The Sydney Institute

The Sydney Institute was formally opened on 23 August 1989 at its 41 Phillip Street premises by New South Wales Premier Nick Greiner with supporting remarks from Bob Carr (the then NSW Opposition leader). The Sydney Institute is a privately funded not-for-profit current affairs forum encouraging debate and discussion. The Institute is genuinely pluralist and a wide and diverse range of views are heard at its forums. The Institute conducts about 60 policy forums a year (held usually between 6 pm and 7 pm) on a wide range of issues including economics, politics, international affairs, literature, history, film, social policy along with a well attended annual dinner/lecture. Past speakers at the dinner have included George Miller, Shirley Hazzard, Peter Cosgrove, Simone Young, Andy Thomas, Peter Doherty, Patricia Hewitt, William Shawcross, Kate Jennings, Richard Tognetti, Clive James, Tom Friedman, Kevin Rudd, Quentin Bryce and Simon Schama. All speeches given at the Instit...