Ethics Centre events
The Advocacy area of St James Ethics Centre has organised a number of events, including lectures and symposia, since the inception of the Centre. Some examples of these events are below.
Learn more about other upcoming ethics-related events.
Contents:
Lectures & symposia
St James Ethics Centre has convened a number of major lectures and symposia featuring high-profile Australian and international speakers. These have been predominately held in Sydney, however, some of these lectures have also been held in Melbourne.
The Centre does not currently organise lectures of symposia on an annual basis. Such events now take place when the Ethics Centre has the funding and capacity.
View a list of all of the Lectures and Symposia which have been conducted by the Ethics Centre to date, incuding publication details.
Annual Lectures
The aim of the Annual Lecture was to contribute to public thinking and debate on ethical questions and the ethical dimension of our public life in society. It is hoped that these lectures might stimulate a revival of the language of ethics and the formation of a more serious ethical climate.
The most recent Annual Lecture was St James Ethics Centre's Tenth Anniversary Annual Lecture in November 2000. Wisdom and Hope was delivered by the Right Honourable Sir Zelman Cowan AK.
Learn more about our Annual Lecture publications, including how to obtain copies.
Lawyers' Lecture
The Lawyers' Lecture provides an opportunity for the legal profession to initiate a conversation which the Ethics Centre hopes will stimulate debate about how the profession might realise the best that it is capable of for the ultimate benefit of society.
Lawyers' Lectures are free and open to all members of the public.
The 2005 Lawyers' Lecture was presented by Bret Walker SC, a practising Sydney Barrister and former President of The NSW Bar Association. He addressed the topic Lawyers and Money. The publication of this Lecture is available on our website - read Lawyers and Money.
Ethics circles
In the ancient world philosophy was a public pursuit - often the product of a random encounter between citizens going about their business, whatever it may be. More recently, philosophy has mostly been developed inside the academy.
So, what would it be like if philosophers once again took to the street - creating a public space in which ideas can be explored?
St James Ethics Centre occasionally provides such informal opportunities for people of all walks of life to come together in a public space to discuss ethics and ethical or philosophical issues. A circle of chairs is set up in the street and passers-by are invited to talk to a philosopher: the Ethics Centre's Executive Director, Dr Simon Longstaff.
The discussions which generally take place at these ethics circles are rich and dynamic and see a diverse array of views and stories aired and discussed.
These events are currently held on an erratic basis. Details will appear on our general ethics-related events page should dates be set in future.