Uni talks booked in for literary fest

AS Australian Catholic University seeks to increase delivery of arts, humanities, and social science courses at Ballarat’s Aquinas Campus, staff are also aiming to boost their contribution to the region’s cultural life.

As part of Clunes Booktown Festival later this month, ACU Ballarat will be leading a series of talks from leading researchers in the old town courthouse.

Topics covered will include how to write about the histories of refugee children, Soviet history from a post-Soviet space, LGBTIQA+ non-fiction, fashion and femininity, stories of Chinese people on the goldfields and more.

Senior lecturer in history at ACU Ballarat, Benjamin Mountford, is coordinating the initiative and said he and his colleagues are proud to support one of the biggest cultural festivals in regional Victoria.

“Literature, writing, and storytelling are all important to teaching, and the festival is a way to engage the community in what we do, and a chance to demonstrate our commitment to the arts in the Ballarat region,” he said.

“We’ve got a diverse group of researchers who are historians and scholars, coming to speak about their latest research, and how that can shed light on the big questions, and practical things, in our day-to-day lives in regional communities.”

Professor Sheila Fitzpatrick, Dr Kristie Flannery, Professor Noah Riseman, Professor Joy Damousi, Dr Lorinda Cramer, and Dr Sarah Bendall are just some of the panellists booked in.

Clunes Booktown Festival program director Sue Beal said Creative Clunes’ partnership with ACU is a valued one.

“ACU are increasing their commitment to the arts within their curriculum where a lot of universities are decreasing their arts courses,” she said. “We’re thrilled to be involved when they’re in process of doing that.

“Their sponsorship is a cash sponsorship, which for a tiny organisation like ours, is of an enormous benefit, and they’ve put so much time into preparing an amazing program while working really closely with us.

“It is a real partnership, and we’ve benefited from their efforts enormously.”

The festival is set for Saturday, 25, and Sunday, 26 March.