Events

Laying Down the Lore: a survey of First Nations speculative, visionary and imaginative fiction with Dr Mykaela Saunders.

Hear from a leading voice in Indigenous storytelling at our annual Hugh D.T. Williamson Lecture.

Dr Mykaela Saunders, a Koori/Goori and Lebanese writer, researcher, and educator, will explore her groundbreaking research on First Nations speculative fiction. She’ll delve into seven key subgenres—fantasy, horror, climate fiction, science fiction, ghost stories & the gothic, futurism, and weird & slipstream fiction—and share how these genres allow First Nations writers and readers to reimagine and reflect on past, present, and future issues in inventive and unfamiliar ways.

Investigating how First Nations writers are employing speculative fiction to tell their stories, Dr Mykaela Saunders reads these texts through a cultural genre lens, not a Western one, though, of course there is some overlap. She takes a long view of First Nations storytelling traditions, rejecting the idea that speculative, visionary or imaginative fiction is new or novel.

Hosted by Matt Coffey, Deadly Science Pathways Program Manager at Walter & Eliza Hall Institute, Melbourne.

Please note Auslan interpretation is available on request, for more information see our Access page.

This event is proudly supported by The Hugh D.T. Williamson Foundation.   

Hear from University of Melbourne researchers about how they are contributing to helping build resilience and preparedness for climate change in both Australia and the Pacific Islands, and the scope for collective action to ensure all people in the region are better prepared for climate change.

This event is the first lecture of the Science at Melbourne Lecture Series for 2025.

The Science at Melbourne Lecture Series is the premier public event series from the Faculty of Science. The event program seeks to share our knowledge and love of science with the wider community, engaging them in current research and empowering them to ask questions and act for a better world. The series runs throughout the year covering scientific research, discoveries, and theories that play exciting or unexpected roles in shaping and advancing our society.