Festival of Debate 2019
“WE NEED TO TALK”
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Having grown into the biggest festival of its kind in the UK, the Festival of Debate returns to Sheffield for its fifth year, bringing with it over 90 public events.
The Festival of Debate is a non-partisan city-wide festival exploring, debating and discussing key political and social issues.
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Following the success of 2018, which featured appearances from Yanis Varoufakis, Ed Miliband, Reni Eddo-Lodge and others – 2019’s line-up hopes to provide the same high standard of thought-provoking debate and discussion.
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This year, the festival will address five main strands of contemporary issues: Who We Are, Living Together, Our Democracy, Our Planet and Looking Forward. Sheffield can look forward to a line-up which includes acclaimed podcaster The Guilty Feminist, environmental activists George Monbiot and George Marshall, writer and former barrister Afua Hirsch, economist Paul Mason and star broadcaster James O’Brien.
If that’s not enough to sway you, the festival will also feature a wide range of over 70 smaller events including talks, panel discussions, workshops, film screenings and stand-up comedy. Here are our top picks from this year’s programme:
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Afua Hirsch: Brit(ish) – On Race, Identity and Belonging
British writer, broadcaster and former barrister Afua Hirsch is the daughter of a black Ghanaian woman and a white British man, born in Norway but raised in south London. Join her for a discussion of her recent Sunday Times bestseller Brit(ish) which tackles the reality of being a black woman in a white, male dominated society. It’s about her quest for identity in a place she doesn’t feel she belongs and the casual racism that still plagues British society today.
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George Monbiot & George Marshall: How to Break the Silence on Environmental Collapse
Two knowledgeable and passionate climate communicators discuss their respective work on climate change and why people are determined to keep brushing the issue under the carpet. In opening the discussion up to the audience, they hope to encourage more conversation on the topic because, after all, we can’t ignore it forever.
The Guilty Feminist: Live
Since comedian Deborah Frances-White launched The Guilty Feminist podcast back in 2015, it has become an increasingly popular resource with over 50 million downloads since its release. Deborah invites guests from the podcast to discuss the humble goals of 21st century feminists, alongside the fears, paradoxes and hypocrisies that prevent them from being achieved.
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Paul Mason – Clear Bright Future: A Radical Defence of the Human Being
Paul Mason is a journalist, broadcaster and author, whose cumulative body of work calls for resistance to the increasing technological control that politicians and corporations have over our lives. Join him as he discusses his most recent book, Clear Bright Future: A Radical Defence of the Human Being, which urges people to fight for universal rights, for human-centric institutions, and for the right to resist our lives being controlled by algorithms.
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James O’Brien: How to be Right
The British are renowned for their infallible politeness. However, the age of politely agreeing to disagree is over. Viral debater, national columnist, podcast sensation and broadcaster of the year from 2017, James O’Brien’s new book How To Be Right demonstrates how to be right in a world gone wrong.
New to 2019, the festival will include three ‘hub days’. These are day-long events comprised of smaller sessions exploring three key strands – Our Democracy, Our Planet and Living Together.
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Our Democracy Hub Day (27th April) gives space to some of the unheard voices of British society following the EU referendum and evaluates the political mechanisms of which those voices have to go through to be heard. Through a series of concurrent workshops and panel discussions, the hub days will cover topics such as the gender pay gap, transport and disability, among many more.
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Our Planet Hub Day (11th May) tackles the overwhelmingly daunting topic of man-made climate change and explores way in which we can have a significant impact as individuals in order to promote belief that there is hope for the future of our planet. Angles include how to tackle fracking, immediate solutions to the plastic ocean, and how to be hopeful about climate change.
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The Living Together Hub Day (1st June) acknowledges the forces that divide our societies and seeks out new ways that we can co-exist together. Topics include homelessness, hate crime, and collective decision making, closing the festival on a more personal note.
Sam Walby, programmer and producer at Festival of Debate, said: “We hope Festival of Debate 2019 goes some way towards encouraging discussion, open-mindedness and active citizenship in Sheffield.”
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Festival of Debate runs in Sheffield from April 19th – June 1st, for the full programme and ticket details visit festivalofdebate.com