Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Thom Dixon
Australia needs its own BioMADE
Boston Consulting Group estimates that biomanufacturing will displace 40 percent of the global economy over the next 30 years. This is equivalent to $30 trillion in global economic potential. Currently, Australia is on the wrong side of this global economic reality. Australia has not grasped the scope of the biomanufacturing revolution underway. Almost everything in our industrial system relies on the petrochemical value chain.
Should we fight climate change by re-engineering life itself?
Life has transformed our world over billions of years, turning a dead rock into the lush, fertile planet we know today. But human activity is currently transforming Earth again, this time by releasing greenhouse gases that are driving dramatic changes in our climate. What if we could harness the power of living organisms to help rein in climate change? The field of "engineering biology," which uses genetic technology to engineer biological tools for solving specific problems, may be able to help.
Should we fight climate change by re-engineering life itself?
Life has transformed our world over billions of years, turning a dead rock into the lush, fertile planet we know today. But human activity is currently transforming Earth again, this time by releasing greenhouse gases that are driving dramatic changes in our climate. What if we could harness the power of living organisms to help rein in climate change? The field of “engineering biology”, which uses genetic technology to engineer biological tools for solving specific problems, may be able to help.
The Australian bioeconomy market is more than medicine
Synthetic biology is high on Australia’s critical technology list. Yet one suspects it’s potential is pigeonholed in the medical applications queue while the wider opportunities lie unrecognised. Granted, mRNA technology did deliver a spectacular success story with 90 per cent effective COVID vaccines within ten months of the WHO announcing the start of the pandemic. But imagine if the power of synthetic biology was recognised for its full capabilities.
A Disruptive Innovation, Future-Focussed Australian Strategic Studies - AIIA
Australian strategic studies cannot keep up with current rates of geostrategic change. Focussing on different analysis methodologies — such as forward-looking, disruptive innovation — could be the solution. Brendan Taylor recently set out a “back to the future” path for Australian strategic studies that would replicate last century’s successful approaches. While an option, there may be other, more suitable paths forward.
A good idea gone nowhere? Diaspora policy in Australia
Over the past two decades, an array of organisations and individuals – including PwC, the Asia Society, the Business Council of Australia, academics and public intellectuals – have called on the Australian government to adopt a diaspora policy to help promote Australia’s economic and social development. A diaspora policy, they have variously argued, will benefit Australia: Because Australia has a sizeable, talented, and strategically located diaspora.
Kylie Moore-Gilbert: A Renewed Call for Action - Australian Institute of International Affairs Kylie Moore-Gilbert: A Renewed Call for Action - AIIA
Australian-British academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert remains imprisoned in Iran on charges of espionage after attending an academic conference in Qom two years ago. Her mounting psychological distress is exacerbated by the prevalence of COVID-19, and a renewed call for action is essential. A professor of Islamic studies and Middle Eastern politics at the University of Melbourne, Kylie Moore-Gilbert is highly respected in her field.
Defending Australia in a high-tech future
The recently announced $270 billion commitment to expand Australia’s military capability sets the tone for a deteriorating strategic environment. The 2020 Defence Strategic Update and Force Structure Plan are only part of the answer in aligning Australia’s response to this challenging future. It is essential Australia responds to the panoply of emerging traditional and non-traditional security threats with all of the machinery of government, not just the hard edges.
Digital Dominance
In 2010, the Chinese Academy of Sciences published Science & Technology in China: A Roadmap to 2050. This influential document, which sets out how China’s scientific and technological development will progress, has three tenets, each of which Australia should consider in our relationship with China.
Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong: Toward a BRI 2.0? - Australian Institute of International Affairs
The upcoming Belt and Road Summit will be held amidst the current political chaos in Hong Kong. The protests may be an impediment to the summit, but the summit may be an opportunity to expose the youth in Hong Kong to new opportunities. From 11 to 12 September 2019, the fourth Edition of the Hong Kong Belt and Road Summit is due to take place at the Wanchai Convention Center.
Facebook’s Dilemmas With Hate Speech, Fake Speech And Free Speech - Australian Institute of International Affairs
If Facebook was an experiment in creating a true “marketplace of ideas,” the results are disappointing, naively utopian and sometimes dangerous. Yet the platform has no easy solution for the daunting problem of moderating its two billion subscribers. Social media provides an unprecedented mechanism for all people — or at least the many with some form of internet access — to broadcast their words to the world, and to connect simultaneously with multitudes of other people.
Pervasive Racism or American Giants? The Target of France's Hate Speech Law - Australian Institute of International Affairs
The “Avia law” is presented as a victory of the French state over Facebook, but it’s unclear if it primarily combats online hate speech or the power of American multinationals. On 4 July, the French national assembly completed its review of a law to combat online hate speech proposed by Laetitia Avia from the party now in government, La République en Marche (LREM). The proposed “Avia law” was made possible by the May 2018 talks between Emmanuel Macron and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg.
Australian Leadership in Regional Institutions: Scott Morrison’s Foreign Policy Speech - Australian Institute of International Affairs
The Australian prime minister’s first foreign policy speech last week repositioned Australia as a creative middle power that seeks to develop a regional security architecture. For this he deserves credit, though the test is to realise these ambitions. Prime Minister Scott Morrison set himself a challenging assignment in his first foreign policy speech as a newly-elected prime minister.
Huawei, the Foreign Adversary? - Australian Institute of International Affairs
The Google-Huawei dispute over the Android operating system has done irrevocable damage to the reputation of the US tech sector. It’s easy to wonder how we got here, so let’s trace back over the past month. On May 15, the US moved to counteract foreign adversaries creating and exploiting vulnerabilities in information communications technology and services through Executive Order 13873.
Let’s Talk About AI, Again - AIIA
Artificial Intelligence is a strategic battleground for today and tomorrow, but who will set the international norms? A recent Sydney Morning Herald article reported comments from an interview with the mining billionaire Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest on Australia-China relations. Buried at the bottom of this article was a series of comments on China’s artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. Mr Forrest said he was raising concerns with Chinese officials about the “moral dilemma” posed by AI.
Islamophobia in Light of the Christchurch Terror Attacks - AIIA
Professor Samina Yasmeen AM FAIIA discusses Islamophobia in light of the Christchurch terror attacks. Professor Yasmeen identifies Islamaphobia as a problem not just in Australia, but around the world. In detailing its rise since the 9/11 attacks in 2001, she argues that it was not until after the London attacks in 2005 that Islamaphobia became a phenomenon that was directed at the broader Muslim community.
Australia’s Recognition of Juan Guaidó as Venezuela's Interim President - AIIA
Australia has joined many Western countries in recognising Juan Guaidó as the interim president of Venezuela. This move is consistent with Australia’s interests in the region and its promotion of open democratic governance and the rules-based international order. The situation in Venezuela has deteriorated dramatically in the past year, to the extent that it has become a crisis also affecting neighbouring countries and the region as a whole.
The 5G Trap - AIIA
Australia may have banned Huawei and ZTE from building the next generation of telecommunications infrastructure in the country, but will this actually defend a future Australian 5G network? Despite the government’s decision last year to carefully vet foreign companies building Australia’s 5G infrastructure, completely excluding Chinese firms will prove near impossible.
Why Nobody is Taking Action on Xinjiang and Why it Matters - AIIA
It seems convenient for the world to turn a blind eye to China’s mass internment of Uighurs in its northwestern Xinjiang Province. But the repercussions from inaction may prove a threat to stability both in the Asia Pacific and around the world. The facts regarding what is taking place in Xinjiang are now impossible to ignore. Up to one million Uighur Muslims have been detained in a series of concentration-like camps.
What Does Australia’s Ranking in the Corruption Perception Index Mean? - AIIA
Australia has retained its ranking of 13th position in Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index for 2018. So why has it been singled out for scrutiny? Transparency International (TI) has released its 2018 Corruption Perception Index (CPI). Australia is highlighted as one of the “decliners” although its score remained the same (77) as last year.
Securing Indo-Pacific Health Security: Australia’s Approach to Regional Health Security - Australian Institute of International Affairs
In the wake of several prominent disease outbreaks, the Australian government has committed itself to strengthening regional health security. From “regional preparedness” to “regional health security” The Australian Government maintains a strong interest in the health affairs of Indo-Pacific countries.
God is Good for You - AIIA
It is no exaggeration to say that Christianity is in nearly existential crisis in the West. Australia is about to become, if it has not already become, a majority atheist nation. This is something unprecedented in all the long Aboriginal and European and modern multicultural history of our land. It is worth pausing to remark. It is worth considering what we stand to lose, wondering if perhaps still there is a way we might recover this Christianity, or some of it, if we want to.
Technology and Terrorism: A New Threat - AIIA
Last month the Australian government drafted legislation that would require technology companies to cooperate with security agencies in the fight against terrorism. To what extent should we expect technological advancement to alter the nature of terrorism in the future? Technological permutation and increasing access to the dark web is mobilising a wave of a new kind of terrorism.
Peaceful Coexistence: China's Goals and Challenges - AIIA
In an eventful month with the Kim-Trump Summit, what are China’s long-term security goals in the Indo-Pacific region? What are the threats to the US-China trade relationship? And what role can public diplomacy play in times of tension? Have US and China have managed to avoid a trade war?
The International Context of Trump's Space Force - AIIA
Last week Donald Trump announced the establishment of a “Space Force” as a separate force of the US military. It’s not yet clear where this move sits in light of the Outer Space Treaty, which guides the exploration and use of outer space by UN member states. Last week US President Donald Trump announced the establishment of a “Space Force” as a separate force of the US military.
The Case for Making Space for Taiwan - AIIA
The Australian airline Qantas’ recent announcement that it will now refer to Taiwan as a Chinese territory is emblematic of China’s efforts to reduce Taiwan’s strategic space. Such efforts can also be expected to exclude Taiwan from future global agreements on emerging technologies. Over the past few years Taiwan’s strategic space has been tightened and this trend will only continue.
Subs: Australia’s reputation overboard
The prevailing view in Australia of the momentous submarines imbroglio seems to have become that the $90-billion mega deal with the French – friend, ally and partner in the Indo-Pacific – was scrapped for a combination of contractual, operational and geopolitical reasons. Australia, so this thinking goes, needs top-tech American nuclear subs, high cost and high risk, to put a check on an expansionist China, accompanied by the trilateral Anglosphere Indo-Pacific AUKUS security pact.
Cambridge Analytica and the 2019 Australian Election - AIIA
Last week’s revelations about Cambridge Analytica and Facebook are continuing to reverberate around the world. With an Australian federal election due within a year, the impact could hit very close to home. Cambridge Analytica’s services have been linked to the Brexit vote and the American election. On one level this is understandable, elections are about deploying messaging to psychologically influence voters.
China is Limitless but what of Democracy? - AIIA
On Sunday, the National People’s Congress voted to extend the limit of Chinese presidential terms indefinitely. The vote was expected to go over without a hitch, and it did, with only a few votes recorded as abstentions. Xi Jinping’s hold over China is assured for many years to come. It is difficult to name an individual who has accumulated more power than Xi Jinping in living memory.
The Dangerous Status Quo on Biological Weapons - AIIA
The lead up to next month’s Biological Weapons Convention meeting in Geneva can at best be described as taking place in a climate of well-contained enthusiasm. But can states afford to be apathetic on these weapons? The annual meeting of state parties for the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) will occur in Geneva on 4-8 December. This is the first meeting of state parties since the five-yearly review in late 2016 and things are not looking good.
Start-Ups and the Defence Technology Race
Australia is straddling an advanced defence technology divide between the US and China. Taking better care of homegrown defence industry start ups may be one way to ensure Canberra doesn’t risk falling further behind. In the past decade, international approaches to defence innovation have undergone significant change. Australia needs to adapt to maintain its technological edge.
Laser Weapons: Surgical Precision or Cutting-Edge Liability?
Laser weapons are beginning to be seriously considered in US defence forces planning. After a slow start, they may soon begin appearing as part of conventional platforms—from ships to B-52s. But there remain some logistical challenges, and the risks are still being calculated . US Air Force Chief Scientist Greg Zacharias went on the record in early February about a research program called SHIELD—a five-year research effort that aims to retrofit B-52s with laser weapons.
Where There’s Smoke, There’s Atomic Fire
Last weekend’s North Korean missile test came after a series of nuclear weapons-related actions and announcements by the new US administration. What comes next could shape the strategic climate for years to come. On Wednesday last week the US and Japan successfully tested the interception of a medium-range ballistic missile in space. On Thursday Air Force Chief of Staff Gen.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with Thom
Contact Thom, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack