Rationalist Society of Australia

Conferences

The Rationalist Society of Australia holds one or two weekend conferences each year, where prominent Australians and experts in their fields explore a topic in depth. Papers from these conferences can be read in our journal, the Australian Rationalist . Ideas for conferences are welcome.

Upcoming conference

Watch this space.

Past conferences

Separating church and state: keeping god out of government

73rd conference, Sat 17 & Sun 18 June 2006 - sponsored by the Australian National Secular Association (ANSA), the Council of Australian Humanist Societies (CAHS), and the RSA

Union House, Melbourne University

Saturday - What's the problem?

Dr Meredith Doig, Director, ANSA - Welcome and introduction

Roy Brown, Immediate Past President, International Humanists - Why the West must defend freedom of speech

Jane Caro, columnist, New Matilda - How god is killing public education: indoctrination vs. education

Professor Geoffrey George, Victoria University - Tax policy: religious tax privileges as concessions

Professor Helen Irving, University of Sydney - Same difference? A comparison of the 'Establishment Clause' in the Australian and United States constitutions

Dr Max Wallace, Founding Director, ANSA - Keynote speech: Separation of church and state in Australia and New Zealand

Professor Loane Skene, University of Melbourne - Religion, the state and the law

Panel, moderated by Terry Lane - Michael Hogan, Leigh Mackay, Denis Altman, Rosslyn Ives, Barney Zwartz, Ian Robinson - God in government: should we be worried?

Senator Lyn Allison, Leader, Australian Democrats - Relationship between religion and politics in modern Australia: an opportunity or a threat for church and state separation?

Ian Robinson (RSA), Rosslyn Ives (CAHS) & John Perkins (ANSA) - Secular organisations in Australia

Sunday - What's the solution?

Dr Meredith Doig, Director, ANSA - Welcome and introduction

Chris Doig, former teacher (Moreland College - case study), in conversation with Roy Brown - Tolerating intolerance: the decline and fall of a Victorian government school

Brian McKinlay, historian and commentator - The impact of the religious right in the US and Australia

Open forum moderated by Jenni Dunn and Eric Jancauskas, Now for Future P/L - World Cafe on the questions: Where should the boundaries be between organised religion and government in Australia?

View 'Conference Outcomes' .

Beyond belief: the rise of religious fundamentalism (AR issue 72)

72nd conference, Sat 3 September 2005

Dante’s food and wine bar, Fitzroy

Rod Quantock, activist and comedian

Dr John Perkins, economist and writer

Brian McKinlay, historian and author

Waleed Aly, Islamic Council of Victoria

Dr Neil Levy, Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics

Poets – Anna Krien and Phil Norton

Live band – Khancoban

Feature film premiere – Heart of the Beholder by Darlene Lieblich

New developments in alternative energy strategy (AR issue 70)

71st conference, Sun 7 November 2004

RACV City Club, Melbourne

Dr Lu Aye, Melbourne University – Renewable energy in Australia

Kevin Poulton, researcher – Saving energy with daylight and electric light linked to photoelectric cells and dimmers

Associate Professor Frank Fisher, Monash University – Conservation mining

Michael O’Connell, electronics engineer – Energy efficiency at home

Dr Huntly G Higgins, writer – Sustainability

Materialism: our new culture? (AR issue 68)

70th conference, Sat 8 May 2004

RACV City Club, Melbourne

Rod Quantock, comedian – Is there a solution?

Ted Baillieu, Shadow Minister for Planning – Responsibility for the environment

Lindsay Tanner, MP and author – Are we concerned about our fellows?

Iraq: background briefing (AR issue 63)

69th conference, Sat & Sun 29-30 March 2003

Green Gables, Warburton

Brian McKinlay, author – US foreign policy: the neo-conservatives, the Christian far-right and Israel – a deadly alliance, and a threat to peace

David McKenzie, RSA Vice-President – What the rest of the world is saying

Allan Behm, Director, Value-Creating Policy Services Pty Ltd – Australian and Iraq: political courage or strategic folly?

Dr Nabil Sulaiman, Vice-Chairman, Australian Arabic Council – The role of academic society in Iraq

Peter Holding, political activist – The case against military intervention in Iraq, and the cost of non-intervention

The impact of Islam in the modern world:
Islam, its many facets (AR issue 62)

68th conference, Sat & Sun 13-14 April 2002

Green Gables, Warburton

Rodney Blackhirst, La Trobe University – Islam, its origins and impact on Western thought

Moh Syafii Anwar, University of Melbourne – Islam and politics in Indonesia (paper unavailable)

Dr Muhammad Kamal, University of Melbourne – Mu’tazilah: the rise of Islamic rationalism

Phoebe Ahmed, former participant in Muslim society – De-demonising Islam

Australia’s treatment of refugees (AR issue 60/61)

67th conference, Sat & Sun 6-7 October 2001

International House, Parkville

Grant Mitchell, Hotham Mission – The Swedish approach: a rational alternative

Greg Connellan, Liberty Victoria – The High Court challenge to the Manoora refugees (paper unavailable)

Andrew Markus, Monash University – Racism and refugees: an Australian tradition

Steven Columbus, Amnesty International – Irregular asylum seekers: rhetoric vs reality

Arnold Zable, writer & activist – In search of refuge

Tom Deubury, Refugee Action Collective – Which side are you on?

Lawrence Aboukhater, United Nations High Commission for Refugees – Australia: neutral sanctuary, or deputy of the region?

Euthanasia: the right to choose (AR issue 58/59)

Sat & Sun 7-8 April 2001

Green Gables, Warburton

Robert Richter QC, barrister – Euthanasia law: ambiguity, confusion and moral responsibility

Dr Philip Nitschke, euthanasia activist & Australian Humanitarian of the Year 1997 – Euthanasia: the right to choose

Dr Nicholas Tonti-Filippini – The killing taboo and the euthanasia debate (paper unavailable)

Ass Prof Helga Kuhse, Monash University – From merely ‘letting die’ to ‘helping die’: the case for voluntary euthanasia

The Australian Rationalist also published, in issue 57 , the proceedings of the conference Let the people speak – a symposium on defamation law reform organised by Free Speech Victoria, on 24 February 2001 in Melbourne. Speakers included:

Ray Cleary – Interchurch Gambling Taskforce

Ruth Hawley – Lorne Planning and Preservation League

Laurie Levy – Coalition Against Duck Shooting

Miles Lewis – Architect and writer

Mark Trengrove – Geelong Community Forum

Chris McLeod – Editorial Development Manager, Herald and Weekly Times

Ross Duncan – ABC Senior Lawyer

Rod Quantock – comedian and activist

Spirituality without religion (AR issue 54)

63rd conference, April 2000

Box Hill

Ian Robinson, RAA Chairman of the Board, Australian Rationalist Editor, freelance writer & teacher – Can an atheist have a religious experience?

Prof Raimond Gaita, Australian Catholic University & University of London – One way of speaking of the spiritual

Venerable Adrienne Howley, ordained in 1982 by His Holiness the Dalai Lama – Can you have Buddhism without religion?

Dick Gross, Mayor of the City of Port Phillip – Godless Gospel (paper unavailable, but see issue 65 )

Threats to democracy (AR issue 52)

62nd conference, 29-31 October 1999

Green Gables, Warburton

Ass Prof Sharon Beder, University of Wollongong – The corporate assault on democracy

Stephen Mayne, journalist, crikey.com.au – Kennett and the media: how it worked

Mary Crooks, The Purple Sage Project – Democracy in Victoria: who cares?

Cloning and human embryo research (AR issue 50)

61st conference, May 1999

Green Gables, Warburton

Martin Pera, Monash University – Medical research: cloning and embryonic stem cells

Ass Prof Julian Savulescu, Royal Children’s Hospital – Should we clone human beings?

David McCathy, Royal Children’s Hospital – Persons and their copies