Bright future for revived Adelaide Festival of Ideas at university

The revived Adelaide Festival of Ideas has two new homes, at the University and as part of new winter event Illuminate.

A reborn Adelaide Festival of Ideas will explore the theme Bright Future next month with speakers including broadcaster Stan Grant, feminist writers Clementine Ford and Taryn Brumfitt, and landscape gardener Costa Georgiadis.

Yuwallarai journalist and Aboriginal advocate Kirstie Parker, social entrepreneur and 2021 Young Australian of the Year Isobel Marshall and the SA Museum’s head of humanities Professor John Carty are the guest curators for this year’s program.

Adelaide Festival Of Ideas guest curators John Carty, Isobel Marshall and Kirstie Parker at the University of Adelaide. Picture: Dean Martin

Chefs Matt Stone and Ben Shewry, and former AFL player turned artist Gavin Wanganeen will also be among 60 participants in 27 free and ticketed panels, forums, lectures and events from July 15-18, presented in partnership with the University of Adelaide.

The program is also part of the new Illuminate Adelaide winter festival.

“I’m looking forward to exposing festival audiences to First Nations people’s perspectives and world views, and having rich discussions about ways to better embed them in narratives and actions,” Ms Parker said.

Fellow curator Ms Marshall said the Festival of Ideas had been “reinvigorated to give a stage to the ideas, conversations and issues that our society needs to engage with right now”.

Among the sessions, Dr Norman Swan and Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor will present Covid Positive, looking at benefits that have come out of the pandemic.

Matt Stone will also serve up a multi-course banquet for the Adelaide Festival of Ideas Dinner.

Full program and tickets at illuminateadelaide.com