The Conversation

Conflict between coal giant Adani, the Queensland government and traditional owners over harm to groundwater ecosystems stems from a flawed interpretation of the ‘adaptive management’ approach. Matthew Currell, Professor of Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, Griffith University Adrian Werner, Professor of Hydrogeology, Flinders University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The relationship between neighbours Australia and Indonesia has gone through major swings. Could the green transition offer a win-win? Cahyani Widi Larasakti, PhD Student in International Relations, The University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

We want healthy, liveable cities and to cut emissions to net zero. Getting more people to use bicycles instead of cars will go a long way towards achieving these goals. Melanie Davern, Associate Professor, Director Australian Urban Observatory, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University Afshin Jafari, Research Fellow, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University Alan Both, Senior Lecturer in Spatial Science, RMIT University Jago Dodson, Professor of Urban Policy and Director, Urban Futures Enabling Impact Platform, RMIT University Lucy Gunn, Senior Research Fellow, Healthy Liveable Cities Group, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University Qian (Chayn) Sun, Associate Professor of Geospatial Science, RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A record-breaking heatwave hit Delhi this week, hot on the heels of heat in Asia and Africa. Australians take note, we are not safe here. We need to prepare for heat to hit us just as hard. Liz Hanna, Honorary Associate Professor in Environmental Health, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The Net Zero Economy Authority will have a broad remit to support the net zero transition. Here are some pointers on how it could go about it, based on an assessment of best practice Frank Jotzo, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy and Head of Energy, Institute for Climate Energy and Disaster Solutions, Australian National University Llewelyn Hughes, Professor of Public Policy, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Rebecca Colvin, Associate professor, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

For more than three decades, Jane Goodall has inspired generations of conservationists through her youth-led action program Roots & Shoots. Now it’s time to take this approach into schools. Mahima Kalla, Digital Health Transformation Research Fellow, The University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Traditional methods based on trap, adopt or euthanise have failed to control cat numbers. An eight-year trial of a more supportive community cat desexing program has been a resounding success. Jacquie Rand, Emeritus Professor of Companion Animal Health, The University of Queensland Rebekah Scotney, Clinical Academic, School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland Tamsin Barnes, Inidustry Fellow, School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Labor came to power promising real change on climate. But their reliance on accounting tricks, carbon sinks, offsets and a future for gas has cast a very large cloud. Bill Hare, Adjunct Professor of Energy, Murdoch University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

We make long term plans for railways, submarines and manufacturing. Why not for getting ready for rising seas? Anthony Boxshall, Enterprise Fellow, The University of Melbourne Anna Grage, Visiting Research Fellow, University of Adelaide Tom Kompas, Professor of Environmental Economics and Biosecurity, The University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The free ecoSwitch app takes the guesswork out of sustainable food choices, empowering consumers to take matters into their own hands. Simone Pettigrew, Program Director of Food Policy, George Institute for Global Health Allison Gaines, PhD Candidate in Public Health and Epidemiology, Imperial College London Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Deforestation can make landslides more likely. But by itself, replanting trees isn’t enough to remove the risk. Raj Sharma, Lecturer, Civil Engineering, CQUniversity Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

There’s a strong case to be made for private landholders to conduct their own cool burns, for dual purposes of reducing fuel load and restoring the ecology. Gabriel Crowley, Adjunct associate professor in geography, University of Adelaide Stephen A Sutton, Adjunct associate in archaeology, Flinders University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

New Zealand tends to focus on big infrastructural projects such as tunnels or light rail to change cities. But there are cheaper ways to add public spaces to urban design. Simon Kingham, Professor of Human Geography, University of Canterbury Marco Amati, Professor of International Planning, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Underwater rivers ferry large volumes of seaweed from shallow seas into the deep, where its carbon is stored naturally Albert Pessarrodona Silvestre, Research Fellow in Ecology, The University of Western Australia Karen Filbee-Dexter, ARC Future Fellow in Marine Ecology, The University of Western Australia Mirjam van der Mheen, Research fellow, Oceanography, The University of Western Australia Thomas Wernberg, Professor of Marine Botany, The University of Western Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Illegal tin miners take their lives in their hands. The craters they leave behind fill with water – and attract crocs. Brandon Michael Sideleau, PhD student studying human-saltwater crocodile conflict, Charles Darwin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Whether we can recycle plastic or not depends on what it’s made of (because there are many different types of plastic), if it’s sufficiently clean and if enough people will buy recycled products. Sukhbir Sandhu, Associate Professor in Sustainability, University of South Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The ruling could be a legal game-changer for small island nations that are trying to hold developed nations to account for the impacts of their greenhouse gas emissions. Clive Schofield, Professor, Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security (ANCORS), University of Wollongong Karen Scott, Professor in Law, University of Canterbury Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia has all the key ingredients to build a booming battery industry. We just need to find the right cooks and co-ordinate all of this frantic activity to get this big opportunity right. Glen Thomas Currie, Energy Systems Program Impact Manager, Climateworks, Monash University, Monash University Anna Malos, Climateworks Centre - Country Lead, Australia, Monash University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Water is very heavy – and it can move. Until now, changes to water on land have actually offset much of the rising sea level from ice melt. How? Gravity Rebecca McGirr, Postdoctoral research fellow, Australian National University Anthony Purcell, Research Fellow, Australian National University Herbert McQueen, Research officer, Earth Sciences, Australian National University Paul Tregoning, Head, Climate and Ocean Geosciences, Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

As we launch into a Future Made in Australia, we need to map and better understand the social and economic risks – as well as potential benefits – for remote and disadvantaged communities. Deanna Kemp, Professor and Director, Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining, The University of Queensland John Burton, Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Social Responsility in Mining, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.