Rethinking the Rules

Each week, rapidly changing news comes out of the United States – Australia’s closest ally. From introducing sweeping tariffs to mass deportations, from leaking military actions to defunding research bodies, the consequences of the Trump administration are crashing around the world.

So what does this mean for us? In conversation with Dr Richard Denniss, Dr Emma Shortis draws on her extensive research on the Australia/US relationship and her recent experience in North Carolina and Washington in the dying days of the 2024 presidential election campaign to explain what the current situation is and discuss what Australia can do to choose its own path towards prosperity and security. 

After America: Australia and the New World Order will be available for purchase at the event, with a book signing from 7:00 pm after the event finishes. You can also buy a copy in advance via The Australia Institute website.

SPEAKERS:
Dr Emma Shortis - Director of International and Security Affairs, The Australia Institute
Dr Emma Shortis is Director of the Australia Institute’s International & Security Affairs Program. Emma is a historian and writer, focused on the history and politics of the United States and its role in the world. She uses her expertise in history to interpret and explain what is happening in the world today, and what it means for Australia, in a compassionate and accessible way. Emma’s first book, Our Exceptional Friend: Australia’s Fatal Alliance with the United States, was published by Hardie Grant in 2021. She writes regularly for Australian and international outlets, and appears regularly on Australian radio and television.

Dr Richard Denniss - Executive Director, The Australia Institute

Dr Richard Denniss is the Executive Director at The Australia Institute. He is a prominent Australian economist, author and public policy commentator. Formerly a regular columnist for Australian Financial Review and The Guardian, he has published six books, including Econobabble, Curing Affluenza, Dead Right: How Neoliberalism Ate Itself and What Comes Next? and Big: The Role of the State in the Modern Economy.

ABOUT AFTER AMERICA:

After America: Australia and the new world order | Vantage Point Issue 1

“Through the turbulence of recent times, Emma Shortis has seen clearly and been right.” – Don Watson

“Emma Shortis is especially well-placed to describe the consequences for Australia of the restoration of Donald Trump.” – Nick Bryant

Is Australia's Security at risk in today's unstable world? What does a second Trump Presidency means for our future?

A Trump presidency is presenting unprecedented challenges in trade, foreign relations and defence policy. US expert, Dr Emma Shortis, explores what it means for Australia and what next steps governments can take to ensure safety, security and prosperity locally.

Australian political leaders have bent the knee at the altar of American global leadership for decades, placing the ANZUS treaty at the centre of the nation’s security. AUKUS has become the latest symbol of strategic solidarity. For Australia’s governments, of whatever political persuasion, America continues to define the global rules-based order.

Now that the American people have elected Donald Trump as the forty-seventh president, how will his presidency affect Australia's foreign policy, trade, climate action and approach to human rights? More importantly, will Australia be able to act in its own interests, or will it simply defer to Trump’s idea of America?

Dr Emma Shortis draws on her long-standing research on America's place in the world, her discussions with some of Australia's most prominent policy-makers and commentators and her experience in America in the final days of the election campaign, to develop a picture of how the world is changing with a second Trump presidency and what choices Australia has in determining its own future.