Events

The University of Melbourne and the City of Melbourne are proud to partner with the Sydney Peace Foundation to celebrate the awarding of the prestigious Sydney Peace Prize to the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

Please join us to hear from Alyawarre woman Pat Anderson AO, Cobble Cobble woman Professor Megan Davis, and Guugu Yimidhirr man Noel Pearson, who worked tirelessly with the community to deliver the Uluru Statement from the Heart in May 2017. With a referendum on the Voice due before the next federal election, this event is an opportunity to learn more about the Statement’s call to build a better future by establishing a First Nations Voice to Parliament enshrined in the Constitution, and a Makarrata Commission for the purpose of treaty making and truth-telling.

The evening will include:

• A keynote address from Professor Megan Davis
• A panel discussion with Pat Anderson AO, Noel Pearson and Professor Megan Davis facilitated by broadcaster Jon Faine AM
• Music from University of Melbourne Indigenous musicians Jonathan Watling and Shauntai Batzke

Further information

About the Uluru Statement from the Heart

“The Uluru Statement from the Heart is an invitation to the Australian people from First Nations Australians. It asks Australians to walk together to build a better future by establishing a First Nations Voice to Parliament enshrined in the Constitution, and the establishment of a Makarrata Commission for the purpose of treaty making and truth-telling.”

The Uluru Statement is the culmination of 13 Regional Dialogues – a historic deliberative consultation process with 1200 First Nations people – on the question of what constitutional recognition means for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

At the Uluru Constitutional Convention in 2017, delegates endorsed the consensus of the Dialogues for a strategic and sequenced reform proposal: Voice, Treaty and Truth. As the Uluru Statement sets out, the first step is a Voice to Parliament, enshrined in the Australian Constitution.

A First Nations Voice, protected by the Constitution, will mean Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have a say in the laws and policies that affect them. It also means that agreement-making and truth-telling can finally be done on equal terms. With Voice, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can begin the journey of coming together after a struggle – Makarrata.

More information: https://ulurustatement.org

About the Sydney Peace Prize

The Sydney Peace Prize is Australia’s annual international prize for peace. It was established in 1998 to honour the world’s most dedicated changemakers and to encourage people in Australia and abroad to think about the meaning of peace, justice and alternatives to violence.

Sydney Peace Prize recipients represent some of the world’s most effective peacemakers who champion solutions to the most urgent global challenges. The Prize intends to recognise these achievements and foster public debate on global issues. Previous recipients include the Me Too Movement, Black Lives Matter, Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

The Sydney Peace Prize is sponsored by the Sydney Peace Foundation, based at the University of Sydney. The Prize partners with City of Sydney and impact partners include the Fred Hollows Foundation, University of Sydney Law School, the University of Melbourne and City of Melbourne.

More information: https://sydneypeacefoundation.org.au/sydney-peace-prize/

School of Physics UoM and Royal Society of Victoria Presents - Validation of Einstein’s General Relativity: the centennial of an Australian scientific achievement

In 1922, the path of a total solar eclipse crossed the central part of Australia, presenting the first opportunity to validate Eddington’s claims that Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity was a ‘representation of nature’. Expeditions were sent from different states in Australia to observe the eclipse, involving both Australian and international scientists. The scientific results were a resounding confirmation of Einstein’s theory.

A distinguished panel will present details of the events surrounding the eclipse in 1922: the expeditions, the scientific data and the implications. Some of the most recent scientific results that directly reflect this new understanding of the nature of gravity will also be presented.

The panel will include Professors David Jamieson, Rachel Webster, Andrew Melatos and Emeritus Professor Brian Finlayson.

Note: 5.30PM refreshments at foyer outside B117 Glyn Davis Building (133 - Melbourne School of Design),  followed by a panel presentation and discussion at 6PM