Habitat Australia articles from January 2008

Habitat Australia archives from January 2008

Australia ratifies the Kyoto Protocol.(NEWS & VIEWS)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... On December 3 2007 Prime Minister Kevin Rudd signed the instrument of ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. In his first official act as Prime Minister he has demonstrated the Government's commitment to tackling climate change. ...

Uranium sales: exporting insecurity.(NEWS & VIEWS)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... ACF has taken a strong stand against plans to sell Australian uranium to China and Russia. Both of these nuclear weapon states are in breach of international laws and treaties over the failure to disarm their stockpiles of weapons of mass...

Traveston crossing Dam Update.(NEWS & VIEWS)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... ACF is one of a number of national, state and local environment groups calling on both the State and Federal Labor Governments to reject the proposed Traveston Crossing Dam in South East Queensland. ACF sustainable cities campaigner, Kate...

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)'s Fourth Assessment Report (2007).(NEWS & VIEWS)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 'synthesis report', released last November in Valencia, Spain, sounds an urgent warning for Australia. ACF Executive Director Don Henry and Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, Director of...

Gunns Pulp Mill--what next?(NEWS & VIEWS)(the approval for Gunns Pulp Mill)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The decision on October 4th by then Federal Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull to issue an approval for the Gunns Pulp Mill was contingent upon the company conducting further research into a number of matters including the impacts of its...

Letter from the president.(NEWS & VIEWS)
January 1, 2008... The start of a new year is a good time to pause, reflect on the past 12 months and look forward to the challenges of the year ahead. This edition of Habitat does just that. In 2007, climate change emerged as a defining issue in the outcome...

Calling all green thumbs and budding gardeners!(NEWS & VIEWS)
January 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Meet the experts at the Gardening and Rare plants Expo at Tesselaar Gardens (home of the Tulip Festival) on February 23rd and 24th, 2008 at Silvan, just outside Melbourne. Meet more than 40 specialist growers and...

Not in my backyard!(NEWS & VIEWS)(Theater review)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The Surf 'n' Theatre Company presents an Aussie bush musical with an environmental twist. Wobble and Wattledust decide they need to defend their bush backyard. So the two friends work out a cunning plan of action... Catchy songs, lots of...

Vale Ted Roland, NSW.(NEWS & VIEWS)(Obituary)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The much loved environmental campaigner Ted Roland died on 7 November at the age of 92. Ted held many professions during the early years of his working career including technician and then later pilot during World War II. Later in his...

Gifts in memory.(NEWS & VIEWS)
January 1, 2008... Remember someone you care about with a gift-in-memory. By making a gift to ACF in memory of a family member, friend or colleague, you can honour their love of Australia's beautiful natural environment and help support our conservation...

Have you got what it takes to be an ACF Councillor?(NEWS & VIEWS)
January 1, 2008... ACF has two casual vacancies on Council for the period to November 2009. There is one vacancy in Tasmania and one in Queensland. The positions will be filled by a vote of Councillors. ACF Councillors come from a variety of backgrounds; each...

Clean up with Orange Power.(NEWS & VIEWS)(Orange Power Cleaning Products Inc.)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Spring into action and tackle household chores the green way with Orange Power's environmentally responsible cleaning products. Now you can clean everything from your clothes to carpets and because none of the cleaners contain harsh...

2007 Federal Election: the wash up: political advocacy and community engagement--how ACF help put the environment firmly on the 2007 Federal Election agenda.(Australian Conservation Foundation)
January 1, 2008... ACF lays the groundwork... Climate change and the environment featured strongly in the 2007 Federal Election. Polling conducted by the Climate Institute halfway through the six-week campaign revealed an increase from 62 per cent to 73 per...

Al Gore's Climate Project: reflections of the class of 2006: a year has passed since Al Gore trained 84 Australians to delivery his Climate Project presentation. Affectionately known as the class of '06', the inaugural participants of The Climate Project--Australia share their memories of the year.(CLIMATE CORNER)
January 1, 2008... LLOYD STUMER, FROM QUEENSLAND, started his work as a Climate Project presenter with a sense of deja vu. "I spent 13 years working for the Bureau of Meteorology and it felt a bit like back in '74 when Cyclone Tracy was bearing down on Darwin,"...

www.whoonearthcares.com: www.whoonearthcares.com is a ground-breaking website that allows Australians to register their concerns about climate change using cutting edge online technology. At the time of writing, nearly 17,000 Australians had logged on to www. whoonearthcares.com to express their thoughts about climate change and connect with others.(ANATOMY OF A CAMPAIGN)(Website overview)
January 1, 2008... The story so far... ACF had long been campaigning on the issue of climate change but in 2007, an important election year, wanted to communicate the issue with as many Australians as possible. ACF decided to develop an online campaign...

Cape York: mining boom or environmental bust? Staff from ACF's Northern Australia Program recently undertook a week-long trip to Cape York Peninsula. One of their stops was the mining town of Weipa where they came face-to-face with the mining boom.(Australian Conservation Foundation)
January 1, 2008... WEIPA SITS ON THE WEST COAST of Cape York Peninsula about 800km north-west of Cairns. It's remote, only accessible via the Peninsula Development Road. In the dry season, large trucks, 4WDs and motorbikes move up and down this dusty and...

2007: the year in review: it was a year of working together on climate change, a federal election, awards, world leaders, and a visit from a humble buddhist monk. It was 2007 ...
January 1, 2008... The climate heats up Climate change became the environmental front-runner of 2007 and ACF played a major role in putting it there. As the issue gained the global coverage it deserved, ACF put itself in top gear; broadening its...

Art for the environment's sake: a very special exhibition traces the history of ACF and the environmental movement--and gives you the opportunity to bid on a piece of history!(Australian Conservation Foundation)
January 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] FANCY AN EVENING OF SPIRITED BIDDING on some this country's most impressive works of art--all in the name of a good cause? You're in luck! The Australian Conservation Foundation is mounting an exhibition and...

Population and sustainable future: many economists believe population growth is good for the economy-but that doesn't mean we are better off.
January 1, 2008... WHEN I WAS ASKED TO WRITE about ACF's population policy, I was surprised to find our statement was adopted 15 years ago. So some of the detail has been overtaken by events, arguably increasing the need for concerted action. For example, the...

Ansto's reactor: costly, hot and very bothered: described by then-Prime Minister John Howard as a "triumph" at its opening in April last year, the new OPAL reactor at Lucas Heights remains shut down following serious operating problems. Dave Sweeney takes a look behind the razor wire and the secrecy surrounding Australia's main nuclear facility.(Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization)
January 1, 2008... IN 1958 PRIME MINISTER ROBERT MENZIES declared the dawn of new era in Australian science as he opened the Australian Atomic Energy Commission's HIFAR nuclear reactor at its Lucas Heights site in isolated bushland south of Sydney. In the...

Green apartment make-over: five years ago, ACF was left the generous bequest of a Sydney Harbour-front apartment at McMahon's Point. A wonderful financial asset for ACF's future, certainly. But with a little help and a lot of vision, this apartment also became a showcase for best-practice eco-renovation.(Australian Conservation Foundation)
January 1, 2008... THE MCMAHON'S POINT APARTMENT was in reasonable shape and boasted enviable views, but it was in original condition and ripe for renovation. So, after the tenants moved on, a decision was made by ACF to renovate. And it was fitting that the...

South Australia's Murray-Darling Wetlands: the deepening crisis: the Murray River and its wetlands are in ecological decline and some are on the brink of collapse, while our leaders drag their feet.
January 1, 2008... SAY THE WORD 'WETLANDS' in South Australia and the Coorong and Chowilla floodplain, key wetlands in the Murray-Darling Basin, spring to mind. These iconic and internationally significant places, located at the mouth of the River Murray and near...

The Ethical Investor.(Brief article)(Book review)
January 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Ethical Investor By Anne-Marie Spagnolo How do you shore up the desire to make money with environmental and humanitarian concerns? The Ethical Investor explains how. Author Anne-Marie Spagnolo--financial...

The Shock Doctrine.(Brief article)(Book review)
January 1, 2008... The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein Naomi Klein, best-selling author of No Logo, gives full rein to her investigative reporting skills in this disturbing account of the rise of 'disaster capitalism'--a term coined by the author to describe...

Hot-Spotting: an Australian delivering foreign aid.(Brief article)(Book review)
January 1, 2008... Hot-Spotting: an Australian delivering foreign aid By Rod Reeve Reliving his 25-year journey through the world's hot spots, experienced foreign aid worker Rod Reeve tells a dramatic and complex story of managing international aid projects...

A Slice of Organic Life.(Brief article)(Book review)
January 1, 2008... A Slice of Organic Life Editor-in-Chief Sheherazade Goldsmith Did you know that geese are more self-sufficient than ducks but are prone to sunstroke? Or that natural-fibre clothes can be discarded on a compost heap? A Slice of Organic...

Colin & Julie Crawford-Smith: ACF supporters, Colin and Julie, look back on the campaign to make GreenPower a genuine option for energy consumers.(SUPPORTER SPOTLIGHT)(Australian Conservation Foundation)
January 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] MANY OF TODAY'S environmentally aware citizens know about and have signed up to GreenPower, an energy scheme that allows users to purchase electricity from renewable sources such as solar, wind, small hydro and...