Episodes
In our final episode of Seriously Social, we bring you a special interview with 2023 Senior Australian of the Year, Professor Tom Calma AO. A Kungarakan and Iwaidja Elder, educator, human rights campaigner and academic, Professor Calma has spent decades effecting positive change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. In this interview, Professor Calma reflects on the things that drive him and the hopes he has for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community, and all...
Published 11/28/23
Published 11/28/23
As the housing crisis worsens, do we have the courage to reimagine a home among the gumtrees or are we too set in our ways to branch out? In this episode, we investigate why density is a dirty word and offer a comprehensive view of the possibilities ahead. Join host Ginger Gorman as she speaks to housing policy expert Professor Bill Randolph (UNSW City Futures Research Centre), innovative architect Lisa Garner from LIAN Architects, and Associate Professor in Urban Planning (The University of...
Published 10/30/23
Incarceration rates are on the rise in Australia. Is there a crime wave or is it media hype? Join host Ginger Gorman as she cuts through the clickbait to uncover the truth about crime in Australia and who we lock up. Professor Eileen Baldry AO, a leading criminologist from UNSW, separates fact from fiction, while Justen Thomas, an advocate for vulnerable youth offers a unique perspective from firsthand experience. Get ready for a confronting discussion on the real story behind the headlines...
Published 09/25/23
Which professions and brands do you trust? In this episode, Professor Nicole Gillespie from the Trust, Ethics and Governance Alliance at the University of Queensland talks us through trust—how to build it, maintain it, and what to do if we lose it. Going beyond the personal perspective, Professor Gillespie examines the factors that make an organisation trustworthy and the psychology behind building consumer confidence. Useful Links 2023 Productivity Commission Report What Australia Thinks ANU...
Published 08/28/23
If you were feeling low and needed to talk, would you turn to a robot? With the rise of AI Chatbot technology, many Australians are doing just that—and seeing the benefits. In this episode, Associate Professor Gemma Sharp, head of the Body Image and Eating Disorders Research Group at Monash University, explains why chatbots can successfully bridge the gap between people living with an eating disorder and access to in-person treatments, while host of the Butterfly: Let’s Talk podcast, Sam Ikin...
Published 07/24/23
Many people switch to a meat-free diet on the basis that it’s a healthy lifestyle choice with a low carbon footprint. But can we really believe the hype when it comes to vegan meat products? In this episode, Professor Christine Parker from the University of Melbourne Law School serves up the truth on the rise of imitation meat products and dives into who is responsible for ensuring the claims made on their labels are accurate. Get ready to sink your teeth into this captivating episode on...
Published 06/27/23
Get ready for a thought-provoking episode of Seriously Social! The upcoming Voice Referendum presents a pivotal moment for Australia to reshape its relationship with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and confront the truths of our history. Join us for this captivating episode with the esteemed The Hon. Dr Barry Jones AC, former politician and noted polymath. With his wealth of experience and wisdom, Dr Jones fearlessly explores the attitudes of the past and challenges us to ask...
Published 05/29/23
Have you ever wanted to be Queen? Perhaps Grand Poobah? How simple is it to just start your own nation, and is it even legal? In this episode, Dr Harry Hobbs from the University of Technology Sydney is our travel guide through the weird and wonderful world of micronations. Guest James Blackwell, Research Fellow in Indigenous Diplomacy at the Australian National University, uncovers how Australia’s lack of recognition of sovereign states has had serious and ongoing impacts on Indigenous...
Published 04/23/23
Who do you picture when you think of the word “poor”? In a prosperous nation like Australia, surely no one should be living in poverty—but we all know that plenty of people from all walks of life don’t have enough to make ends meet. In this episode of Seriously Social, economist and Deputy Director of the HILDA Survey, Professor Roger Wilkins crunches the numbers on what poverty in Australia looks like and what we can do about it, and demographer Dr Liz Allen breaks down why “pulling yourself...
Published 03/27/23
How can the voice of children and young people count if they aren't counted in elections? When you turn 16 you can drive a car, consent to medical procedures and pay taxes—but you can’t vote.  Professor Lisa Hill explains why we’re so scared of giving younger people a vote, and shares fascinating research about 16 and 17-year-olds in the voting booth.  Useful Links Voting at 16: Does lowering the voting age lead to more political engagement? Evidence from a quasi-experiment in the city of...
Published 02/27/23
Are you an activist or slacktivist? Would you take to the streets for a cause you’re passionate about, or sign a petition? What actions make a real difference? In this episode of Seriously Social, Brisbane City Councillor Jonathan Sriranganathan, academic and activist Aidan Ricketts and sexual consent advocate Chanel Contos answer the question 'What is the point of a protest?', take a look at the ways protesting has changed over the years and highlight how governments and lawmakers are making...
Published 12/12/22
Australians love sport. It’s healthy, fun and brings the community together for a common goal. Or so we’re told. But what happens when our national obsession with sport causes division in the community? And who is left out of the game altogether? In this episode of Seriously Social, Emeritus Professor David Rowe explains how involvement in sport can be so contentious it has started a war while author and host of The Outer Sanctum podcast, Nicole Hayes, discusses the benefits to the wider...
Published 11/28/22
It’s our 50th episode and we are celebrating this milestone with an extra-special interview with the first women’s advisor to a head of government anywhere in the world. Elizabeth Reid AO, Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and a former visiting Fellow at the Gender Relations Centre and Department of Human Geography at ANU, was appointed in 1973 to advise then Prime Minister Gough Whitlam on the changes in policy that the women of Australia were desperate to see...
Published 10/24/22
Would you switch to greener super if it meant more money at retirement? But is the benefit worth the hassle? As climate change makes itself felt in our everyday lives, we explore how our choice of superannuation fund can cost us in the long run if we don’t pay attention to climate-friendly investment now. In this episode, Professor Jacqueline Peel, Director of Melbourne Climate Futures talks about how it's possible to prompt climate action by strategic superannuation investment. Professor Wai...
Published 09/27/22
When you think back to your childhood, who do you remember spent the most time doing the day-to-day care? The most common answer to that question historically, would be mum. But in 2022, is that beginning to change? In this episode, Professor of Gender and Employment Relations, Marian Baird, (University of Sydney), discusses Australia’s current Paid Parental Leave schemes including how they work, what needs to change and how can we learn from other schemes.  Useful links: Dad days: how...
Published 08/22/22
Are you one of the 50% of Australians who have tried an illicit drug? Or do you believe all drugs should be illegal? The field of drug policy is in a state of flux. Whilst drugs are being legalised in some parts of the world, other countries are cracking down. In this episode, Professor Alison Ritter, Director of the UNSW Drug Policy Modelling Program, explores Australia's drug policies: who makes them, who influences them, and who is being left out of the discussion? Useful Links Drug...
Published 07/24/22
Feeling burned out? It’s not surprising: experts say we all have a 30% chance of experiencing it. (Sorry to doctors, teachers and others in caring professions: your chances are way higher.) In this episode, the founder of the Black Dog Institute, Professor Gordon Parker, explains what burnout is, why it’s often misdiagnosed, and which personalities are most at risk of experiencing this syndrome which can impact our relationships, personality, and brain function.
Published 06/27/22
Did you know there have been more dictatorships than democracies? Ever wondered if all dictators are cut from the same cloth? With the help of author Professor Graeme Gill and journalist Matt Bevan from the ABC “If you’re listening” podcasts, we explore how dictatorships work and why democracy is a more unusual system of government than most of us realise. 
Published 05/23/22
What makes a speech, especially a political speech impactful, memorable and stirring? And why does it always feel so long between those times when we hear a good one? In this episode of Seriously Social, political historian Professor Sean Scalmer joins us to discuss the origins of the stump speech, and what it takes to move hearts and minds with words.
Published 04/26/22
The data is in: racism in Australia is on the rise. But in recent years has racism become more covert than it once was? We unpack the spectrum of racist behaviour as we look at racism in Australia today, and consider why, even as it goes undercover, it's getting worse.
Published 03/28/22
What helped you find hope this past year or two? Was it a person, a hobby, or something else?
Published 11/15/21
If you have a few ‘buy now pay later’ purchases on the go, is that debt? And if it is, do you think of it as good debt or bad debt? With the introduction of options like Afterpay and its many competitors, this episode explores how debt has become a game that's easy to begin but nearly impossible to end, especially for Australia’s young people. 
Published 11/01/21
Have you found it harder to motivate yourself these past two years? What incentives would have turned things around? We talk to two experts about incentives and learn that humans aren’t as rational as we’d like to think, making the business of incentives a tricky one indeed.
Published 10/17/21
Ever cut your own hair then speed dialled your hairdresser for a fix? Regretted a spot of DIY? If so, you’ll have a new respect for experts. But now that everyone has a platform, which voices can we trust to keep us informed? Or are we happier just listening to anyone willing to tell us what we want to hear? Australia’s Chief Scientist Dr Cathy Foley and Ken Henry (a familiar name to many) join us in this episode of Seriously Social where we sort the experts from the commentators and help you...
Published 10/04/21