Peter Garrett AM inspires CASS alumni

The ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences was honoured to welcome back ANU Alumni Peter Garrett AM for a special reception with fellow Arts alumni in the Australian National University Classics Museum on 4 November, 2015.

Peter graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1976 majoring in politics and was a Burgmann college resident. It was in the residential halls and at the Student Union that he first performed as a musician.

Peter is a long-time advocate and campaigner on a range of local and global issues. He is the lead singer of Midnight Oil, one of Australia’s most iconic bands, a former CEO of the Australian Conversation Foundation, and was a cabinet minister in the Rudd/Gillard Labor governments from 2007 to 2013.

His life’s triad can be summed up as Music, Environment and Politics, and ANU are proud to have him amongst our many distinguished alumni.

Peter Garrett used music as a foreground (that was nurtured at ANU) in the pursuit of his political career that mirrors his lifelong interests in environment protection, education, heritage and the arts.

Peter has maintained a close association with many alumni from his time at the University and at Burgmann College, and has served as patron for fundraising efforts for Burgmann College. He spoke at ‘Back to Burgmann’, the launch of the Burgmann College Alumni Association on October 1, 2011.

Peter Garrett’s memoir Big Blue Sky has a fascinating chapter on his time at ANU, including why he chose Canberra and Burgmann College over Sydney University. He was the inaugural Burgmann College barman. In the book we learn about Garrett’s early musical experiences at Burgmann, participating in its Annual Revue, and later in Canberra with his first band.

Peter has called his memoir “the big blue sky” as he believes positively in the future and he reckons there is a lot of blue sky around us.

His talk was an inspiration to our alumni and supporters inspiring us all to find that big blue sky – and what better way than education! 

ANU Meet The Author with Peter Garrett AM (audio recording)