Event presented by the Fellows’ Group of the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. Social Trust is an important glue binding societies together.  For just one example, countries with high trust levels had significantly better results in tackling Covid.  And trust has also been a powerful driver of economic development.  But there is another side – high levels of trust also create opportunities for the shyster, those benefiting from spreading mistrust. In this wide-ranging talk, Tony Ward discusses the nature of social trust.  He also argues that some, especially economic, developments are now working to diminish trust.