Richard Holden | Alan Kohler

Australia, a land of sweeping plains, has one of the lowest population densities on the planet. So, how did we end up with a housing shortage? 

In conversation with economist and author Richard Holden, veteran finance journalist Alan Kohler’s new Quarterly Essay, The Great Divide: Australia’s Housing Crisis and How to Fix It, investigates where things went wrong at the start of the 21st century with escalating property prices leading to a rental crisis, a dearth of public housing and a mortgage crunch.  

This event is presented by the Sydney Writers' Festival and supported by UNSW Sydney. 

Richard Holden | Alan Kohler
Australia, a land of sweeping plains, has one of the lowest population densities on the planet. So, how did we end up with a housing shortage?&nbsp; In conversation with economist and author Richard Holden, veteran finance journalist Alan Kohler&rsquo;s new&nbsp;Quarterly Essay,&nbsp;The Great Divide: Australia&rsquo;s Housing Crisis and How to Fix It, investigates where things went wrong at the start of the 21st century with escalating property prices leading to a rental crisis, a dearth of public housing and a mortgage crunch. &nbsp; This event is presented by the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.swf.org.au/" data-cke-saved-href="https://www.swf.org.au/">Sydney Writers' Festival</a> and supported by UNSW Sydney.&nbsp;

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Ideas is a thought-provoking program of events and digital content from the globe's leading thinkers, authors and artists.

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Ideas is a thought-provoking program of events and digital content from the globe's leading thinkers, authors and artists.

UNSW Centre for Ideas

An initiative of UNSW Sydney, the Centre for Idea…

UNSW Centre for Ideas | All Episodes

The Housing Crisis with Alan Kohler (Re-release)

Since its 2025 publication, Laurie Woolever’s Care and Feeding was an immediate New York Times bestseller, tracing her path from small-town childhood to working with two of the most powerful men in the food business, chefs Mario Batali and Anthony Bourdain. The book’s success is no surprise. Laurie doesn't sugarcoat the consequences of a life where desire has been met with opportunity in equal measure. She weaves her story deftly, capturing the essence of New York city during the golden era of the 1990s and 2000s food celebrity without downplaying the darker side of indulgence and the treatment of women in the male-dominated food industry. 

Hear Laurie alongside Good Weekend senior writer and former editor Katrina Strickland as they discuss the love language of food, living life without guardrails and learning to curb her appetites.

Since its 2025 publication, Laurie Woolever&rsquo;s Care and Feeding was an immediate New York Times bestseller, tracing her path from small-town childhood to working with two of the most powerful men in the food business, chefs Mario Batali and Anthony Bourdain. The book&rsquo;s success is no surprise. Laurie doesn't sugarcoat the consequences of a life where desire has been met with opportunity in equal measure. She weaves her story deftly, capturing the essence of New York city during the golden era of the 1990s and 2000s food celebrity without downplaying the darker side of indulgence and the treatment of women in the male-dominated food industry.&nbsp;
Hear Laurie alongside Good Weekend senior writer and former editor Katrina Strickland as they discuss the love language of food, living life without guardrails and learning to curb her appetites.

Laurie Woolever: The gluttony of life

As one of the world’s leading researchers in artificial intelligence, Toby Walsh has been awarded the Humbolt Research Award and elected as a fellow of the Association for the Advancement of AI. In The Shortest History of AI, Toby outlines the six key ideas for understanding artificial intelligence today. 

Hear Toby trace the origins of artificial intelligence in science and culture and predict where the technology is heading in the future. 

This event was presented by the Sydney Writers' Festival and supported by UNSW Sydney.

As one of the world&rsquo;s leading researchers in artificial intelligence, Toby Walsh has been awarded the Humbolt Research Award and elected as a fellow of the Association for the Advancement of AI. In&nbsp;The Shortest History of AI, Toby outlines the six key ideas for understanding artificial intelligence today.&nbsp;
Hear Toby trace the origins of artificial intelligence in science and culture and predict where the technology is heading in the future.&nbsp;
This event was presented by the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.swf.org.au/" data-cke-saved-href="https://www.swf.org.au/">Sydney Writers' Festival&nbsp;</a>and supported by UNSW Sydney.

6 things you need to know about AI with Toby Walsh (Re-release)

Programs like ChatGPT have become ubiquitous with AI, promising to kick start the next industrial evolution. But the scale of resources needed to support AI are staggering, with the cost largely being levied on the marginalised. From energy demands eclipsing whole cities, to labour exploitation in the global south, this behaviour bodes poorly for an equitable future.

In Empire of AI, award-winning investigative journalist Karen Hao unpacks the rise of OpenAI and their race for global dominance – prompting the question, what will it take to reign in this laissez-faire approach to growth? Answers are needed and UNSW legal expert Mimi Zou is exploring the possibilities surrounding the regulation of AI, along with UNSW neuroscientist Joel Pearson who is scrutinising the human impact of AI at an individual and societal level.

Hear Chief Scientist of UNSW AI Toby Walsh in conversation with Karen Hao and then Mimi Zou and Joel Pearson on what it will take to usher in a sustainable, equitable AI revolution.

Programs like ChatGPT have become ubiquitous with AI, promising to kick start the next industrial evolution. But the scale of resources needed to support AI are staggering, with the cost largely being levied on the marginalised. From energy demands eclipsing whole cities, to labour exploitation in the global south, this behaviour bodes poorly for an equitable future.
In&nbsp;Empire of AI, award-winning investigative journalist Karen Hao unpacks the rise of OpenAI and their race for global dominance &ndash; prompting the question, what will it take to reign in this laissez-faire approach to growth? Answers are needed and UNSW legal expert Mimi Zou is exploring the possibilities surrounding the regulation of AI, along with UNSW neuroscientist Joel Pearson who is scrutinising the human impact of AI at an individual and societal level.
Hear Chief Scientist of UNSW AI Toby Walsh in conversation with Karen Hao and then Mimi Zou and Joel Pearson on what it will take to usher in a sustainable, equitable AI revolution.

The Housing Crisis with Alan Kohler (Re-release)

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