As the Albanese government considers the Segal report on antisemitism (with more reports to come on other forms of racism) Australian university administrations face a new "French Review" moment. As with the 2019 Independent Review of Free Expression in Australian higher education (by former High Court Chief Justice Robert French), they've been working to articulate…
Feel free to disagree on campus … as we all learn to “Enlighten Up”
Recent moves by university leaders to restrict campus protests and “combat racism” recall past debates on the uses and limits of free expression in Australian higher education. How do institutions meet campus safety and inclusion commitments without undermining the main aims of higher learning institutions - to seek, share and strengthen knowledge and understanding, as…
Tolerance, trust and truth: what students can learn from Australia’s Voice referendum debates
In his speech to the National Press Club last week, Australian National University vice-chancellor Brian Schmidt called on Australia to “enlighten up” – though not in those words. He reflected on how, with topics such as the Voice referendum, "democratic debates generate more heat than light”. Pointing to the way "media circuses" tend to amplify…
“Enlightening up” – a framework for students in Australian universities
In Australia (as in the UK, US and elsewhere) we see claims that too often, students and scholars self-censor unduly, due to fear of sanctions in class or on campus or on social media. The extent and wider effects of this are very hard to measure reliably; we need more and better research. In Australia’s…
Hard heads, soft hearts: why our universities need both
In Australia and New Zealand, university leaders have called on their institutions to promote more open-minded and constructive debates, to help societies respond in more enlightened ways to complex challenges. University of Auckland vice-chancellor Dawn Freshwater writes that campus communities should be exemplars where scholars speak bravely and freely and with respect. At the University…
Book review: Open Minds (and the French Review connection)
Launched in March, Open Minds is a timely book for Australian university leaders and higher education policy makers. It has had thoughtful reviews from Peter Tregear and Andrew Norton. Law professors Adrienne Stone and Carolyn Evans (the latter is vice-chancellor at Griffith University) bring context and clarity to the uses and limits of academic freedom…
Big Little Thought Crimes in Melbourne 