Senior Australian of the Year to headline Kristallnacht event

Scientia Professor Henry Brodaty, the 2026 Senior Australian of the Year, will deliver the keynote address at this year’s NSW Jewish Board of Deputies (JBD) Kristallnacht commemoration on Monday, November 9.

Brodaty, a world-renowned researcher in ageing, memory and dementia, was born in a German displaced persons camp to Holocaust survivors, giving the evening’s theme of Keeping Memory Alive a double meaning.

The commemoration will also hear live testimony from Edel Fischer, 98, a survivor of the Kristallnacht pogrom, who will share her and her husband’s experiences in Germany and Austria.

JBD Shoah Remembrance Committee chair Dane Stern said the program explored the many ways memory can endure.

“As the number of survivors able to share their experiences firsthand continues to decline, our responsibility is to find new ways to keep their memories alive and ensure their stories continue to educate and inspire future generations,” he said. “To hear directly from a 98-year-old survivor of Kristallnacht is an extraordinary privilege. Edel Fischer’s testimony is a living link to one of the most significant events leading to the Holocaust.”