Where Are We Heading?
Dr Kate Brady | Dr Leah Lui-Chivizhe | Nevena Krups | Keshavi Charde | Matt O'Kane | Dr Arian Prabowo | Rob Brooks
Join us for an evening of short talks from UNSW’s brightest minds that will urge you to think differently about how we might survive in our ever-changing world. Discover how to recover from disasters, the power of friendship, the secrets of quantum computing, how AI will change the shape of our cities, the growing importance of cyber security and why we should be returning Ancestral Remains to their rightful owners.
Dr Kate Brady | Disasters are Awful: What Comes After Doesn't Have To Be
In a world increasingly besieged by disasters, Dr Kate Brady addresses whether we are ready for what comes after them. She paints a stark picture of the escalating frequency and intensity of calamities and calls for a radical shift in how we approach disaster recovery.
Dr Leah Lui-Chivizhe | From Torres Strait to Museums – and Home Again
The removal of Ancestral Remains from their homelands has left a lasting impact on Indigenous communities. Dr Leah Lui-Chivizhe shares her personal journey highlighting the importance of repatriating these ancestors for their families.
Nevena Krups | The Hidden Power of Friendship
Are friendships won and lost, collected like coins, tools to survive society or even politics? Nevena Krups takes us on a journey, revealing how the ancient art of friendship can become a powerful force to heal a fragmented society.
Keshavi Charde | A Journey Through the World of Quantum Mechanics
In the not too distant future exists a world where quantum algorithms can solve complex problems from cybersecurity to personalised medicine. Dive into the enigmatic world of quantum mechanics with Keshavi Charde as your guide.
Matt O'Kane | Cyber Education: Progress or Peril?
Cyberattacks are fast becoming our biggest global threat - so why aren’t we better prepared? Matt O’Kane critiques current cyber education methods and calls for a bold reimagining of how we prepare for the cyber threats of tomorrow.
Dr Arian Prabowo | AI and Urban Progress
In a world where urban congestion plagues our lives, Dr Arian Prabowo examines how AI can transform urban progress. Prabowo envisions a future where algorithms optimise city transport, making our commutes faster while ensuring reliability.
LIVE EVENT & VENUE INFORMATION
Leighton Hall is located inside the John Niland Scientia Building at UNSW Sydney's Kensington campus. Please note this is a live event only, and will not be available via livestream.
TICKETS
ACCESS
Wheelchair Access
The closest accessible drop off point to Leighton Hall is via Gate 11, Botany Street. More information on getting there can be found via our interactive accessibility map available here.
Assisted Listening
Leighton Hall has hearing assistive technology available. Patrons wishing to utilise this service must collect a Roger™ inductive neck loop receiver from the venue staff, and this system can be used with a hearing aid or cochlear implant with a T-coil, or with headphones.
Auslan
This talk will be Auslan interpreted. Please select an Assisted Listening ticket when you register for your tickets. Front of house staff can assist in identifying Auslan seats on arrival at the venue.
Captioning
Live captioning can be provided for selected talks upon request.
Contact
To book and discuss access services, please call the Centre for Ideas on 02 9065 0485 or email centreforideas@unsw.edu.au.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT & PARKING
Leighton Hall (John Niland Scientia Building) is easily accessible via public transport. The closest light rail stop is the UNSW High Street (L2 line) and the closes bus stop is UNSW Gate 14, Barker Street (303). For more information please call the Transport Infoline on 131 500 or visit For more information please call the Transport Infoline on 131 500 or visit transportnsw.info.
Paid casual and visitor parking is offered via the CellOPark App and ‘pay by plate meters’ in all other UNSW car parks. The Botany St Car Park (Gate 11) parking station is the closest to the venue, and is located here. For more information head here.
CONTACT
For all enquiries, please email centreforideas@unsw.edu.au or call the Centre for Ideas on 02 9065 0485.
The Centre for Ideas is happy to receive phone calls via the National Relay Service. TTY users, phone 133 677, then ask for 02 9065 0485. Speak and Listen users, phone 1300 555 727 then ask for 02 9065 0485. For more information on all other relay calls visit here.
Dr Kate Brady
Dr Kate Brady is the Senior Research Fellow at the UNSW Sydney’s HowWeSurvive initiative, a Technical Adviser to Australian Red Cross, an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne and the host of ABC’s After the Disaster podcast. Her work focuses on what people find helpful and unhelpful after disasters. Throughout her career, Kate has had significant influence on State and National emergency management policy and has an international profile in collective trauma, resilience and in disaster recovery programming and policy. Kate is a co-author on the Australian Disaster Recovery Framework, the Australian Community Recovery Handbook and was an advisor in the development of the National Disaster Mental Health Framework.
Dr Leah Lui-Chivizhe
Dr Leah Lui-Chivizhe is a Torres Strait Islander with enduring connections to Mer, Erub and Badu islands and a Scientia Senior Lecturer in UNSW Arts, Design and Architecture. A historian and curator, her current research focuses on how nineteenth century collections from the Torres Strait can strengthen Islander connections to our pre-colonial histories of human and more-than-human relations and contribute to decolonial praxis in collector institutions. Her book, Masked Histories: Turtle shell masks and Torres Strait Islander people, was highly commended for Australian History in the 2023 NSW Premier’s History Awards.
Nevena Krups
Originally from former Yugoslavia, educated both in Germany and Australia, Nevena Krups is a PhD Candidate in Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts, Design & Architecture, School of Humanities and Languages at UNSW Sydney. Nevena’s research focus is on the political value of friendship. She has experience working with the United Nations in Kathmandu/Nepal and the NGO sector. Nevena is a keen educator with a diverse and interdisciplinary perspective on ideas that promote a more humane world. She is also the proud mother of two.
Keshavi Charde
Keshavi Charde is a PhD student in the field of Quantum Computing at UNSW Sydney. Her research aims to scale-up the current quantum processing capability with the required error-correction, to eventually develop a quantum computer. Keshavi graduated with a double Bachelors in Advanced Physics and Aerospace Engineering and achieved 1st class Honours in both. She is the recipient of the Douglas Archer Prize for the best student in Aerospace Engineering, a member of the Dean’s lists and recognised as one of the best and brightest at UNSW. Keshavi is a 2024 Fulbright Scholar and will be pursuing further research at UCLA in the United States in 2024.
Matt O'Kane
Matt O'Kane is a digital forensics expert, in Sydney Australia. As the Director of Notion Digital Forensics, he helps businesses, legal professionals, and IT companies prepare and respond to cyber breach emergencies and insider threats. With over 30 years of experience in the IT industry Matt's goal is to help organisations understand and confront these risks with confidence, using effective tools and strategies from hard-won knowledge from case investigations. Matt is an Assistant Course Convenor for UNSW School of Business (IT and Cyber) and a Casual Academic at UNSW Canberra.
Dr Arian Prabowo
Dr Arian Prabowo is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Machine Learning at the School of Computer Science and Engineering at UNSW Engineering. Prabowo specializes in bespoke AI models for spatiotemporal data to achieve tangible real-world impact. The applications of his work include intelligent transports and smart buildings. He holds a PhD from RMIT University and is currently involved in the Digital Infrastructure Energy Flexibility project as a member of the CRUISE research group led by Prof. Flora Salim. Prabowo was part of the team that won first prize at FuelHack organized by Linfox and his traffic data plots were also nominated for the Beautiful Science Award.
Rob Brooks
Rob Brooks is Professor of Evolution at UNSW Sydney and a popular science author. He has spent his career understanding the complexities and conflicts that sex and reproduction bring to the lives of animals, including human animals. His popular writing explores the murky confluence of culture, economics and biology, and how new technologies interact with our evolved minds and bodies. He has won the Queensland Literary Award for Science (for his first book Sex, Genes and Rock ‘n’ Roll), and the Eureka Prize for Science Communication. His articles have been published in Psyche, CNN, The Atlantic, The Sydney Morning Herald, Areo, and many other publications. His latest book Artificial Intimacy: Virtual Friends, Digital Lovers, and Algorithmic Matchmakers considers what happens when new technology collides with our ancient ways of making friends, growing intimate, and falling in love.