Imagining what it is like to be someone other than yourself is at the core of our humanity, it is the essence of compassion and it is the beginning of morality.

– Ian McEwan, Novelist

Empathy is the imaginative act of stepping into the shoes of another person and looking at the world from their perspective. It’s seemingly on everyone’s lips – from the Dalai Lama, Angela Merkel and Barack Obama, to our own Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Yet, we are simultaneously witnessing a global refugee crisis, the seemingly unending threat of global conflict, and the continued rise of individualism in western society.

Are we as individuals and as a community failing to meet our empathic potential? How can we expand the limits of our empathy to meet current and future social challenges? How might empathy transform our lives and our societies?

This major event will feature a diverse panel of prominent Australians from the media, arts, business, sport and government. Led by cultural thinker and internationally acclaimed empathy expert Roman Krznaric, we will explore key issues in modern Australian society and how we might turn our empathic potential into a powerful tool for positive impact.

We will hear insights from prominent Australians and learn practical ways to use empathy as a tool for change in our lives and in Australian society. Between panel discussions, audience members will have the opportunity to discuss key issues and ideas raised by the panel. Join us for an ambitious conversation about empathy and the future of Australia.

Empathy In Australia is presented in association with The Guardian, Wired For Wonder, The Conversation and Dumbo Feather. Proudly supported by Eventbrite.