There is increasing interest in owning wild and exotic animals and the internet is able to serve up whatever your heart desires, even if importing these animals is illegal.
Continue reading “Exotic plants and animals: the illegal wildlife trade happening right under your nose”
What happened when the head of Engineering for Google Australia and the Professor and author behind Australia’s first ever textbook on Marine Ecology came together? Nothing short of the miraculous bringing back to life of an extinct ecosystem in the waters of Australia’s biodiverse southern coastline.
And what’s next on the sparkly horizon?
Water is finally back on the global table after 46 years of not being discussed at a global scale conference. Conservation, salinity, pricing, agriculture, cultural use – the list goes on. Is the subject of water rights at risk of getting lost in an endless talk fest? Where do we start when trying to come up with solutions to the many water issues we face on a local and global scale? What even are ‘water rights’?
In this podcast episode host Prof Andy Lowe Interim Director of the Environment Institute University of Adelaide, speaks with Assoc Prof Peter Burdon and Prof Sarah Wheeler, both from the University of Adelaide. Sarah is a water economist from the School of Economics and Public Policy, and Peter is an expert in environmental law from the Adelaide Law School.
Continue reading “Water: too much, too little, too dirty”
Nature is threatened, but it is also messy and complex. Ecologist try to untangle the mess of conservation, governments and industry. Small landowners are trying to help too. How do we work to save life on Earth?
How do we get the scale of investment required to restore our degraded land? Can we create markets for nature? Where does the money come from? And who are the buyers?
In this episode host Prof Andy Lowe Interim Director of the Environment Institute University of Adelaide, speaks with renowned ecologist Prof Hugh Possingham about the need to set aside 30% of every different kind of habitat for conservation in order to sustain the health of our global biodiversity and to establish biodiversity markets to drive these outcomes.
Continue reading “Markets for nature. What’s the currency of biodiversity?”
When we discuss ‘Climate Change Solutions’ or ‘Saving the Environment’ we may think of advances in technology, new scientific discoveries or powerful policy changes.
But the truth is, our relationship with our planet today relies on more than just science and technology – it relies on the humanities, the arts, musicians, performers, activists and a whole range of players to make it happen.
Continue reading “Music – a solution to climate change?”
Globally, food and natural resource production is going through the biggest change since the industrial revolution. Rather than merely focussing on improved and cheaper production, current changes are driven by a maelstrom of influences, many of them with sustainability at heart.
Continue reading “Megatrends in sustainable food and fibre production”
Planning for the future and breaking new ground across industries must involve improving our natural environment along the way. Our lives and livelihoods depend on it
Announcing a new podcast, in which we hear from people leading the way, not only in imagining, but also providing solutions for a future with environmental sustainability in mind.
We speak to scientific experts, industry leaders, artists, adventurers, and committed personalities who make connections in their local and global communities, making life on earth a priority in their grand plans. They are the Eco Futurists.
So Ive been thinking for some time about the dynamics of sustainable future development, and have come up with a concept – EcoFuturism.
Continue reading “Eco Futurism”
Australia is preparing to make substantial investments in the assets, facilities and services that support research and innovation. So what do these facilities support?
Continue reading “The pillars of Australia’s research system”
Australia’s research infrastructure is world-class and supports our innovation, research and development activities.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Australia’s research infrastructure has contributed to global efforts to develop vaccine and treatment options as well as furthering our understanding of infection biology, and will be crucial to support Australia’s socio-economic recovery post-COVID-19.
Continue reading “How Australian research infrastructure supports global efforts during COVID-19”
Prof Andy Lowe 