Ramsay Lectures
Living with Leviathans: Australia in a Multipolar Age
An exclusive lecture by Professor Michael Wesley
Professor Michael Wesley
What does it mean for Australia that it is part of the West, but geographically remote from it? Must we choose between our geography and our traditional alliances in this multipolar age?
For our second Ramsay Lecture for 2024, the Ramsay Centre is delighted to present an in-person lecture by leading strategic analyst and University of Melbourne Deputy Vice-Chancellor Global, Culture and Engagement Professor Michael Wesley titled: Living with Leviathans: Australia in a Multipolar Age.
As an island and former British colony in Oceania, with no territorial disputes or powerful near neighbours, Australia has always had a unique “strategic gaze”; one shaped as much by how the world looks from the capitals of the culturally congruent great powers the country has formed alliances with as by how it looks from Canberra. Now, in a multipolar age where India as well as China have joined the United States in the first rank of global powers, this strategic sensibility has been challenged, without being overthrown.
In his lecture, Professor Wesley presents a blend of historical context and contemporary insights to explain our place in a world with several great but no dominant powers. He highlights the necessity for Australia to adapt diplomatically, culturally, and strategically to new realities, charting a safe course between the Leviathans of the international system.
Please join us for this stimulating discussion about the future global order and Australia’s place in it.
Professor Michael Wesley
Professor Michael Wesley is one of Australia’s foremost foreign policy and Asia-Pacific security experts. Before joining the University of Melbourne, he was Dean of the College of Asia and the Pacific at the Australian National University. He has also held positions as the Executive Director of the Lowy Institute for International Policy, Director of the Griffith Asia Institute at Griffith University, and Assistant Director-General for Transnational Issues at the Office of National Assessments.
As Deputy Vice-Chancellor Global, Culture and Engagement at the University of Melbourne, Professor Wesley provides leadership across the University, with overall responsibility for strategic guidance and expert advice on internationalisation and global engagement. He is also Professor of Politics at the University of Melbourne. His research and writing focus on Australian foreign policy and the international affairs of Asia and the Pacific.
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