In Circular Quay for Vivid? Switch your brain on while you're at it. Sydney Opera House's forum for new ideas and open discussion, Homegrown Talks, focuses on First Nations this weekend — timely considering the event falls on the anniversary of the 1967 national referendum.
Held at the Opera House Playhouse on May 27, the talks will follow two distinct sessions. The first, titled 'Unfinished Paperwork: Recognition and Sovereignty', is a political discussion on the 1967 national referendum, which gave constitutional status to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. Panelists include Maori activist Tame Iti, 2015 NAIDOC Person of the Year Rosalie Kunoth-Monks OAM and Secretary of the Aboriginal Provisional Government Michael Mansell.
The second session is held immediately following, titled 'Open for Business: Diverse Economies in First Nations Communities' and looking at the public focus on the mining economy, despite the diverse businesses that exist within First Nations. The panel will include seven-time ARIA awarded songwriter David Bridie and Manus Island musician John Faunt, along with scholarly activists Marcia Langton AM and Amelia Telford.
The talks are sure to be hard hitters and mind-openers, worth every penny.