• Human Interest

    The well of loneliness


    Carol Lefevre |  July 13, 2024


    Loneliness is more than solitude, indeed we can be lonely surrounded by other people and feel lonelier than ever, but it can be a source of mental strength and creative inspiration as well as crushing psychological distress.


  • Economy

    Enforcing foreign investment rules


    David Uren |  July 13, 2024


    Treasury has stepped up enforcement of Australia’s foreign investment regime to find the right balance between protecting national interests and encouraging investment inflows.


  • China

    Dialogue may not avert disaster


    Joe Keary |  July 13, 2024


    China and Australia agreed last month to set up a new maritime affairs dialogue, but this is unlikely to lead to a reduction in the frequency of unsafe behaviour by the Chinese armed forces.


Latest Story

  • Australia’s anti-semitism envoy

    Dan Goodhardt     |      July 12, 2024

    The Albanese government has named Jewish lawyer and businesswoman Jillian Segal as the county’s first antisemitism special envoy.

  • Philanthropy can help Australia meet land protection targets

    James Fitzsimons     |      July 12, 2024

    Australia aims to protect 30 percent of its landscapes by 2030 and harnessing the power of philanthropy through government fund-matching initiatives could help achieve this ambitious target.

  • With a little help from our friends

    Theo Mendez     |      July 12, 2024

    The Albanese government wants Australia to revitalise the manufacturing sector, but that won’t be possible without closer cooperation with our trading partners, not least South Korea.

  • The myth of nuclear reliability

    Peter Farley     |      July 11, 2024

    International experience suggests that Peter Dutton’s ambition to build nuclear reactors in Australia to guarantee electricity supplies may not be the best course for the future.

  • Fixing the Pacific’s debanking crisis

    Louis de Koker     |      July 11, 2024

    The withdrawal of major banks from Pacific islands poses significant socio-economic risks to the region, prompting intervention by Australia, the US and New Zealand.

  • Digging deep into soil biology

    Open Forum     |      July 11, 2024

    Researchers in South Australia are digging deep into history of soil biology in the state to gain a better understanding of how the soil microbiome functions to ensure sustainable broadacre farming into the future.

  • Women and development in the Pacific

    Sarah Leary     |      July 10, 2024

    Progressing gender equality and Indigenous advancement share common themes around agency, leadership, and shared decision-making—but better connections can be made between these two priority areas of Australia’s international engagement.

  • The art of war

    Jamie Roberts     |      July 10, 2024

    Like Niccolò Machiavelli ‘s The Prince, Sun Tzu’s The Art of War is a treatise of clear-sighted but ruthless realism in the pursuit of power.

  • Why you need adblock

    Open Forum     |      July 10, 2024

    The Australian Ad Observatory project is recording thousands of harmful or illegal adverts on Facebook promoting scams, gambling, alcohol and unhealthy food.

  • Detecting deep fakes

    Jacob Gillard     |      July 9, 2024

    The world’s AI companies have pilfered the sum of human creativity without permission or payment to pump out sludge which may undermine society, the economy and democracy itself, so how can people detect the ‘deep fakes’ it produces?

  • In defence of AUKUS

    Justin Bassi     |      July 9, 2024

    Those who value AUKUS recognise that Australia can thrive with our sovereignty, strategic choices and economic freedom intact, but only if we remain ambitious.

  • Screening for dementia

    Open Forum     |      July 9, 2024

    A new self-reporting tool developed by Murdoch University is set to transform the early detection and management of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.