Rechnitz Memorial Lecture: Professor Marcia Langton AO

Melbourne Laureate Professor Marcia Langton AO is an anthropologist and geographer, and since 2000 has held the Foundation Chair of Australian Indigenous Studies at the University of Melbourne. She has produced a large body of knowledge in the areas of political and legal anthropology, Indigenous agreements and engagement with the minerals industry, and Indigenous culture and art. Her role in the Empowered Communities project under contract to the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and as a member of the Expert Panel on Constitutional Recognition of Indigenous Australians are evidence of Professor Langton’s academic reputation, policy commitment and impact, alongside her role as a prominent public intellectual. Her 2012 Boyer lecture series titled The Quiet Revolution: Indigenous People and the Resources Boom was one of many significant contributions to public debate, and added to her influence and reputation in government and private sector circles.

Professor Langton is a prolific and acclaimed author and editor, with recent publications include Welcome to Country: A Guide to Indigenous Australia (2021); Dhoombak Goobgoowana: A History of Indigenous Australia and the University of Melbourne – Volume 1: Truth, and Volume 2: Voice (2024 and 2025, co-edited with Dr Ross Jones and Dr James Waghorne); Indigenous Knowledge: Australian Perspectives (2024, co-edited with Professor Aaron Corn and Dr Samuel Curkpatrick), and 65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art (2024, co-edited with Judith Ryan AM). This acclaimed catalogue coincided with the exhibition of the same name showing at the Potter Museum of Art in 2025, by curatorial team Professor Langton, Dr Judith Ryan, and Shanysa McConville.

Professor Langton is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, a Fellow of Trinity College, Melbourne and an Honorary Fellow of Emmanuel College at the University of Queensland. In 1993 she was made a member of the Order of Australia in recognition of her work in anthropology and the advocacy of Aboriginal rights. In 2016 Professor Langton was honoured as a University of Melbourne Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor. In further recognition as one of Australia’s most respected Indigenous Academics Professor  Langton  was in 2017 appointed as the first Associate Provost at the University of Melbourne. In  2025 Professor Langton was named a Melbourne  Laureate Professor.