A leading public intellectual and author will be in Wagga Wagga on Tuesday 22 September to pose probing questions about climate change and economic growth. The free public lecture by Professor Clive Hamilton, AM, Charles Sturt University Vice-Chancellor’s Chair and Professor of Public Ethics at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics (CAPPE)  will examine Australia’s pre-occupation with economic growth and question whether the need to halt climate change will be sacrificed for short term prosperity. Professor Hamilton founded ‘think-tank’ The Australia Institute and was its executive director for 14 years until 2008. He has published widely, including books Growth Fetish (2003), Scorcher: The Dirty Politics Of Climate Change (2007) and more recently, The Freedom Paradox (2008), a look at the meaning of freedom and morality in the modern world. In 2009, Professor Hamilton was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia for services to public debate and policy development, particularly in the fields of climate change, sustainability and societal trends. Professor Hamilton’s public lecture, ‘Growth Fetishism and the Climate Crisis’ is hosted by Charles Sturt University and Wagga Wagga City Council.