Centre for EthicsPublic Lecture Program 2013

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Past Speakers

• Dr Tanveer Ahmed, Psychiatrist and Journalist• Julian Burnside AO, QC, Barrister, Human Rights Advocate and Author• Professor Philip Cam, Philosopher and Educationalist, University of NSW• Dr Leslie Cannold, Writer, Commentator, Ethicist, Researcher• The Reverend Tim Costello AO, CEO of World Vision Australia• Venerable Robina Courtin, Buddhist Scholar• Annabel Crabb, Political Commentator• Nick Farr-Jones AM, Former Wallabies captain, Business Leader, Motivational

Speaker• Gary Gach, Buddhist Scholar• Dr Simon Longstaff, Executive Director, St James Ethics Centre• Professor Jake Lynch, Director, Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, University

of Sydney• Dr Hugh Mackay, Psychologist, Social Researcher, Author• Dr Felicity McCutcheon, Head of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Melbourne

Grammar School• Dr Rod Pattenden, Chair of the Blake Prize for Religious Art• Dr David Seedhouse, Director of the Values Exchange• Professor Peter Singer, Professor of Bioethics, Princeton University• Dr Tim Sprod, Philosopher and Educationalist• Mark Tedeschi QC, NSW Senior Crown Prosecutor• Dr Peter Vardy, Philosophy and Educationalist, University of London

The Centre for Ethics at Newington College is

a forum for students, teachers, parents and

the wider community, to engage in discussion

of contemporary moral issues, beliefs and

values. Through its public lectures, workshops

and conferences, the Centre aims to promote

critical and creative thinking, inter-cultural

understanding and serious engagement with

the moral issues facing young Australians in

the 21st century.

At a Glance

Wednesday 6 March .........................................................................................Page 4 Spirituality in a GodleSS Country Associate Professor David Tacey (La Trobe University)

Wednesday 20 March .......................................................................................Page 5 WordS. WordS? #WordS: the nature of lanGuaGe in the diGital aGe Panel Discussion

Wednesday 1 May .............................................................................................Page 6 the ethiCS of JudGinG. What happenS When the laW ConfliCtS With your SenSe of ethiCS? The Hon. Michael Kirby AC CMG

Wednesday 22 May...........................................................................................Page 7 truth and KnoWledGe a one-day conference for students of the iB diploma Dr Peter Vardy (Philosopher and Educationalist)

Thursday 6 June.................................................................................................Page 8 feStival of ideaS dinner for neWinGton ColleGe parentS Michael Parker (Author of ethics: 101 Conversations to have with your Kids)

Wednesday 14 August ......................................................................................Page 9 the eduCational value of poSitive pSyCholoGy Associate Professor Lea Waters (University of Melbourne)

Wednesday, 9 October .................................................................................. Page 10 the Morality of the 21St Century Mind Baroness Susan Greenfield CBE (University of Oxford)

Wednesday 6 November ................................................................................ Page 11 the Good life: What MaKeS a life Worth livinG? Dr Hugh Mackay (Psychologist, Social Researcher, Author)

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Spirituality in a Godless CountryDr David Tacey (Associate Professor, La Trobe University)

it is difficult to generalise about religion and spirituality in Australia. Through one lens, we seem to be an aggressively secular nation, and appear to be going through a phase that is broadly agnostic or atheistic. Religious participation has reached an all-time low, and churches are preparing for worse times ahead. Through another lens, there seem to be signs of a spiritual renaissance, especially in the arts and music, and in popular attitudes to ‘spirituality’. Many Australians are spiritual but not churchy, and the national habit of not talking about ultimate values makes it difficult to see this other side of our national character.Dr David Tacey has written extensively on religion, health and society. His most recent book in this field is Gods and diseases: Making Sense of our physical and Mental Wellbeing (Sydney: Harper Collins, 2011).

WHEN Wednesday 6 March 2013, 7.00 pmWHERE Old Boys Lecture Theatre, Newington CollegeCOST Free of chargeCONTACT Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333

or contact@newington.nsw.edu.au to reserve your place

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Words. Words? #words: The Nature of Language in the Digital Age

Panel DiscussionLong before the “sweet prince” first uttered his famous retort and in the over four hundred years since, words have been our vital source for communication, understanding and awe. However, now as we hurtle at breakneck speed further into the Digital Age, are words losing their essential meaning and significance? For the launch of the 6th biennial Newington College Literature Festival, the Newington College Centre for Ethics will jointly host a panel discussion on the role of language in the world today. Miriam Cosic (journalist and author), Archie Fusillo (award winning children’s author), Alyson Simpson (Associate Professor, English and Literacy Education, The University of Sydney) and Judith Whelan (Saturday Editor of the Sydney Morning herald) will share their insights in this panel discussion.

WHEN Wednesday 20 March 2013, 7.00 pmWHERE Old Boys Lecture Theatre, Newington CollegeCOST Free of chargeCONTACT Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333

or contact@newington.nsw.edu.au to reserve your place

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Literature Festival 201

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The Ethics of Judging: What happens when the law conflicts with your sense of ethics?

The Hon Michael Kirby AC CMGMichael Kirby retired from the High Court of Australia in 2009 as Australia’s longest serving judge. He is an active and eminent contributor to the legal community in Australia and overseas. He has been a leader in law reform and human rights with the OECD, UNESCO, UN Human Rights Commission and the WHO Global Program on AiDS. He is a former world president of the international Commission of Jurists, and in 1993-1996 was the first Australian to serve as a Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Human Rights. Mr Kirby’s biography, paradoxes/principles by A.J. Brown was published in 2011.

WHEN Wednesday 1 May 2013, 7.00pmWHERE Old Boys Lecture Theatre, Newington CollegeCOST Free of chargeCONTACT Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333

or contact@newington.nsw.edu.au to reserve your place

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Truth and Knowledge A one-day conference for students of the iB Diploma

Speaker: Dr Peter Vardy (Philosopher and Educationalist)Topics: What does it mean to claim to know? Has reason got limits? Truth in Mathematics; Relativism and its Consequences; Boom, Bust and Crunch – Economics and the Current Financial Crisis.Dr Peter Vardy was Vice-Principal of Heythrop College, University of London from 1999 to 2011 and is well known internationally as an author and lecturer. He has written fifteen books, including ethics Matters (2012) and Good and Bad religion (2010).

WHEN Wednesday 22 May 2013, 9.30am–2.30pmWHERE Old Boys Lecture Theatre, Newington CollegeCOST $25CONTACT Wendy Rowe on 02 6227 4191, 0429 078 714

or mail@petraconferences.com

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Festival of Ideas Dinner for Newington ParentsSpeaker: Michael Parker

• The Dinner Party Conversation from Heaven (and someone else cooks)• Discuss the issues your son will be bringing home to you this year• issues chosen by spinning a chocolate wheel!

Would YOU torture a terrorism suspect to stop a bus blowing up? Would YOU genetically modify your children to give them a better chance? Would YOU loot a store after an earthquake to feed your family? Would YOU pick the Reisling or the Pinot Noir? Find out all this and more at the Festival of ideas Dinner.Michael Parker is author of ethics: 101 Conversations to have with your Kids.

WHEN Thursday 6 June 2013, 7.00pmWHERE Prescott Hall, Newington CollegeCOST $75 per headCONTACT Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333

or contact@newington.nsw.edu.au to reserve your place

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The Educational Value of Positive PsychologyAssociate Professor Lea Waters (University of Melbourne)

in this presentation, Associate Professor Waters will introduce the latest science from the field of positive psychology. She will showcase the ways in which positive psychology is being used in schools and will present a strong evidence base for how positive psychology can promote the wellbeing and academic performance of students.

Associate Professor Lea Waters is an academic and a registered psychologist who holds a PhD in Organisational Psychology. She is the Director of the Masters in School Leadership at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne and is an expert in the areas of Organisational Change, Organisational Psychology and Positive Psychology.

WHEN Wednesday 14 August 2013, 7.00pmWHERE Old Boys Lecture Theatre, Newington CollegeCOST Free of chargeCONTACT Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333

or contact@newington.nsw.edu.au to reserve your place

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The Morality of the 21st Century Mind: The impact of modern technologies on young peopleBaroness Susan Greenfield CBE, Professor of Pharmacology at Lincoln

College, University of OxfordBaroness Susan Greenfield is a British scientist, writer, broadcaster and member of the House of Lords. Specialising in the physiology of the brain, she researches the impact of 21st century technologies on the mind, how the brain generates consciousness and novel approaches to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Baroness Greenfield has written several non-specialist books on issues relating to the mind and brain for the general reader. She appears regularly on radio and television and frequently gives talks to the public and private sector.

WHEN Wednesday 9 October 2013, 6.00 pmWHERE Old Boys Lecture Theatre, Newington CollegeCOST Free of chargeCONTACT Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333

or contact@newington.nsw.edu.au to reserve your place

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The Good Life: What makes a life worth living?Dr Hugh Mackay, Psychologist, Social Researcher, Author

Hugh Mackay is a psychologist, social researcher and the author of fifteen books. in recognition of his pioneering work in social research, Dr Mackay has been awarded honorary doctorates by Charles Sturt, Macquarie, NSW and Western Sydney universities. in 2004, he received the University of Sydney’s alumni award for community service. Dr Mackay is an honorary professor of social science at the University of Wollongong, a former deputy chairman of the Australia Council, a former chairman of trustees of Sydney Grammar School, and was the inaugural chairman of the ACT government’s Community inclusion Board. He has been a newspaper columnist for over 25 years, and is a frequent guest on ABC radio. in this lecture, Dr Mackay will introduce his latest book, the Good life: What makes a life worth living (Macmillan, 2013).

WHEN Wednesday 6 November 2013, 7.00pmWHERE Old Boys Lecture Theatre, Newington CollegeCOST Free of chargeCONTACT Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333

or contact@newington.nsw.edu.au to reserve your place

WEB www.newington.nsw.edu.au EMAIL contact@newington.nsw.edu.au

200 Stanmore Road Stanmore NSW 2048

Tel 02 9568 9333 Fax 02 9568 9521

NEWINGTON COLLEGE CENTRE FOR ETHICS

Director: Dr Jeremy Hall Head of Philosophy and Religious Studies