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Max McMurdo has made a career out of turning household tat into chic new forms. But can his creations match his talk? We put him to the test

Max McMurdo stands on the doorstep surrounded by toolboxes, neat as a pin. A professional upcycler, he has offered to convert my worst bits of household junk into brilliant new forms. It’s hardly surprising that he is smiling: upcycling is a form of recreational optimism. The whole pursuit is underpinned by the belief that no tat is too tatty. All junk can be saved.

McMurdo, 38, defines upcycling as “adding emotional or financial value [to waste objects] through the addition of design”. The idea has been around since at least the 1990s, and while the principle of adding value to waste makes sense, I have always disliked most of the interiors styles it has generated. Too often, upcycling bolts an adjective – such as “shabby” or “industrial” – to the word “chic” in the hope of rendering rubbish desirable. But maybe Max will change my mind.

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A virus stole the gene coding for the poison of black widow spiders, scientists have found.

Biologist Ryan Killackey filmed for seven years in order to create an account of a remote forest community under pressure from US and Chinese oil companies. The result was Yasuni Man, which focuses on the Yasuni biosphere reserve in Ecuador. The ITT Initiative, which would have protected the Ishpingo, Tambococha and Tiputini regions, was killed off by President Rafael Correa in 2013. This month, the first oil from the Yasuni fields is due to be pumped up by a Chinese company and piped to customers in California

• Yasuni man is an intimate portrait of a beautiful land under siege for its oil

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Car manufacturers told they must address climate change by switching to low-emission models − or face a sell-off of their shares, reports Climate News Network

Major investors have warned the automotive industry it needs to accelerate its readiness for a low-carbon world if it is to retain their support and prosper.

Vehicle makers must put climate change specialists on their boards, engage better with policy-makers, and invest more heavily in low-emission cars, says a network of 250 global investors with assets of more than $24tn (£20tn).

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Sixth attack in 21 months persuades the premier, Mike Baird, to lobby federal government to install shark nets on north coast beaches

All beaches in Ballina on the New South Wales north coast are closed after a man was bitten by a shark while surfing, the sixth attack in 21 months in the area.

The attack has caused a backdown from the premier, Mike Baird, who has resisted the idea of shark nets on north coast beaches has now announced he will lobby for them to be installed.

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IMAGE POWER: A striking photograph will always stir more emotions and create a bigger impact than a spreadsheet of statistics, says acclaimed National Geographic photographer Thomas Peschak.

Wenlock Edge, Shropshire Even though the woundwort has lost its place in the pharmacy, bees visit these late flowers for the nectar tucked inside them

Woundwort grows from a hedge as if to mark some hurt, not to heal so much as to witness it. Hedge woundwort, Stachys sylvatica, belongs to the betony, horehounds and catmint of the waysides. It has small tight whorls of “blood and bandages” flowers – purply red clasps with white markings – nettle-like leaves and a hairy stem that when rubbed has a stink bad enough to do you good.

Related: Country diary: Baltimore, Ireland: For centuries these leaves were nature's gift to wearied travellers

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IEA report says energy efficiency a huge investment opportunity, and growing rapidly, but must be ramped up to avoid dangerous climate change.

September proved a bumpy month for the Victorian energy efficiency market, but ultimately it marked the first significant monthly recovery this year.

$1 million per megawatt hour? That's the cost imposed on the market when a gas generator slightly increased its output for 15 minutes during a recent high price event in South Australia. It's hard to imagine a better case for battery storage.

Queensland energy minister says federal Coalition has been solar scare mongering and will be out of a job if it continues to keep its head in the sand on renewables. But mainstream media has a long way to come as well.

Queensland panel says 50% renewables by 2030 not just doable, it will be "cost neutral" to consumers and won't affect reliability. It maps out three scenarios that will add more than 6,000 jobs, more than $5bn to state economy and cost a fraction of Coalition forecasts.

Most Australian households looking at battery storage just want to make the most of their solar investment and use as little grid supplied energy as possible. But what should they look to buy?

With space heating beginning to look like a high carbon option, can ‘person’ heating make a comeback? Developments in radiant heating technology suggest it can.

Solar shading are dirty words to the solar industry. Is it possible to beat shading and boost the output of a solar system?

AGL chief says 1.4MW solar PV array across Yalumba wineries in SA shows how distributed energy empowers business, offering greater control of energy use and costs, resilience during system failures.

尽管津巴布韦国家公园管理方予以否认，但专家相信该国正计划将数十只大象运往中国。(翻译：金艳/chinadialogue)

有人担心，津巴布韦正准备再次将数十只幼年大象送往中国野生动物园。

今年8月，津巴布韦国家公园及野生动植物管理局（ZimParks）开始从万基国家公园捕捉大象，并将它们关在乌特士比野生动物圈养设施内。

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The 2016 Congress of the International Water Association meets in Brisbane this week.

Scientists begin examining rocks drilled from the crater dug out of Earth's crust by the asteroid impact that killed off the dinosaurs.

The world's oceans are under enormous pressure from human impacts—things like offshore oil drilling, over-fishing, climate change, and pollution. Underwater photographer Thomas Peschak has witnessed the most pristine—and most damaged—of those environments.