The Conversation

How can Australia's new Inspector General be expected to inspect waterways without a firm grasp of how much water in in them? Quentin Grafton, Director of the Centre for Water Economics, Environment and Policy, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University John Williams, Adjunct Professor Environment and Natural Resources, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The Amazon is burning at record levels, and land clearing is to blame. The good news: we already know what we need to do to stop it. Danilo Ignacio de Urzedo, PhD candidate, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The likelihood of half of Victoria being plunged into blackout are low – but the question reveals growing tension between the energy market and its regulators. Bruce Mountain, Director, Victoria Energy Policy Centre, Victoria University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Six months after huge floods swept Queensland we can start to appreciate the huge effect they had on native species. Gabriel Crowley, Adjunct Principal Research Fellow, James Cook University Noel D Preece, Adjunct Asssociate Professor, James Cook University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Human-driven land clearing and climate change are sending plants extinct at a rapid rate, risking a devastating biodiversity crash. Jaco Le Roux, Associate Professor, Macquarie University Florencia Yanelli, Researcher, Stellenbosch University Heidi Hirsch, Postdoctoral research fellow, Stellenbosch University José María Iriondo Alegría, Catedrático de universidad en el área de Botánica, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos Marcel Rejmánek, Emeritus professor, University of California, Davis Maria Loreto Castillo, PhD Candidate, Stellenbosch University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

State renewable energy targets have been driving energy investment in Australia. 'Where and when' the generation and transmission build occurs varies substantially under a national approach. Scott Hamilton, Strategic Advisory Panel Member, Australian-German Energy Transition Hub, University of Melbourne Changlong Wang, Researcher, The Energy Transition Hub, University of Melbourne Roger Dargaville, Senior lecturer, Monash University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Populism focuses on charismatic individuals. Environmentalism is all about collective action on collective solutions. How do they come together? Mark Beeson, Professor of International Politics, University of Western Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

New Zealand is small and generates a tiny fraction of global greenhouse gas emissions, but investment in cutting emissions is important and could influence other, larger countries. Ralph Brougham Chapman, Associate Professor , Director Environmental Studies, Victoria University of Wellington Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A warming climate will affect the way waves hit over 50% of the world's coastlines, increasing erosion and the risk of flooding. Mark Hemer, Principal Research Scientist, Oceans and Atmosphere, CSIRO Ian Young, Kernot Professor of Engineering, University of Melbourne Joao Morim Nascimento, PhD Candidate, Griffith University Nobuhito Mori, Professor, Kyoto University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The blotched butterfly orchid (Sarcochilus weinthalii) looks fairly unremarkable when it’s not flowering, generally resembling the far more common orange blossom orchid. But when it flowers, it is exquisite… John Dearnaley, Associate Professor, University of Southern Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

There are plenty of barriers, but if we really want to we can feed the world on plant protein (largely from legumes). Richard Trethowan, Director, IA Watson Research Centre, Narrabri Plant Breeding Institute, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Millions of dollars are being spent on trying to eradicate fire ants from Australia. But that might not be the only way to deal with the invasive pest. Daniel Spring, Research Fellow, School of Biosciences, University of Melbourne Jonathan Keith, Associate Professor, School of Mathematical Sciences, Monash University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Contemporary mining disasters echo the devastation caused by Victoria's gold fields. Victorians campaigned for some of the world's first laws against industrial pollution. Susan Lawrence, Professor, Department of Archaeology and History, La Trobe University Peter Davies, Senior Research Fellow, La Trobe University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia needs a viable domestic recycling industry – here's the current state of play. Jeff Seadon, Senior Lecturer, Auckland University of Technology Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Plants live off carbon dioxide, but higher levels of the greenhouse gas in the air doesn't necessarily lead to more biomass production. Sebastian Leuzinger, Associate Professor, Auckland University of Technology Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Black rats are originally from India and brown rats are originally from China. Peter Banks, Professor of Conservation Biology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Cold fronts swept south-eastern Australia, bringing snow and freezing temperatures. While snow is expected to decrease with climate change, cold snaps are likely to keep coming. Andrew King, ARC DECRA fellow, University of Melbourne Blair Trewin, Climate scientist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Linden Ashcroft, Lecturer in climate science and science communication, University of Melbourne Sonya Fiddes, PhD Candidate in Climate Science, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

In the wake of decades of violence, ex-guerrillas in Colombia are making conservation part of the path to peace. Jaime Gongora, Associate Professor, Animal and Wildlife Genetics and Genomics, University of Sydney Federica Di Palma, Director of Science, Earlham Institute Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The world needs to move towards sustainable agriculture – but what is that, exactly? Australia urgently needs coherent policy. Jacqueline Williams, Senior Research Fellow & Lecturer, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A group of scientists want a new Geneva Convention to safeguard the environment during wars and conflicts. We already have such rules, but they're inadequate, inconsistent and unclear. Shireen Daft, Lecturer, Macquarie Law School, Macquarie University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.