Amy King reflects on Brendan Sargeant’s “Strategic Imagination”

It was a privilege to have the opportunity to reflect on the contributions of my late colleague Brendan Sargeant, who served as Head of the ANU’s Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, before his untimely passing in 2022. In a new book chapter contributing to the edited volume, Strategic Imagination: Essays in Honour of Brendan Sargeant (Canberra: ANU Press, 2025), I reflect on Brendan’s conception of ‘strategic imagination’, and the powerful diagnostic questions he offered as a way to uncover underlying blind spots in Australian strategic policy thinking. My chapter also highlights Brendan’s contribution to structural and cultural change in institutions, particularly his work on gender equality within the Australian Department of Defence. My thanks to the volume editor, Andrew Carr, for his work in bringing us together to reflect on Brendan Sargeant’s profound impact on Australian strategic and defence policy, and his innovative concept of “strategic imagination”.