Habitat Australia articles from April 2008

Habitat Australia archives from April 2008

Minutes of the ACF Annual General Meeting.(Australian Conservation Foundation )(Conference notes)
April 1, 2008... Held at 6.30 pm on Saturday 24 November 2007 at ACF's Melbourne Office, 60 Leicester Street, Carlton, Victoria 3053 1. Welcome President Ian Lowe welcomed all those present. 2. Attendance Attendance was as registered on entry...

Study to minimise ad hoc development in Kimberley.(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... Over the past 12 months, Australian and international resource companies have stepped up their efforts to start mining the large offshore reserves of LNG in the Browse Basin, some 400km north-west of Broome. On February 5 this year, the...

ACF Art and Artefacts auction.(Australian Conservation Foundation)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ACF wishes to thank everyone who attended the Art and Artefacts auction at the Christine Abrahams gallery in Melbourne. There was some spirited bidding on many items with many people walking away with a little piece...

Eco-art: GreenGallery Guide launch.(NEWS & VIEWS)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... The Australian art community is showing its eco-sensibility through the launch of the GreenGallery Guide, a collaboration between ACF and the Australian Commercial Galleries Association (ACGA) that was launched in February. [ILLUSTRATION...

ACF news.(Australian Conservation Foundation )(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... In January this year ACF celebrated the first issue of our new-look eNewsletter. You will receive this monthly bulletin on environmental news, the latest on ACF campaigns and information about how you can get involved. If ACF does not have your...

Letter from the executive director.(Australia on Kyoto Protocol)
April 1, 2008... Australia has entered a critical period in the quest to tackle climate change. We are post-IPCC reports, post-election and post-Bali. Last year three landmark reports from the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change...

Slow food in Northern Australia.(ethnic foof festival)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Through our Northern Australia Program office in Cairns, ACF brought a bit of Cape York Peninsula to Melbourne in February. Speaking during the 'Slow Rivers, Healthy Communities' session as part of A Taste of...

ACF & Origin: making a difference together.(Australian Conservation Foundation )(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... A big part of ACF's success in raising public awareness of dangerous climate change is because we work on the best science, and we work with governments, community groups and progressive companies. In 2006 ACF worked with six of Australia's...

Exporting troubles.(uranium deals of Russia and Australia)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... At the APEC Summit in September 2007, former Prime Minister John Howard and Russian President Vladimir Putin made a treaty deal to clear the way for Australian uranium sales to Russia. ACF is calling on the Federal Labor Government to take...

Win an environmentally friendly chess board!(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Espace has just launched the world's first environmentally friendly chess board, and is giving Habitat readers a chance to win one of four. Made from recycled materials including car tyres, wood and metal, the...

Environmental heroes.(NEWS & VIEWS)
April 1, 2008... Here's your chance to become an environmental hero! Over the next nine months join Anthony Pratt--founder of the Australian Recycling Movement and CEO of paper and packaging giant Pratt Industries USA)--The Australian Women's Weekly and ACF in...

Save the Mary River turtle.(ANATOMY OF A CAMPAIGN)
April 1, 2008... LET ME INTRODUCE MARY, the punk turtle. She lives in the Mary River in South East Queensland--sadly, the same river where the Queensland Government has proposed an environmentally disastrous dam at Traveston Crossing. So punk is probably the...

Men of the match: the climate project odd couple putting their own spin on climate change: UK comedy sensation Mark Watson and former Wallaby rugby union lock Alex Kanaar have more in common than meets the eye. They are both picking up where Al Gore left off.
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THEY COULD NOT BE MORE DIFFERENT in stature and chosen career path--but in outlook and determination they are very much the same. At the November 2007 The Climate Project--Australia training session, Alex Kanaar and...

Report launch: a cultural and conservation economy for Northern Australia.(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] INDIGENOUS AND REMOTE COMMUNITIES in Northern Australia face significant sustainability challenges, but a new report commissioned by ACF in conjunction with Land and Water Australia has found that long-term...

ACF Campaign leads to legal action on wetlands.(Australian Conservation Foundation )(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... IN JULY LAST YEAR ACF publicly exposed the fact that 500 hectares of wetland had been bulldozed in the Gwydir Valley, north-west NSW. ACF led a campaign to expose this environmental vandalism, ensuring that it received the national media...

An unholy water crisis: what can Australia learn about water management from Israel? Dr Paul Sinclair travelled to the Middle East to find out.
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] IN JANUARY I TRAVELLED TO ISRAEL with Ben Fargher from the National Farmers Federation, Jewel Topsfeld from The Age, Tony McLeod from the Australian Government, and Ray Ison from the University of Melbourne. The tour...

What is ecofashion? After food, clothing is the area of consumerism that has the largest impact on the environment. But is it possible for consumers to make better environmental choices, or does the responsibility rest with the fashion industry?
April 1, 2008... ECO-FASHION IS A COMPLEX and a constantly evolving phenomenon. The terms 'ecological' or 'environmentally friendly' fashion usually refer to textile and clothing production processes and the environmental issues surrounding them. On the other...

Towards a green budget: the coming Budget presents the new Government with an unparalleled opportunity to ensure a sustainable and prosperous future for Australia. But will it be an opportunity wasted or seized?
April 1, 2008... THE 2008-09 BUDGET will be handed down in Federal Parliament on May 13, and according to ACE it's time for a green budget. To begin with, the Government can generate significant savings by phasing out existing tax and spending concessions...

Salt of the earth: two-bedroom solar-powered home for less than $250,000: take a tour of this amazing home that combines energy-and water-smart design with style and affordability.
April 1, 2008... IT'S THE CONUNDRUM OF OUR TIMES. We worry about how much energy and water we use, while rising land values and traditional views on housing encourage bigger homes, with more bedrooms, bathrooms and entertainment areas, on smaller blocks at...

My GreenHome: Clare O'bryan, Ballarat GreenHome workshop series participant, talks nappies, worms, and how her life has taken a turn for the sustainable.
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Had you thought much about sustainability prior to attending the GreenHome workshops? "We had started doing a few things before the workshops, particularly to reduce our water consumption. We were already...

Werribee Plains project: a model of sustainability ACF is working with the Victorian State Government to transform an area in Melbourne's west into an internationally renowned green region.(Australian Conservation Foundation )
April 1, 2008... IN AUGUST 2002 the Victorian State Government launched the Vision for Werribee Plains program. ACF is now part of this program, working with the State Department of Sustainability and Environment to add definition, research capacity, education...

Slow food, healthy communities: ever considered the link between a bowl of steamy Vietnamese pho and the mighty Mekong River? How about the connection between Australia's mismanagement of our own Murray-Darling Rivers and the Mekong?
April 1, 2008... THE MEKONG DELTA is one of the most important rice producing regions in Asia. It is this fertile delta which has sustained centuries of rice eating culture and tradition. And it is the availability of abundance of rice that inspires a vast...

What sorts of things do government invest your money in? Governments across Australia--federal, state and territory--are pretty keen to spruik their green credentials these days. But how do they go putting their money (or rather, your money) where their mouths are?
April 1, 2008... THAT'S ONE OF THE QUESTIONS underpinning a new piece of research released by ACF in March. The study, Responsible Public Investment in Australia, looked at the really big buckets of money (anything over $50 million) controlled by...

Climate Law in Australia.(Brief article)(Book review)
April 1, 2008... Climate Law in Australia Edited by Tim Bonyhady & Peter Christoff [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] During the Federal election, the Australian public demanded action on climate change and the new Federal Government responded quickly,...

A Reef in Time: the Great Barrier Reef from Beginning to End.(Brief article)(Book review)
April 1, 2008... A Reef in Time: the Great Barrier Reef from Beginning to End By J. E. N. Veron Time is running out for the Great Barrier Reef, and no one knows it better than J. E. N. Veron, former chief scientist with the Australian Institute of...

On Borrowed Time: Australia's Environmental Crisis and what we must do about it.(Brief article)(Book review)
April 1, 2008... On Borrowed Time: Australia's Environmental Crisis and what we must do about it. By David Lindenmayer The author, Professor of Ecology and Conservation Science at the Australia National University, makes clear his book's intention at...

Crude: the incredible journey of oil.(Brief article)(Video recording review)
April 1, 2008... A documentary about oil? OK, we know what you're thinking: how interesting could it possibly be? Dr David Suzuki calls this "A thoughtful, surprising and really important film". And he's right; this is a fascinating, thought-provoking...

John Free: at the beginning of this year, ACF supporter, member, bequestor and staffer John Free took the plunge into "semi-retirement". For 23 months before that, John Free performed a vital role for the ACF Bequests team in our Melbourne office. But his association with the organisation goes back a lot further.(SUPPORTER SPOTLIGHT)
April 1, 2008... JOHN FREE JOINED ACF As A SUPPORTER in 1998. "Jabiluka prompted me to join, after a long-time interest in the uranium mine/ nuclear debate and the Indigenous involvement of the Mirrar people. It was during that campaign that I met [ACF...