On 20 June 2025, Professor Simon Haines visited Cranbrook School in Sydney to address high school students on Western Civilisation and the Four Kinds of Knowledge. This special lecture saw students excused from regular classes to engage with the intellectual heritage of the West. It comes at a time when Australian students are showing a […]
The Royal Society of New South Wales (RSNSW) The Royal Society of New South Wales, founded in 1821, is the oldest learned society in Australia [1]. It received Royal Assent from Queen Victoria in 1866 and was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1881 to promote “studies and investigations in Science, Art, Literature and Philosophy”[1].
Simon Haines Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales in May 2025 Read More »
In a searching reflection on the state of modern universities, Simon Haines asks what has become of the institution’s oldest purpose: the cultivation and transmission of humane wisdom. While universities still train professionals, conduct world class research and support vast international enrolments, Haines argues that their foundational mission to help young adults contemplate the deepest
Academic Wisdom Lost in the Pursuit of Anger and Avarice Read More »
A recent editorial offers a timely defence of something simple yet increasingly rare: children deeply absorbed in books. Simon Haines describes reading as an “alternative reality”, one that cultivates attention, imagination, and the ability to grapple with human complexity. This, he argues, is not just an educational skill but a moral one the groundwork for
A Jungle of Books Good for the Soul Read More »
