winslet and told the wild story of two little girls living in…
Big IdeasWhen dreams speak truth — exploring the relationship between our realities and the subconscious
What happens when the harsh realities of our daily lives — death, war, illness, hardship — invade that most private of realms — our sleep? Four poets and…
Big IdeasThe US was meant to pivot to Asia — has Donald Trump changed course?
With Donald Trump mediating conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, what has become of the United States' strategy in the Asia Pacific region? The event Asia…
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Alison Lester and Jane Godwin on how children’s books change lives
Even years later, children's books can hold a special place in our hearts, and they also teach, comfort, inspire, and grow young minds, and set kids up for…
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From devil horns to deep listening — Maxine Beneba Clark, Debra Dank, Damon Young on the power of communication
From finding the right language to connect to Country, making the world a more poetic place for kids, to a Vulcan salute between two lovers — communication…
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How a picnic started the fall of the Iron Curtain
A brass band, goulash cooking in giant pots over open flames, people dancing around a bonfire — a pan-European picnic at the border between Hungary and Austria…
Big IdeasAnna Funder — Bears out there, writing in the age of bots and broligarchs
Without permission, or payment, artificial intelligence has stolen the published words of thousands of Australian writers, and it seems that they have little…
Big IdeasThe remarkable life of Marie Curie and the women scientists she inspired — with Dava Sobel
Marie Curie is arguably the most famous scientist in history, for her breakthroughs in the field of radioactivity. But Curie also redefined what was possible…
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Wellness influencers will outlive us all! The Science Smackdown Debate at World Science Festival Brisbane
It's Team Wellness Warriors versus Team Medical Miracles. Hear the arguments and you decide! The wellness industry is booming. It's worth billions and its…
Big IdeasHow to live an experimental life
The American essayist, philosopher and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson famously said that all life is an experiment, and the more experiments you make, the better. So…
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Dugongs — up close and personal
Their closest relative is the elephant; they eat about 60 kg of sea grass per day; and there are only three dugongs in captivity in the world. One in the Sea…
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Do you know the size of your material footprint?
In your daily life you use more material than you think: metals, stones, wood, ceramics – the list goes on. We have sufficient resources to support growth, but…
Big IdeasSarah Wilson reckons with our civilisational collapse
If you knew the world as we know it was on the verge of collapse, would that change the way you live your life? Author, activist and podcaster Sarah Wilson has…
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Mike Burgess — Espionage is a growing and costly threat to Australia
Foreign spies attempt to infiltrate media organisations, break into restricted laboratories, target public servants on sites such as LinkedIn, approach…
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Plummeting vaccination rates threaten public health
For the first time in human history, we have the scientific know-how to vaccinate against most of the infectious diseases that killed our ancestors. But an…
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Not drowning waving, a modern media tale — with Geraldine Doogue
The decline of the mainstream media has forced many outlets to try new things to keep audiences engaged and informed. So what works, and what is the industry's…
Big IdeasFrom Con the Fruiterer to East West 101 — the changing face of Australian TV
Australia is a multicultural country, but up until recently, when you turned on the telly, you wouldn't know it. So what role has TV played in Australia's…
Big IdeasFAT is not an F-word! The radical practice of fat joy
Join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell with three women embracing the radical practice of finding joy in big bodies. Fat bodies are often stigmatised…
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How animals use natural medicine to heal themselves
Meet apes that swallow leaves to dislodge worms and sparrows that use cigarette butts to repel parasites. Many animals use medicine to treat themselves —…
Big IdeasThe dark side of collaboration — when thinking together goes wrong
At face value, collaboration sounds like a good thing: collaboration in the classroom, with colleagues, or between nations. But throughout history…
Big IdeasAdam Liaw on what spaghetti bolognese tells us about Australian life
Food is essential to human life, but are we taking it for granted? Popular chef, writer and broadcaster Adam Liaw is an advocate for good food for everyone. He…
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Mao and Stalin — did they lead the way for tyrannical leaders like Trump?
Books on tyrants, dictators, and authoritarian leaders are suddenly bestsellers again as we all try to make sense of the tilt towards tyrannical leadership…
Big IdeasOne land, two laws, it’s black and white — with Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander Social Justice Commissioner Katie Kiss
At a time when governments are retreating from promises of progress for First Nations people, what can be achieved through legal and human rights…
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Doctor Who turns 60 — why the world still loves you
Doctor Who has acted as a mirror to more than six decades of social, technological and cultural change. It's been able to evolve and adapt more radically than…
Big IdeasIs AI our modern-day Frankenstein? Jeanette Winterson and Toby Walsh
Acclaimed British author Jeanette Winterson argues that 200 years ago, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, was a message in a bottle, a prophesy, of today's AI…
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ABC's CITIZEN JURY — Would you live inside a modern power station? These people will, and want to be heard
Citizen Jury is ABC Radio National's experiment in citizen-led democracy. The ingredients? A gnarly issue + a jury of citizens = conversations + ideas for…
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Radical economics — what can we learn from the life of John Maynard Keynes
John Maynard Keynes was an economist whose dreams went beyond balance sheets and into political ideas and cultural movements.He advised world leaders during…
Big IdeasLife behind the lens — with photojournalists Lorrie Graham, Rick Stevens and Mike Bowers
Photojournalism can define a moment, a movement, an era or even a whole generation. It can lift a weary spirit, move opinions, or change the way we view the…
Big IdeasCan citizen juries put the people back in democracy?
Australia faces many big challenges, but is our democracy up to the job of solving these, or are we experiencing a decision deadlock?One process that could…
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Join Jodi Edwards and her Sea Kin on a journey that flows like salt water — you won't see the sea in the same way
We bathe in the amniotic fluid our mother's womb. Our cells are full of water. For Walbanja woman, artist, educator and researcher Dr Jodi Edwards, this…
Big IdeasBehrouz Boochani and Arnold Zable on the radical act of friendship
The Kurdish poet Behrouz Boochani and the Australian writer Arnold Zable explore the power of friendship as an act of resistance, nourishment and healing.This…
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Where to now — transforming anger into action after the Voice referendum
In October 2023, Australians voted no to a Voice to Parliament for First Nations people. In this panel from the 2025 Melbourne Writers Festival, four speakers…
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What would a feminist utopia look like?
What would religion, work, sex or technology look like if we lived in a truly feminist world? In a perfect world would the messy stuff make the cut? Or would…
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Dark tourism, death, design, and the macabre — should some places stay untouched?
Dark tourism is increasingly popular. Sites of suffering like old gaols, asylums, orphanages hold a certain allure. Can we honour their dark heart and…
Big IdeasIs language power? With American linguist John McWhorter
Language is always evolving, and reflecting back to us our society, politics and identity. From profanity, to personal pronouns, to the politics of translation…
Big IdeasHard new world — our post-American future, with Hugh White and Allan Behm
Under Donald Trump's second presidency, America's retreat from global leadership has been swift and erratic. With Russia's war in Ukraine still raging on…
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Baby boycott — the fertility crisis and the big decision
When you enter your childbearing years, it can feel like everyone from the treasurer, your mum, and probably your Instagram reels really wants you to have a…
Big IdeasLove your gut — understanding the microbiome
Are fermented foods really good for us? Do antibiotics destroy our gut flora? And have you heard about poo transplants?Our gut is teeming with trillions of…
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Adapt or collapse — can we meet the moment of environmental peril
Do humans really have what it takes to change our lives – our world – to arrest climate collapse?It might be the defining question we face as a society, and…
Big IdeasKate McClymont on the complete insanity of investigative journalism
Murderers, fraudsters, mobsters, dodgy doctors, and corrupt politicians. Kate McClymont has exposed all manner of shady characters, and lives to tell the tale…
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The second coming of quantum — the next scientific revolution is here
There are some leaps in science and technology that change everything. Scientists say we’re living through the second quantum revolution, so we're going deep…
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The past is a foreign country — Santilla Chingaipe, Sita Sargeant, Steve Vizard with Natasha Mitchell
When Santilla Chingaipe stumbled on the names of enslaved Africans who arrived on the First Fleet in 1788 she couldn't look away. For Steve Vizard, an argument…
Big IdeasWill American democracy survive the Dark Enlightenment? Sarah Churchwell on Gone with the Wind and the roots of extremism
Sarah Churchwell takes you on a gripping and confronting journey into America's recent past to explain its extraordinary present, starting with dark story at…
Big IdeasWe are the evidence — empowering change in Indigenous Australia
In 2017, the Uluru Statement called for Voice, Treaty and Truth as a roadmap to reconciliation. With the Voice defeated, what is the path now to meaningful…
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From Bangalore to Balmain – Padma Raman’s lifelong advocacy for women and girls
The racism and resilience Padma Raman’s parents experienced lit a social justice fire in her early on. She landed on the sunny shores of Sydney in the 1980s…
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Fashion's fails — we can fix its toxic legacy! Kit Willow, Natasha Mitchell, and guests
Australians have a hardcore addiction to fast fashion. That means dyes in our waterways, microplastics in our bodies, and hundreds of thousands of tonnes of…
Big IdeasWarren Ellis on why he bought a Sumatran wildlife sanctuary — with Justin Kurzel and Zan Rowe
Warren Ellis is best known as the charismatic violinist with legendary Australian instrumental rock trio Dirty Three and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Justin…
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To infinity – who's in charge of outer space?
How do nations work together to control access to our vast universe, negotiate who gets what resources, or even who gets to set up new colonies on far away…
Big IdeasBeing Jewish after the destruction of Gaza — with Peter Beinart and Sarah Schwartz
What's happening in Gaza is horrifying and shocking. As the world watches on, how are different Jewish communities reckoning with a war being waged in their…
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We asked for workers and got people — inside the temporary visa scheme putting food on your plate
A workforce we rarely hear about, lives in limbo, and stories from the coalface. From economic gains and cultural exchanges to exploitation and absconding…
Big IdeasThe unbearable intimacy of voicing someone’s words — with Forced Entertainment
Words can mean everything, or nothing at all: it all depends on how they're delivered. This relationship between writer, script, actor and audience creates a…
Big IdeasGina Chick on what dark nights of the soul can teach us about life and living
Gina Chick made her name as the inaugural winner of Alone Australia, but her story begins a long time before that. It involves unimaginable hardship, death…
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Safe at home – who profits when you’re afraid of your neighbours?
Your personal safety is big business, so much so that it’s given rise to “security capitalism”, a phenomenon where attempts to buy personal safety shape the…
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The ghosts are here — Tasma Walton, Darren Rix, Craig Cormick, Anthony Sharwood with Natasha Mitchell
The ghost people arrived by boat. They never left. But the stories of first encounters and what came next live large, 250 years later, in First Nations…
Big IdeasWords to sing the world alive — waking up First Nations languages
At the time of colonisation, there were more than 250 Indigenous languages spoken in Australia, but these days, all are considered endangered. Many First…