The Conversation

The Western Australian coral reefs may not be as well known as the Great Barrier Reef, but they're just as large and diverse. And they too have been devastated by cyclones and coral bleaching. James Paton Gilmour, Research Scientist: Coral Ecology, Australian Institute of Marine Science Rebecca Green, Postdoctoral research associate, University of Western Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Far more megafauna species use coastal wetlands than we thought. And it affects the way we need to address the extinction crisis. Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Rod Connolly, Professor in Marine Science, Griffith University Tom Rayner, Science Communicator, Griffith University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Removing human-related methane from the atmosphere could reduce global warming by 15%. Pep Canadell, Chief research scientist, CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere; and Executive Director, Global Carbon Project, CSIRO Rob Jackson, Chair, Department of Earth System Science, and Chair of the Global Carbon Project, globalcarbonproject.org, Stanford University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A global research effort is targeting inherited disorders in dogs. Paul McGreevy, Professor of Animal Behaviour and Animal Welfare Science, University of Sydney Bethany Wilson, Honorary Affiliate, University of Sydney Frank Nicholas, Emeritus Professor of Animal Genetics, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

What makes people more likely to trust a climate change message? If it looks too corporate, it's more likely to fail. Rebecca Green, Lecturer, UNSW Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Now that the Coalition has won the federal election, how will it meet its campaign promises on taxes, the environment, education, health and infrastructure? Corey J. A. Bradshaw, Matthew Flinders Fellow in Global Ecology and Models Theme Leader for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, Flinders University Miranda Stewart, Professor, University of Melbourne Peter Goss, School Education Program Director, Grattan Institute Phillip O'Neill, Director, Centre for Western Sydney, Western Sydney University Stephen Duckett, Director, Health Program, Grattan Institute Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

What if Bob Hawke, hailed as a leader who actually 'got' environmental issues, had never been rolled by Paul Keating? Perhaps the climate policy wars would have turned out differently. Marc Hudson, Researcher, University of Manchester, University of Manchester Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Stockwellia has links back to the epoch before Australia separated into its own continent and was mostly covered in rainforest. Andrew Thornhill, Research botanist at the Botanic Gardens and State Herbarium of South Australia/Environment Institute, University of Adelaide Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The entire Cocos (Keeling) Island group is a little more than twice the size of the Melbourne CBD. So it’s hard to envision 414 million debris items washed up there. Jennifer Lavers, Research Scientist, University of Tasmania Annett Finger, Adjunct Research Fellow, Victoria University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Voters disagree on importance of climate change, universally dislike current energy and environment policy. Michelle Baddeley, Director, Research Professor Institute for Choice, University of South Australia Karen Cong, Senior Programmer, University of South Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Here are the promises and policies of the Coalition, Labor, the Greens, One Nation and more. Sarah Bekessy, Professor, RMIT University Alex Kusmanoff, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Inter-disciplinary Conservation (ICON) Science Research Group, RMIT University Ascelin Gordon, Research Fellow, Global Studies, Social Science & Planning, RMIT University Emily Gregg, PhD Candidate, RMIT University Freya Thomas, Research Fellow, RMIT University Georgia Garrard, Senior Research Fellow, Interdisciplinary Conservation Science Research Group, RMIT University Holly Kirk, Post Doctoral Fellow, RMIT University Jeremy Ringma, Conservation Scientist, RMIT University Katherine Berthon, PhD Candidate, RMIT University Lindall Kidd, PhD Candidate, RMIT University Marco Gutierrez, PhD Student, RMIT University Mathew Hardy, Research Officer, Biodiversity Conservation, RMIT University Matthew Selinske, PhD Student in Conservation Science, RMIT University Michael Harrison, Research Fellow, RMIT University Roshan Sharma, PhD student, RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Everything you need to know – where it is, the environmental impact, Indigenous land rights issues and actual profitability – of the Adani Carmichael coal mine in one simple interactive. Michael Hopkin, Acting Editor, FactCheck, The Conversation Madeleine De Gabriele, Deputy Editor: Energy + Environment Wes Mountain, Multimedia Editor Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia's frustrating policy deadlock shows a lack of vision, encouraged by nasty short-term politics. Helen Camakaris, Visitor in the School of Biosciences, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Nation-wide climate legislation would not only help reduce our carbon emissions, but also boost economic growth. Anna Skarbek, CEO at ClimateWorks Australia, Monash University Anna Malos, Project Manager, climate and energy policy, ClimateWorks Australia Cameron Hepburn, Professor of Environmental Economics, University of Oxford Matthew Carl Ives, Senior Researcher in Economics, University of Oxford Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia hasn’t done much planning to prepare for the shift away from coal. But it’s not too late to learn from international experiences. Chris Briggs, Research Principal, Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney Elsa Dominish, Senior Research Consultant, Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney Franziska Mey, Senior Research Consultant, Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Transitioning to renewable energy will cost us something, but the benefits far outweigh the price. Glyn Wittwer, Professorial Fellow at the Centre of Policy Studies and IMPACT Project, Victoria University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

It would take 17 days to respond to an oil spill in the Great Australian Bight. And that's the best-case scenario. Sarah Duffy, Lecturer, School of Business, Western Sydney University Christopher Wright, Professor of Organisational Studies, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

One thing I can tell you is that a snail's bottom is right over its head. Bill Bateman, Associate professor, Curtin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Here's how the coalition, Labor and the Greens stack up against the Paris targets. Kate Dooley, Research fellow, Climate and Energy College, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Simply giving the Commonwealth more power won't fix the Murray-Darling Basin crisis. Adam Webster, Departmental Lecturer in Law and Public Policy, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.