What does home mean to us and how does it shape the way we live? These questions and more will be the focus for the second Sydney Open Symposium on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th May, 2026.

Museums of History NSW invites audiences to take a look at ‘the home’: what does home mean to us and how the home shapes the way we live in the second Sydney Open Symposium: Home Truths  on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th May.

Exploring the past, present and future of housing through architecture, design, policy, social research and urbanism, this unique two-day event moves from ideas to experience. 

On Saturday, audiences will hear from leading thinkers on the historical, social, material and policy choices that have shaped housing. The day includes an afternoon panel moderated by our Editor on Reimagining Suburbia and Demystifying Density. On Sunday, the conversation moves from the stage into real homes, with private tours offering audiences the chance to step inside thoughtful, inventive and architecturally significant spaces.

Hosted at ILUMINA Sydney and featuring comedian and architecture advocate Tim Ross, the Saturday symposium will move across the major questions shaping housing today: the historical turning points that changed how we live, the push to make good design more accessible, new materials and construction methods for more sustainable homes, the future of suburbia and density, and the role of people, policy and design in driving change.

Related: Habitus House of the Year winners on housing density and climate crisis

Sunday’s house tours include Casa Dos in Rose Bay, Crossroads Marrickville and Dempsey Warehouse Conversion, offering ticket holders the chance to explore architecturally significant homes and see the themes of the symposium in practice.

Whether you are interested in architecture, design, cities, history or the future of how we live, Sydney Open Symposium: Home Truths offers a timely and thought-provoking look at one of the defining issues of our time.

Sydney Open
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