The Conversation

As Indonesia reels from two deadly earthquakes, it's time to rebuild smarter and stronger. Jonatan A Lassa, Senior Lecturer, Humanitarian Emergency and Disaster Management, Charles Darwin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia's distinctive native plants give our honey a distinctive stamp. Welcome to melissopalynology: the study of pollen. Kale Sniderman, Senior Research Fellow, School of Earth Sciences, University of Melbourne Kia Matley, PhD student, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The National Energy Guarantee faces a crunch test this week. And if the climate wars of the past few decades are any guide, Australian policies more often sink than swim when the waters get choppy. Marc Hudson, PhD Candidate, Sustainable Consumption Institute, University of Manchester Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Buying reusable bags every time you shop is worse than just using plastic. Trevor Thornton, Lecturer, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Farmers are calling for South Australia to ramp up its desalination plant to free up more water from the Murray Darling. Sarah Ann Wheeler, Professor in Water Economics, University of Adelaide Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The final design of the National Energy Guarantee promises that the policy will drive down power prices. But there is precious little evidence for this assertion. Salim Mazouz, Research Manager, Centre for Climate Economics and Policy, Australian National University Frank Jotzo, Director, Centre for Climate Economics and Policy, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Hugh Saddler, Honorary Associate Professor, Centre for Climate Economics and Policy, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

New types of biodegradable or compostable plastic products seem to offer an alternative to conventional plastics. But they may be no better for the environment. Thomas Neitzert, Professor emeritus, Auckland University of Technology Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Plastic bags are commonly mistaken for food by sea animals. They require a lot of energy and resources to be made, and have caused floods in some countries. Britta Denise Hardesty, Principal Research Scientist, Oceans and Atmosphere Flagship, CSIRO Qamar Schuyler, Research Scientist, Oceans and Atmospheres, CSIRO Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Providing thicker plastic bags for free is worse than pointless. It encourages the same wasteful habits, but with more damaging material. Kim Borg, Doctoral Candidate & Research Officer at BehaviourWorks Australia, Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Monash University Edwin Ip, Research Fellow, Monash University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The world has some 500 million square kilometres of ocean. But just 55 million square kilometres remain untouched by intensive human activities such as fishing. Kendall Jones, PhD candidate, Geography, Planning and Environmental Management, The University of Queensland Alan Friedlander, Researcher, University of Hawaii Benjamin Halpern, Professor, University of California, Santa Barbara Caitlin Kuempel, PhD Candidate in Conservation Science, The University of Queensland Carissa Klein, Postdoctoral research fellow in conservation biology, The University of Queensland Hedley Grantham, Research Associate, The University of Queensland Hugh Possingham, Professor, The University of Queensland James Watson, Professor, The University of Queensland Nicole Shumway, PhD Candidate, The University of Queensland Oscar Venter, Associate Professor and FRBC/West Fraser research chair, Ecosystem Science and Management Progam, University of Northern British Columbia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Climate mitigation efforts are unlikely to be enough to save critical ecosystems like the Great Barrier Reef. We may need to consider more radical environmental engineering. Kerryn Brent, Lecturer, Faculty of Law, University of Tasmania Brendan Gogarty, Senior Lecturer in Law, University of Tasmania Jan McDonald, Professor of Environmental Law, University of Tasmania Jeff McGee, Senior Lecturer in Climate Change, Marine and Antarctic Law Faculty of Law and Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A policy that aims to reshape the electricity sector needs to be judged on its numbers. But the lack of public modelling from the Energy Security Board makes it impossible for analysts to do this. Bruce Mountain, Director, Victoria Energy Policy Centre, Victoria University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Images of the aftermath of the Xepian-Xe Nam Noy dam collapse in Laos went around the world. But many other dam projects harm locals and the environment in less visible ways. Jason von Meding, Senior Lecturer in Disaster Risk Reduction, University of Newcastle Giuseppe Forino, PhD Candidate in Disaster Management, University of Newcastle Tien Le Thuy Du, PhD Candidate in Geosensing and water management, University of Houston Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Almost 30 years ago the world responded to the realisation that our ozone layer was in trouble. The resulting Montreal Protocol was a rare example of global cooperation, but there's no room for complacency. Shane Keating, Senior Lecturer in Mathematics and Oceanography, UNSW Darryn Waugh, Professor, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

All dogs need regular exercise outside of the home (and it's good for people too). Paul McGreevy, Professor of Animal Behaviour and Animal Welfare Science, University of Sydney Adrian Bauman, Professor of Public Health, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A pathogen is killing kauri trees in New Zealand and now threatens an ancient, sacred giant. The response to the biosecurity incursion pales in comparison to recent threats to agricultural crops. Matthew Hall, Associate Director, Research Services, Victoria University of Wellington Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

From Greece, to the UK, to Japan and even Sweden, a slew of places in the Northern Hemisphere are suffering extreme heat. And the chances of extreme heat records tumbling are growing all the time. Andrew King, ARC DECRA fellow, University of Melbourne Ben Henley, Research Fellow in Climate and Water Resources, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The 2016 heatwave that caused mass bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef didn't just kill corals - it also significantly changed the makeup of fish communities that call these reefs home. Rick Stuart-Smith, Research Fellow, University of Tasmania Christopher Brown, Research Fellow, Australian Rivers Institute, Griffith University Daniela Ceccarelli, Adjunct Senior Research, ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University Graham Edgar, Senior Marine Ecologist, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The seafood industry is a major contributor to modern slavery. Trevor J Ward, Adjunct professor, University of Technology Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

An attack on a WA mine worker has highlighted the danger of wild dingoes, particularly when attracted by humans' food - one of the factors that can make an attack by wild predators much more likely. Bill Bateman, Senior Lecturer, Curtin University Trish Fleming, Associate Professor, Murdoch University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.