This discussion will feature contemporary case studies of cultural heritage destruction from abroad and locally, including recent damage to the National Museum of Sudan. However, it is not just conflict scenarios, the conversation will cover case studies of damage due to earthquake and natural damage and wilful damage. We will also consider how sites of historical trauma become historical sites themselves, and how they are reflected in contemporary perspectives.

With presentations by Dr Julien Cooper (Macquarie University), Professor Richard Mackay (Australia ICOMOS and Deakin University) and Dr Charlotte Feakins (University of Sydney), this wide-ranging talk will take us around the world and examine a range of issues around the fight to preserve the past, international obligations to protect historic sites and traditions and what we may be able to contribute from Australia.

The History Council of NSW and the Chau Chak Wing Museum, and the Vere Gordon Childe Centre at the University of Sydney are pleased to present the 2025 History Now series.

The History Council of NSW has been supported in 2025 by the NSW Government through a grant from Create NSW.

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In this episode of History Now 2025, the rising genre of History Podcasts is explored in a discussion between Geraldine Fela and Leigh Boucher from Macquarie University, chaired by Craig Barker from the University of Sydney.

In the ever-expanding podcast media universe, history is a significant player. Podcasts led by historians regularly feature in ‘top-ten’ download lists, and there is clearly an appetite amongst podcast listeners to hear experts interpret and make meaning from the past. The contrast with declining trends in book sales by academic historians could not be sharper. Many within the discipline are understandably excited about the potential of podcasts to reach new audiences. However, podcasting-the-past also poses big challenges.

Geraldine Fela and Leigh Boucher discuss what possibilities working in this form have opened up for historical interpretation, and how they've reached new audiences with their work. What, if anything, did they have to ‘give up’ in the move from written history to aural storytelling, and has this been a comfortable transition?

The History Now 2025 podcast series is brought to you by the History Council of NSW in partnership with the Chau Chak Wing Museum and the Vere Gordon Childe Centre at the University of Sydney.

This series has been supported in 2025 by the NSW Government through a grant from Create NSW.

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This conversation is part of the HCNSW podcast series "First Nations Conversations" that looks at First Nations histories of resilience, survival, and resistance.

This episode of "First Nations Conversations" is the recording of the 2025 History Week panel “Living Histories: First Nations Creatives and Researchers in Conversation” which was presented at the Vere Gordon Childe Centre at the University of Sydney, in partnership with the History Council of NSW and the Powerful Stories Network. The panel, chaired by Jadzia Stronell, was in conversation with Lily-Thomas McKnight, Samantha Snedden, and Amy Davidson.

In this session, they reflect on how cultural, family, and community histories are woven into their work as creatives and researchers. Together, they ask: How can history live beyond the archive? And what does it mean to research and create in ways that honour intergenerational memory?

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