Cultivating an anti-racist culture on campus

At UTS, our diversity is our strength, with half of our staff and students born overseas and over 40 per cent coming from non-English language backgrounds. Despite this, universities can still be places where racist conduct and practices occur.  

Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman delivers a compelling keynote on the higher education sector's role in combating racism, and discusses the Australian Human Rights Commission's historic anti-racism study at universities. 

Following his keynote, he joins Larissa Behrendt, Kylie Readman, Salma Elmubasher, Glen Babington, Michael Blumenstein and Elaine Laforteza (moderator) to explore how UTS is driving anti-racism efforts and the necessary steps universities must take to foster an environment of pride and belonging for all. 

Giridharan Sivaraman is Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner whose role is to promote equality between people of different backgrounds, conduct research and educational programs to combat racial discrimination and protect people from unfair treatment or vilification based on their race, colour, descent, visa status, or national or ethnic origin. 

Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO is a Laureate Fellow at the Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research at UTS. Larissa has a legal background with a strong track record in the areas of Indigenous law, policy, creative arts, education and research.  

Salma Elmubasher is the Ethnocultural Officer at the Ethnocultural Collective, a part of the UTS Students Association, advocating for spaces for UTS students who identify as Black, Indigenous or as a Person of Colour to connect and organise together.   

Professor Kylie Readman is UTS's Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Education and Students). She is responsible for overseeing UTS's key priorities in teaching, learning and the student experience.  

Glen Babington is UTS’s Chief Operating Officer and Vice-President and is responsible for the university’s finance, marketing, communications, property, IT, HR and legal functions, as well as the Data Analytics and Insights Unit. 

Professor Michael Blumenstein is currently the Deputy Dean (Research and Innovation) in the UTS Faculty of Engineering & IT. UTS’s largest and most culturally diverse faculty.  

This public lecture was presented by UTS Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion on 21 August 2024, as part of the Centre’s Inclusion Festival. 

Impact Talks at UTS is produced by UTS Impact Studios, with sound engineering by Alison Zhuang.