By Debbie Shankar: The neon lights dance, the beat drops and thousands of ravers throw their hands in the air in celebration. But there’s a darkness behind all the excitement. Electronic dance music (EDM) culture carries an association with substance abuse and...
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Debt and Dysphoria: Why Increasing Student Debt Might Suck More Than You Think
By Fern Thompsett: dysphoria (n) – A state of unease or generalised dissatisfaction with life. It might be time to stock up on the Mee Goreng. Standing out from the crowd of cuts proposed by the Abbott government’s federal budget last year was a devastating...
Is Australia the Most Unstable Democracy in Asia?
By Beau Dunne: Malcolm Turnbull and the Liberal Party have gone against their famous mantra, of letting the Australian people decide who ought to be PM, and have staged a coup to save themselves from their own mistakes. In a fast and furious coup orchestrated by...
Ocean Acidification: The ocean’s other problem with CO2
By Elliot Scanes: Humans are currently emitting CO2 faster than has occurred on Earth for millions of years. Currently, atmospheric CO2 concentrations are at their highest point in 800,000 years and don’t look like slowing any time soon. Inevitable global warming as a...
Student Legal: Consumer Rights
Every time you buy goods or services, you are entering into a contract. This means you will have certain rights and responsibilities, as will the trader. Under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL), products you buy come with an automatic guarantee that they will do what...
R U OK Day September 10
By Deanne Stindl: September 10th! An annual day on which we are encouraged to ask each other, R U OK? A day to connect with friends, family members or even someone you have just met, by starting the conversation and asking, R U OK?, in a meaningful way. Taking the...
Australian Immigration: Boundless Plains to Share
By Aldric Chuah: Contemporary Australian society is one of the most culturally diverse nations on the planet. However it did not have the most humble of beginnings. In 1901 the Australian government enacted the Immigration Restriction Act. This involved a dictation...
National Anthems
By Aldric Chuah: National anthems have the ability to inspire and unite, to jubilate and invigorate. There are 200-plus countries of the world, 193 of which are members of the United Nations. All of these nations have their own national anthems, but the countries of...
Eurovision Turns 60
By Aldric Chuah: This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Eurovision Song Contest. For the first time Australia was permitted to compete in the contest. Our representative Guy Sebastian pulled an amazing performance – he was quite the guy ! This of course follows...
Living in Harmony: Resourcing Culturally & Linguistically Diverse students
By Dawn Wade: Did you know that 1 in 4 Australians were born overseas? That 45% of Australians are either born overseas or have a parent who was born overseas? In fact around 7 million people have migrated to Australia since 1945. Australians identify with...
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What’s On at WSU
Zines Taking the World by Storm!
(Caption: Zine Fair stall workers and attendees. Photo credit: Garish (Luci) Kugathasan, 2025) On the 20th September 2025, School of Zines hosted Parramatta Zine Fair, an event encouraging zinesters to show off their talent and content to the community. Printed media...
Indigenous Sovereignty: Right-Wing Extremism Rises
Read Part 1 here — Indigenous Sovereignty: Welcome to Country Explained A 2024 report from the Australian Reconciliation Barometer found more than half (54%) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people experience racism in Australian society. This...
Western Alum Annie McCann on her Author Journey
Annie McCann is a published author and a Western Sydney University alum. As an Indonesian-Australian Muslim emcee and writer, she is deeply passionate about diverse voices. ‘My Harimau King’ McCann’s debut Middle-Grade novel, published by Melby Rose...
Indigenous Sovereignty: Welcome to Country Explained
On the 31st of August 2025 NITV’s Bronte Charles and Yasmine Alwakal reported a ‘brutal, terrifying and traumatising’ Neo Nazi attack at Melbourne’s Camp Sovereignty. The peaceful protest with a smoking ceremony on sacred land turned into a violent, hate...
War Here and There, Conflict Slowly Turning into a Genocide
The proxy war being waged in Sudan has reached a new level of urgency that demands the world’s attention. Reports by Al Jazeera indicate mass-civilian killings have taken place, leaving 1,500 dead, with bodies spotted on satellite images. In 2023, clashes between...










