Newsletter – 10 August 2026

Events

Symposium – ‘Social Reform in Melbourne: Past, Present, and Future’
Where: The Salvation Army Melbourne, Level 1/69 Bourke Street
When: 4 September, 9–5:30pm

Melbourne has long been at the forefront of social reform, from campaigns for workers’ rights and women’s equality to movements addressing poverty, housing, multiculturalism and social justice. This free one-day event brings together leading thinkers, researchers and practitioners to explore how social reform has shaped Melbourne’s past, influenced its present, and may help guide its future.

View the programme, and register your attendance, here!

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One-Day Festival – ‘Radical Melbourne! A People’s History Festival’
Where: Balam Balam Place, Brunswick, VIC
When: 21 November, 9–5pm

Radical Melbourne! is a full-day festival celebrating Melbourne’s incredible history of ordinary people fighting collectively for a better life and a better world – from Migrant strikes, to fighting the far-Right, to Aboriginal resistance to colonisation.

Radical Melbourne! is hosted by the People’s History of Australia podcast and is totally free to attend! Whether you want to stay for the whole day or pop in for a single panel, it’ll be an amazing opportunity to join hundreds of others, meet new people, discuss ideas, and hear how Melbourne’s history is full of stories of regular people like us fighting together for something better.

Find out more details, and register your attendance, here!

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CCH Shut Up and Write
Every Monday, 9am–12pm, on Zoom.

Start the week strong with a Shut Up and Write! We run 3 x 50 minute blocks of writing/focus, with breaks in between to chat and grab coffee. All CCH colleagues welcome, especially ECRs, HDRs, and those who work remotely. Feel free to join any time. The Zoom link is here (Meeting ID: 879 3895 9029, Password: 97747034). If you would like a recurring invite in your calendar, or you have any trouble joining, email Mia at mia.martinhobbs@deakin.edu.au

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Conference – ‘Imperialism and Resistance: Australia’s First Wars’
Date: 17–18 September 2026
Location: Australian War Memorial Theatre, Canberra

From the colonial frontiers of Australia to the South African veldt, Australia’s first wars were fought across the expanses of the British Empire.

‘Imperialism and Resistance: Australia’s First Wars’ is a two-day conference that brings together authors, historians, and curators to reflect on the Australian Frontier Wars and Australia’s earliest overseas military commitments to the British Empire.

Speakers will explore Australia’s nineteenth-century military history, with presentations on the Frontier Wars, the mid-century New Zealand Wars, and colonial deployments to Sudan, China, and the South African (Boer) War.

See here, for details on the conference programme and registration!

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History Council of Victoria Annual Lecture 2026 – ‘Direct Action, Protest and Democracy: An Historical Perspective on Contemporary Conflicts’

Where: State Library of Victoria
When: 24 September, 6–7:30pm

Across the globe, many polities are currently marked by the eruption of ‘direct action’ campaigns: for environmental protection; for peace; and  against racial, gender, and class inequality. People march, demonstrate, disrupt, occupy, and boycott. They typically justify these actions as a legitimate response to the failures of political authorities. They also present their actions as an authentic form of ‘direct’ or ‘participatory’ democracy. Political elites sometimes tolerate these campaigns and selectively incorporate their demands. Increasingly, however, they seek to restrict the scope for ‘direct action’, and to portray ‘direct action’ as a threat to legitimate order, and as a violent assertion of minority interests.

Calls for Papers

Special Issue of Studies in Oral History

Contributors are invited to submit articles for peer review for the 2027 issue of Studies in Oral History, the journal of Oral History Australia (OHA). The issue, co-edited by CCH members Mia Martin Hobbs and Geraldine Fela, takes as its theme ‘Human Voices in a Changing World’.

Contributions are invited across the following themes (but are not limited to these):

• Experiences of social, cultural, political, economic, climate and technological change
• Methods and ethics of integrating new technologies (e.g. Artificial Intelligence) into oral history practice
• Authenticity and artifice in the oral history interview
• How our current changing world changes how we think about the past

To be considered for peer review, articles should be no more than 8,000 words, including references. Publication of the issue is anticipated in late 2027. The submission deadline for articles for peer review is 3 December 2026.

Find out more here!

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Conference – Australian Queer Histories

The Australian Queer Archives is calling for proposals for presentations at our history conference to be held at the Victorian Pride Centre in Melbourne, 7–8 November 2026.

Organisers are open to proposals relating to any aspect of Australian LGBTIQ+ histories from academics, emerging scholars, community historians and creative practitioners involved with Australian queer history. These may be in the form of papers, panels, posters or other non-traditional formats.

Proposals should be no more than 150 words. They should be sent to conference@queerarchives.org.au by 20 August, 2026.

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Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History – Current Debates

In January 2025 The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History launched a section devoted to opinion and commentary. Here we publish shorter pieces (1–4,000 words) on topical issues or debates broadly construed within the field of the British Empire and Commonwealth, or imperialism and colonialism more generally. In order to address current affairs in a timely manner and to retain the integrity of the opinion piece essays/discussion, pieces published in this Current Debates section are not subject to peer-review.

The framing and argument are entirely up to authors although the editors are very happy to consider essays investigating themes such as: the dismantling of settler-state structures; truth, justice, and redress; global power hierarchies; current inter-imperialist rivalries; climate change and colonial legacies; past and present migration and colonialism. There are no set deadlines and pieces are usually published online within two-three weeks upon receipt.

If you have any questions, or are interested in pitching an idea, then please get in touch with Current Debates Editor Jonas Fossli Gjersø – jonas.f.gjerso@uis.no. Alternatively, find out more here!

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Australian Historical Association’s Guardian Column

CCH members may be interested in the opportunity to propose their work for inclusion in The Guardian’s ‘Past/Present’ column. Written by AHA members, the column aims to provide a historical perspective on recent events, showcase the important work that historians in Australia do, and demonstrate the value of history and historical thinking to a wide audience.

If you’d like to contribute to “Past/Present”, please send a short pitch to the Executive Officer of the AHA, following the pitch guidelines outlined here.

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SHAFR in the Asia Pacific Network

The Society of Historians of American Foreign Relations has established a network for historians in the Asia Pacific. The network will run small workshops with SHAFR scholars to develop works-in-progress, online seminars, and provide networking opportunities.

If your research explores any aspect of American foreign policy and you are interested in joining, visit the SHAFR website for further information. Or, reach out to our own Mia Martin Hobbs with questions!