Unceremoniously ejected from the Australian Museum 150 years ago, former AM Curator, Gerard Krefft, was Australia's first zoologist and helped foster a national understanding and appreciation for natural sciences. Join us for a free and fascinating discussion on 'Gerard Krefft: A Saga of Science and Scandal', held on Saturday 21 September 2024. Fea…

In this Eureka Talk, explore the wonderful diversity of Antarctica and learn how experts are fighting to save this region from the devastating effects of climate change. Hosted by Australian Museum Eureka Prize winner Dr Jackson Ryan, this panel discussion explores how the Antarctic landscape has changed over the past century, and the critical role…

In the 1980s, a new wave of Egyptomania emerged in Australia with the first touring exhibition from Cairo, but Australia’s fascination with Egypt’s ancient past had begun in the 19th century. Our attraction to the ancient world endured throughout the political swings and design trends of the early 20th century, and grew as Egypt hosted ANZACs for d…

Twice a year, sunlight sweeps into the chambers of The Great Temple at Abu Simbel, illuminating the face of Ramses II and marking the beginning of the flood and growing seasons. Temples were monuments to the pharaohs and the gods, reminding all of Egypt’s wealth and prosperity. For modern visitors, these temples stand as examples of the ingenuity a…

Five years into his reign, Ramses undertook his most ambitious military action, attempting to wrest control of Kadesh from the Hittites. Join Associate Professor Ockinga as he unravels the complexities of one of the most famous battles in the ancient world and asks whether history is necessarily written by the victors.…

In the premiere event of our Saturday Lecture Series, Macquarie University Professor Malcolm Choat uncovers the history of KV7 - The tomb of Ramses the Great. Tomb KV7 had a life that extended beyond a pharaonic burial chamber. Ancient tourists inscribed their names and impressions on its walls, Christian monks made their homes there and transforme…

Come on a journey to the afterlife with archaeologist Dr Anna-Latifa Mourad-Cizek as we explore everything from beliefs and practices to tombs and funerary equipment. ‘I exist, I am alive, I am strong, I have awoken'.Along with mummification, ceremonies and the creation of tombs, ancient Egyptians contrived hundreds of spells to safeguard their ete…

In the first instalment of the Australian Museum’s exclusive 'Egypt - In Conversation' series, curator and Egyptologist Dr Melanie Pitkin sits down with journalist and passionate Egyptophile Caroline Baum for 'An Introduction to Egypt'.As the Senior Curator of the Nicholson collection of antiquities at the Chau Chak Wing Museum, Melanie shares insi…

The future is female! We turn the spotlight on some of the incredible 2023 Eureka Prize winners and finalists who represent the future of science in Australia.Listen to the last of our Eureka Talks Series, as Associate Professor Alice Motion chats with some of the incredible 2023 Eureka Prizes winners and finalists. We will sit down with Dr Stephan…

Professor Kris Helgen, Chief Scientist and Director of the Australian Museum Research Institute (AMRI) in conversation with Ron Lovatt, the Australian Museum's longest serving 'DigiVol' photographer. In this recording Ron talks about his early years and what prompted him to return to nature photography later in life. He discussed his techniques for…

In this Eureka Talk, explore the science behind the deadliest event of the 21st century. Australian Museum Eureka Prize winning journalist, Olivia Willis, sits down with world-leading evolutionary biologist and virologist, Professor Eddie Holmes, and our Chief Scientist and Director of the Australian Museum Research Institute, Professor Kris Helgen…

Eureka Talks Series: Waste Not, Want NotRecorded live at the Australian Museum 10 June 2023Join two of the 2022 Australian Museum Eureka Prize winners, as Dr Jackson Ryan sits down with Professor Veena Sahajwalla to explore the science of decarbonising the world with a recycling revolution.In the first Eureka Talk, join us for an eye-opening talk o…

Recorded live at the Australian Museum 7 June 2023Nature speaks, but are we listening? Hear from photographic artist and activist, Leila Jeffreys, renowned naturalist, Tim Low, and author, David Gandelman, as they explore how improving your relationship with nature can, in turn, improve your relationship with yourself.Drawing from personal experien…

Bee taxonomist Dr Michael Batley sits down with native bee ecologist and science communicator Amelie Vanderstock to chat about the importance, beauty and diversity of Australia's wonderful native bees, and discover ways to bring them to your garden.There over 1600 named native bees in Australia, and possibly another 1000 that are yet to be discover…

Proud Cudgenburra/Bundjalung man, landscaper and Gardening Australia presenter, Clarence Slockee, joins us for the second installment of the series. Learn five practical ways to bring beautiful local blooms, birds and butterflies into your garden as Clarence busts the myth around the difficulty of growing native plants. Five Things is a series of t…

On Saturday 5 November 2022, journalist and author, Ali Gripper, sat down with Dr Jodi Rowley for an intimate Q&A on Jodi’s life's work and to learn five things we can do to make our gardens frog-friendly.Frogs play a crucial role in the balance of our ecosystems. Australia has over 240 known species of frog, almost all of which are found nowhere e…

Recorded at the Australian Museum Thursday 2 June 2022.The ways in which we consume media have shifted, offering us extraordinary opportunities to inform people, bring them together and evoke action. But in this digital era, too much of one thing – or the wrong thing – can make people just scroll on. How do we balance images of loss and devastation…

We're shining a light on the amazing contributions that women are making to science right now in this special interview with Dr Elizabeth Reed. Dr Reed is a lecturer and researcher in Palaeontology at the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Adelaide and a research scientist in Palaeontology at the South Australian Museum. She special…

In this week's episode, we'll hear from Dr Philip Jones, Senior Researcher at the South Australian Museum and curator of the exhibition, Illustrating the Antipodes: George French Angas in Australia and New Zealand, 1844-1845. In 2009, Dr Jones undertook a fellowship at the National Library of Australia, where he researched works by 19th Century art…

Aboriginal Education Coordinator Eva Wilson talks to artists Clem Newchurch and Peter Turner about their new exhibition, KAURNA: Still Here.First Nations artists Peter Turner and Clem Newchurch have worked with the South Australian Museum’s collections to inspire their exhibition KAURNA: Still Here. Drawing on their Ancestors’ practices prior to Eu…

Artists from Warlayirti Art Centre in Balgo, Western Australia, discuss their painting and culture in the new exhibition at the South Australian Museum, Balgo Beginnings.Audio production for this episode was by Jake Holmes, theme song by Peter Saunders and Kaurna Welcome by Uncle Michael O’Brien. Thanks to all the Balgo artists for their time. Balg…

Unsettled – Remembering Massacres by Australian MuseumAustralian Museum

Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO and Dr Jason DeSantolo explore the legacy of David Unaipon and how traditional systems and knowledge are helping solve contemporary issues.Australian Museum

NITV’s Yokayi Footy presenter Bianca Hunt and Professor John Maynard, Chair of Aboriginal History at the University of Newcastle, talk opportunities, barriers and responsibilities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sportspeople past and present.Sport has allowed First Nations people to compete as equals on the field. Success offers possibili…

Artist Daniel Boyd and Academic Dr Stephen Gilchrist discuss the legacy of Emily Kame Kngwarreye and the importance of place and ceremony in art today. When Emily Kame Kngwarreye died in 1996, she was recognised as one of the world’s great painters. Her work was inherently tied to deep, layered understanding and interpretation of her Country’s stor…

Arts leaders Wesley Enoch and Rhoda Roberts AO reflect on the legacy of writer Oodgeroo Noonuccal and activism in the arts.The first published Aboriginal poet in Australia, the writings of Oodgeroo Noonuccal (Kath Walker), captured both the strength of Aboriginal culture and the impacts of colonisation on her people. A charismatic, strong leader fr…

Join Indigenous systems ecologist Chels Marshall and facilitator Dr Mariko Smith to discuss how deep cultural knowledge not only overturned the legal fiction of terra nullius but may help reverse the damaging effects of 200 years of Eurocentric land and sea management practice into the future.Eddie Mabo’s native title claim changed the foundation o…

Professor Tim Flannery outlines his manifesto for humanity’s survival of the “climate emergency” in the Australian Museum’s (AM) inaugural Talbot Oration. The event was held free to the public on Thursday 3 June 2021 at 6:30PM in Hintze Hall at the Australian Museum. In his speech, Professor Flannery made the case for using Australia’s approach to …

Australian Museum Director and CEO Kim McKay in discussion with Professor Tim Flannery.Australian Museum

Glenn Murcutt AO (with Sandra Sully)Architect Glenn Murcutt is globally acclaimed for his environmentally sensitive, sustainable and quintessentially Australian designs. The sole practitioner, teacher and critic, counts his childhood in Papua New Guinea and his father’s inspiring guidance, informed by the ideas of Henry David Thoreau, as profound i…

Albert Namatjira by Franchesca Cubillo (with Tracey Holmes)Born on the Hermannsburg Lutheran mission in the Northern Territory in 1902, the life of iconic master painter and Western Arrernte man Albert Namatjira was entangled in virulent racial politics. Franchescha Cubillo, Churchill Scholar and Senior Curator Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander A…

Mark Carey- The Culture and Politics of IceUniversity of Oregon’s Mark Carey explores the fundamental role of glacial ice in global economics and politics and within our imaginative, historical and colonial narratives. Much more than just a barometer for climate change or pristine nature, glacial ice has been an elemental force in human history, fu…

HumanNature Series: Lessons on resilience from a bamboo bridgeKatherine Gibson and Juan Francisco Salazar (Western Sydney University) explore life within the rhythms of nature in resilient community economies.For more than half a century, a 1.5 km handmade bamboo bridge spanned the Mekong River in Cambodia. It was constructed annually as the waters…

Andrea Gaynor - Armoured histories: radical remembering for the AnthropoceneHold the past to account with Andrea Gaynor, University of Western Australia as she proposes `radical remembering’ to actively confront the challenges of the Anthropocene. Climate breakdown, annihilation of entire species, dwindling topsoil and fresh water, food shocks and …

Bruce Pascoe’s ground-breaking research completely reconsiders the notion of pre-colonial Aboriginal Australians as hunter-gatherers.Explore and challenge the colonial myths that have often underpinned efforts to justify dispossession in this fascinating discussion. Reading the diaries of early explorers, both with and against the grain, Pascoe ret…

Environmental martyrs put their bodies and lives on the line, risking imprisonment, violence or burial in a shallow grave in the dead of night. Some activists remain anonymous, while others gain posthumous fame and power, their deaths becoming a rallying call for others to join the cause.Rob Nixon, Professor in Humanities and Environment at Princet…

Professor Fred Hollows AC by Gabi Hollows AO (with Sandra Sully)New Zealand born, UK trained eye surgeon Fred Hollows’ drive to end the injustice of avoidable blindness emerged from a deep commitment to social equality. The economical approach to ophthalmology – focussing on training local surgeons and reducing the cost of lens - which he and his o…

Dr Macarena Gomez-Barris - The Occupied ForestVenture into the cacophonous space of the forest with Macarena Gómez-Barris of the Pratt Institute, Brooklyn USA, as she considers its contested conceptual, indigenous and potentially regenerative narratives.Recorded in the Hallstrom Theatre at the Australian Museum on 25 June 2019…

Live at the AM: Lunchtime Conversation Series - Terry Percival AM, representing CSIRO WLAN by Australian MuseumAustralian Museum

Live at the AM: Lunchtime Lecture Series 2019: John Maynard On Charles Perkins by Australian MuseumAustralian Museum

Google Maps began in the spare room of software engineer Noel Gordon’s Sydney apartment in 2003. Today’s instant digital information, directions and street views of almost anywhere on earth has changed our lives, our understanding of the world and how we move and interact within it.Noel Gordon is in conversation with Australian Museum Director and …

Australian Museum Director and CEO Kim McKay AO has led the transformation of the nation’s first museum into one of the world's pre-eminent natural history and cultural institutions. Kim also co-founded the Clean Up Australia and Clean Up the World campaigns, and was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to the environ…

Dick Smith in conversation with Kim McKay as part of the Australian Museum Lunchtime Lecture series. Sydney born Dick Smith is an adventurer, businessman, entrepreneur, philanthropist, political activist and 1986 Australian of the Year. The founder of Dick Smith Electronics became a household name, launching Australian Geographic magazine in 1984 t…

This talk took place on Tuesday 21 May 2019 in the Hallstrom Theatre as the first installment of the Australian Museum's Lunchtime Conversation Series.Author Thomas Keneally in conversation with Australian Museum Director & CEO, Kim McKayOne of our most popular and prolific authors, Thomas Keneally has produced more than forty novels, screenplays, …

This talk was presented on 14 May 2019 as part of the Australian Museum's HumanNature series.HumanNature Series: Environmental justice and the power of the Pacific wordExperience the award-winning "eco-poetry" of Craig Santos Perez from the University of Hawaiʻi, as he reflects on the vital role of Pacific literature in the environmental movements …

This talk was presented as part of the Australian Museum's HumanNature series on 30 April 2019.HumanNature Series: Is green the new white?Lesley Green (University of Cape Town) considers how environmentalism squares with anti-racism and social justice in the sourcing of `green’ commodities from the sands of South Africa.Green explores the impact of…

This talk was presented as part of the Australian Museum's HumanNature series on 26 February 2019.HumanNature: Connection and cooperation in a time of climate changeIn his urgent call to action, Birch identifies the powerful roles that First Nations ecological knowledge, environmental activism, scholarship and creativity can play in addressing the …

This talk took place at 1pm, Tuesday 2 September in the Hallstrom Theatre at the Australian Museum as part of the Australian Museum's Lunchtime Lecture Series.Australian film legend George Miller traces his multi-award winning engagement with film to the ritual Saturday matinee in his hometown of Chinchilla, Queensland. After a stint at medical sch…

Layne Beachley is widely regarded as the most successful female surfer in history, and is the only surfer, male or female, to claim six consecutive world titles (1998-2003); she went on to win a 7th world title in 2006 before retiring in 2008. In this inspiring conversation with AM Director Kim McKay, Layne reveals the source of her drive to be the…

From copy girl to editor at the age of 23, Ita Buttrose’s boundary-pushing career at The Telegraph, Cleo, The Australian Women’s Weekly and The Sunday Telegraph won her status as a feminist icon. The legendary media trailblazer, businesswoman, best-selling author and 2013 Australian of the Year continues her active leadership role as a committed co…