Big Ideas

When writer Hiroko Yoda's mother died, she found herself unmoored. They'd argued a fair bit over the years — as daughters and their mothers can — some things were unresolved. So now what? She found herself setting off an odyssey to understand Japan's surprisingly flexible, practical, pluralistic approach to spirituality, its infinite number of spiritual beings, its affection for angry ghosts, and the curious possibility of embracing belief and non-belief at the same time. She poured it all into a beautiful book called 8 Million Ways to Happiness. Yes, 8 Million! How can that be!? Find out in this poignant conversation she shares with Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell on peace, grief, meaning, and overcoming the mountains within.
This event was recorded live at the 2026 Melbourne Writers Festival. To explore more of the festival's events and talks, visit mwf.com.au.
Speaker
Hiroko YodaTokyo-based author, translator, folklorist, and certified kimono consultantAuthor, Eight Million Ways to Happiness: Find your own way to inner peace with the wisdom of Japan (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2026)

Writers have access to endless worlds, perspectives and experiences — both real and imagined. So what should they do with that privilege? Do they have a responsibility to try to change the world? To cultivate empathy and understanding? Or to simply bear witness?
The Melbourne Writers Festival closing night address was recorded on Sunday 10 May 2026.
Speakers:
Professor Tony BirchAuthor, The White Girl, Women and Children, Ghost River, Blood and moreBoisbouvier Chair in Australian Literature at the University of MelbourneHistorian, activist, teacher, long distance runner
Michael Williams (host)Editor, The Monthly magazineHost, Read This podcast

What if the way we think about rivers as resources to be allocated, infrastructure to be managed, problems to be solved, is just fundamentally wrong. What if they are in fact living entities with rights? From Indigenous law to ecological soundscapes to frontline water justice, this panel of Indigenous leaders, scientists and artists share stories, sounds and strategies for protecting and changing your relationships with waterways.
River Listening was recorded live at the annual 2026 WOMADelaide festival, produced and presented as part of their Planet Talks program, held on the traditional lands of the Guarna people.
Listen to Big Ideas – Students win fight for climate justice before the world's highest court
Speakers
Dr Dan HikuroaMāori earth systems scientist, Associate Professor at the University of Auckland, UNESCO NZ Commissioner for Culture
Grant RigneyNgarrindjeri man, current Deputy Chair and past Chair of the Murray Lower Darling Rivers Indigenous Nations (MLDRIN)
Dr Leah BarclayAward-winning sound artist, researcher and environmental activist
Jo Shulman (host)CEO of the Environmental Defenders Office

Forget climate change, forget nuclear Armageddon, did you know that the universe is unravelling? It's probably aeons away, but according to physics, dark energy could end us all. Join award winning theoretical physicist Tony Padilla at this Sophia Club live philosophy event, to explore the torrid birth of the early universe, traverse the twisted hearts of black holes, skip through the harmonic vibrations of string theory, and ponder how, according to physics, it all might one day end.
This event was recorded for the Sophia Club live philosophy in London on 21 April 2026.
Speakers:
Tony PadillaProfessor of physics, University of NottinghamAssociate Director of the Nottingham Centre of GravityHost, NumberfileAuthor, Fantastic numbers and where to find them: A Journey to the Edge of Physics
Sally DaviesEditorial lead for the Sophia ClubEditor, AEON magazine
Music by Oliver CoatesCellist, film composer and electronic music producer (Pillion, Aftersun and more)

Need a mid-Winter pick me up? Well this is the conversation for you!  You could call Astrid Jorgensen a choir conductor, but that really doesn’t capture what she does and the global phenomenon she’s created. On any one night, anywhere in the world, you’ll find Astrid on a stage in front of a few thousand people singing their hearts out. She’s the founder, the composer, and the host of Pub Choir — which has been described as the world’s biggest one night stand in song. But for a while there she could have become a nun. Yes, there's so much more to her story, and she joins Big Ideas' host Natasha Mitchell to tell it.
This event, organised by Northern Books, was held at the Fitzroy Town Hall in Naarm/Melbourne.
This episode was first aired on the 10 December 2025.
Speaker
Astrid JorgensenFounder and conductor of Pub ChoirAuthor, Average At Best (Simon and Schuster Australia, 2025)
Further information
How Astrid Jorgensen turned a suburban pub choir into a worldwide musical phenomenon (Australian Story/ABC News, 2025)
Watch Australian Story episode about Astrid on Youtube (2025)