Today some 30 per cent of Australia’s population was born overseas, double the proportion in the US and the UK. How has Australia managed to add so many people so quickly and still maintain social cohesion? And how might our immigration mix change in the decades ahead?
In this special Ramsay event, our first for 2025, we examine the critical role immigration has played in Australia’s development and how it is likely to continue to define us in the 21st century.
Leading social commentator and demographer Bernard Salt delivers the main address, discussing changes to our demography, and the political and cultural history of Australian immigration, from the gold-rush, to Federation, to the post-war era, to today. Eminent historian and journalist James Curran then adds additional insights in a panel discussion moderated by Centre CEO Dr Martin Fahy.