Reclaiming Democracy: A New Vision for Australia’s Political Future
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Article Summary
- The recent ‘Reclaiming Democracy Together’ project was launched to address the growing fracture and structural disconnect within Australia’s modern political landscape.
- A panel of experts examined pathways for democratic renewal, emphasising the critical need for decolonisation, the rule of law, ecological stewardship, and honest truth-telling regarding First Nations history.
- Concluding that democracy is a fragile system requiring constant maintenance, the speakers urged citizens to combat complacency through diverse, active participation to secure a more just future.
By Daniel Vlahek
At midday on May 9th 1901, the words of the Duke of Cornwall rang through Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building, opening Australia’s first federal parliament.
His address, a celebration of the unification of Australia’s six colonies, was widely supported across the continent, with its aim to advance the welfare of citizens and strengthen national ties.
Today, 125 years on, Australia’s political landscape looks very different.
While our Federation promised collective progress, today’s system is increasingly becoming fractured, driven by short-termism, political donations, and lobbying focused on corporate interests rather than its citizens.
On May 9th, 2026, the organisers of Conversations at the Crossroads launched their ‘Reclaiming Democracy Together’ project in front of 1700 people in Melbourne.
Moderated by Joseph Camilleri, Professor Emeritus at La Trobe University, the conversation brought together a panel of respected speakers to discuss and deliberate on how we can reclaim our democracy.
Decolonisation Of Our Politics
John Keene, Professor of Politics at the University of Sydney, opened the speaker panel in front of a sold-out Melbourne Town Hall, proposing two “trouble-making, outrageous thoughts” about democracy, empire and decolonisation.
Recounting the opening of Australia’s federal parliament, John highlighted the dual nature of Federation, or as he called it, having a “Jekyll and Hyde” quality; being both oddly imperialistic yet democratic in the same vein.
This event marked the “first thought “of decolonisation in the Australian public, the desire to unshackle the chains of the British Empire.
Keane’s second, less “outrageous” thought: a necessity for Australia to loosen its links to a crumbling US empire, strengthening its own institutions and relations with neighbouring countries.
“Our democracy’s dependence on a crumbling American empire requires us to, once again, do a second decolonisation of the spirit and substance of our democracy,” he said.
True democracy is more than holding periodic elections, as Keane highlighted.
Rather, it involves mending relations with our Indigenous people, regulating foreign influence, lobbying and consolidated media interests, and nurturing and protecting cultural and public dialogue as a right.
Human Rights: A Keystone of Democracy
Professor Gillian Triggs, international lawyer and former President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, continued the conversation, highlighting the need to uphold the international rule of law to safeguard democracy.
“In the 20th century, we’ve seen a decline in respect for the vital elements of democracy, but especially a decline in respect for the rule of law,” she noted.
Tapping into the history of the UN Charter’s founding, Triggs reminded the audience of the vision and declarations made by the then-member states on international peace and human rights.
Triggs acknowledged that the world is a different place right now, with powerful states retreating from international obligations and multilateralism.
Whilst political figureheads have expressed the end of the “rules-based international order”, Triggs said.
“It remains true today that the international rules of law generally remain respected…mainly, because it’s in our mutual interest to do so.”
She added that Australia is often cited as one of the best examples of upholding the rule of law and its democratic institutions, but we are not perfect, particularly in protecting people fleeing persecution.
Beyond investing in education and civil society, Triggs argued that Australia must legislate a federal human rights act. She proposed that this would serve not merely as a procedural “due process” measure, but as a vital commitment to restoring our shared humanity.
How Will History Judge Us?
Environmentalist, author, and social entrepreneur Natalie Kyricou OAM opened with a sharp, yet darkly comedic, view of the “rules and systems” that govern society today.
Kyricou offered a biting critique of our current systems, identifying a profound paradox: despite our vast knowledge, we continue to act dysfunctionally.
She challenged the audience to consider why – given the stakes – we remain “curiously undecided” about the fundamental requirements of keeping our planet habitable and our people alive.
Kyricou’s core argument was that our economic, political, and social structures are essentially constructs – systems that persist only because we permit them to.
“Human and environmental suffering persist not because we lack alternatives but because we allow them to remain profitable, socially tolerated, and politically viable,” she argued.
She insisted, however, that democratic decay is not inevitable; instead, she suggested that nature itself could serve as our teacher.
By looking at the complex, cooperative systems found in forests, beehives, and elephant herds, we could relearn the democratic virtues required to actively shape our world, rather than merely observing its decline.
Just as nature has inspired our most ingenious technological breakthroughs – from high-speed trains to Velcro- we can draw on the wisdom of penguins, ravens, honeybees, forests, and elephants.
These models of cooperative systems can reteach us democratic virtues and governance, helping us, as she emphasised, to actively shape our world rather than simply observing it.
Truth-Telling as the Path Forward
Indigenous Leader, educator and advocate for cultural knowledge and institutional change, Professor Mark Rose spoke candidly about “unfinished business” that weaved identity, political structures, and the need for constant truth-telling.
Recalling his time as an educator, he explained that our classrooms are the vanguard for moulding democratic principles.
“I’ve fought to move education from being oppressor to liberator,” Rose said, challenging the audience to think differently about the topic of dispossession.
Instead of it being a matter of what was taken from First Nations people, he says all Australians lose when their historical and cultural ties are cut from the land they call home.
He also reflected on the structure and processes of our political system, or as he called it, “the vagaries of Westminster”, where a new government comes to lead parliament every few years,
He also scrutinised the mechanics of our political system, which he described as “the vagaries of Westminster.”
With new governments taking power every few years, he warned of the constant risk that First Nations’ progress is undermined by shifting political priorities.
“That is why the gap is not being shut,” Rose said, noting that meaningful reconciliation requires a commitment that transcends three-yearly election cycles.
Learning into the 60,000-year history that First Nations have with Australia, Rose remarks that this should be a unifying strength for our Nation, one that is “cradled in both identity and aspiration”.
By walking alongside First Nations that honours Country, respects history and willingly engages in the unfinished work before us, can we truly reclaim democracy.
Challenge to Democracy
Completing the panel of speakers was Wendy Brown – political theorist and author of ‘In the Ruins of Neoliberalism’.
She spoke from Europe on the erosion of democratic institutions through liberal governance. Whilst liberalism has strengthened individual rights, it has fostered a “hyperindividual culture”, she argued.
Guided by the invisible hand of the market, citizens have become consumers, and public goods have been transmuted into commodities.
This economic transformation has slowly weakened public institutions at a systems level, reducing political agency to individual choice.
Brown argued that this transformation exposes a critical flaw in liberalism: by prioritising private property and competition, it effectively severs our connection to both nature and one another.
Consequently, our current democratic system lacks the agency to address compounding crises, ranging from climate change to the consolidation of wealth.
Instead of leaning into a neoliberal paradigm whose belief is that economic markets solve all problems, she argued that we need to shift to a post-liberal, reparative democracy that addresses historical injustices, ecological emergencies, and economic inequalities.
By integrating ecological concerns into our economic and political decision-making, can we repair our relationship with non-human life from “one that we can use, to one that we can care about” she asked.
The Road Forward
The consensus among the speakers was clear: democracy is not a spectator sport.
It is a fragile, living system that demands constant stewardship. Left untended, it inevitably withers under pressure.
Restoring our political health begins with action in our everyday lives – from dinner tables to classrooms. We must engage not only with our institutions but with one another.
True renewal requires a broader table; we need younger voices, diverse cultural perspectives, and workers from every sector to articulate their vision for a more equitable future.
Ultimately, democratic decay is not an inevitability, but a choice born of complacency. The antidote is courage – a collective decision to prioritise empathy and solidarity to chart a path toward a more just world.
