A globally loved philosophy event is coming to Melbourne this March, promising an evening of lively conversation and creative thinking.
Sophia Club is bringing its signature Live Philosophy night to one of Melbourne’s most beloved cultural landmarks, the Abbotsford Convent.
Founded in 2022, Sophia Club started as a live philosophy series in London and New York and soon discovered a passionate following in Melbourne. Each gathering has drawn crowds of curious people eager to explore life’s big questions in an atmosphere of lively conversation, art, and fresh ideas.
Live Philosophy in Abbotsford
- When: Thursday 12 March, 7:30 pm
- Where: Magdalen Laundry, Abbotsford Convent
- Tickets can be purchased here
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The event outgrew its first Flinders Street rooftop home and moved to the Brunswick Ballroom, where it regularly sells out. Now, Sophia Club is teaming up with Abbotsford Convent for a special end-of-summer gathering at the historic Magdalen Laundry for another exciting chapter in Melbourne’s Sophia Club story.
The night’s theme, “Is a river alive and a koala a person?” invites audiences to take a radical look at humanity’s ethical relationship with nature and non‑human beings. The discussion will bring together Melissa Kennedy, an environmental researcher focused on First Nations’ inherent rights and responsibilities to water, and Dr. Erin O’Donnell, a leading authority on water law and the emerging field of legal rights for rivers.
Also joining them is Tina Stefanou, a Naarm/Melbourne‑based artist whose interdisciplinary work explores the dynamic between human and more‑than‑human life through sound, film, and installation.
This session will ask whether rivers, ecosystems, and other natural systems should be treated as entities with rights. It will also consider how non‑Indigenous legal and ethical frameworks can learn from Indigenous knowledge traditions that have long recognised these relationships.
Sophia Club is all about taking philosophy beyond the lecture hall and turning it into a vibrant, shared experience. Every event weaves thoughtful conversation with live artistic performances, giving everyone a night that’s as thought-provoking as it is social and fun.
Past topics have included The Meaning of Time, Beauty and the Good Life, and What’s Wrong with Death. The collaboration with Abbotsford Convent reflects the site’s commitment to creativity, community, and open discussion.
According to the Convent’s CEO, Justine Hyde, the partnership reflects the Convent’s role as a place for artists and thinkers to exchange ideas in accessible, engaging ways. Sophia Club puts hospitality and inclusiveness at the heart of every event, even setting up a social table for those coming alone.
Host and editorial director Brigid Hains says Melbourne’s warm embrace of Sophia Club has exceeded all expectations, and she considers the Convent the perfect place to discuss the rights of nature, surrounded by creativity and the flow of the Birrarung.
