Cities Nature Justice is a 3-day international symposium addressing the social science and science of sustainability. A key question for conference attendees will be: Can social sustainability be achieved at the same time as environmental sustainability? Building on the success of the Landscapes of Meaning symposium hosted in October 2006, Cities Nature Justice will similarly bring together environmental activists, advocates and communicators from India, China, South East Asia, Australia and the United States to discuss new approaches to understanding city environmental issues by bringing both social science and science to bear on key questions of public space, water and social justice.
17 August 2008
25 Tips to Make Your Apartment an Eco Friendly, Sustainable, Green Paradise!
Renting an apartment should not make you feel exempt from doing your part for the environment and saving yourself some money while you are at it. It may seem like most of the world is talking about “Going Green” but they are talking about their own homes and their cars. What about the apartment dwellers? Sydney's Pyrmont Village community website brings you 25 Tips to Make Your Apartment an Eco Friendly, Sustainable, Green Paradise!
Eco-shout exposes the green underbelly
Eco-shout was founded by an individual who found that, at the end of her student career as a green student, there was little information on what to do next; as a green volunteer it was hard to know where to match her interests and skills; as a green activist, resources were always thin on the ground; and in everyday life it was hard to find the alternatives available to an intensive consumer lifestyle. On her ensuing voyage through unemployment, organic gardening, urban green exploration and wild forest adventure, she discovered that there were a lot of people doing a lot of amazing things to protect, conserve and rehabilitate the unique Australian environment. She also met many people who, like her, wanted to apply their skills, meet like minded souls and ensconce themselves in earthy goodness, but were not always able to make the connections.
"With the environmental problems that Australia is facing today, it is unacceptable that people who want to apply their skills and energy to addressing these problems are missing out on the opportunity to do so due to lack of resources and support. It is also quite vexatious that so many great environmental groups and alternatives exist, yet are being underutilised because people don’t know about them." And so, with such thoughts in her head and still fresh from her discovery of Melbourne’s green underbelly, she set out to EXPOSE THE BELLY. Eco-shout Melbourne was created, followed by offspring Eco-shout Tasmania and Eco-shout Sydney.
Green Maps Around the World
Green Map System promotes inclusive participation in sustainable community development around the world, using mapmaking as the medium. Over 350 vibrant Green Maps have published to date, and hundreds more have been created in classrooms and workshops by youth and adults. Both the mapmaking process and the resulting Green Maps have tangible effects that:
- Strengthen local-global sustainability networks
- Expand the demand for healthier, greener choices
- Help successful initiatives spread to even more communities
Melbourne's natural environment under the microscope
In a media release on 30 June Victoria's Environment and Climate Change Minister Gavin Jennings announced that the Brumby Government will ask the Victorian Environmental Assessment Council (VEAC) to undertake new investigations of how Crown land can contribute to Melbourne’s liveability and native vegetation. Minister Jennings said the Metropolitan Melbourne Investigation and the Remnant Native Vegetation Investigation would help Victoria plan for the future.
“The Metropolitan Melbourne Investigation will help inform the Brumby Government on how Crown land can enhance our city’s liveability and its natural environment,” Mr Jennings said. “The Remnant Native Vegetation Investigation will help identify Crown land that contributes to biodiversity. Climate change is predicted to have serious impacts on our biodiversity, so these patches of native vegetation will become increasingly important. By looking at remnant vegetation we can link critical habitat to help animals to move between areas of native vegetation that are now fragmented or to better protect existing habitat.”
Thousands to trial solar city venture in Perth
The West Australian
11th August 2008
More than 6000 Perth homes and businesses are expected to take part in a solar city trial. Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett announced the $13.9million program today. Under the plans, Perth will become the country's seventh solar city as part of a $94million Federal Government election promise...
Click here to read the full article in The West Australian.
TREENET 9th National Street Tree Symposium Adelaide 4-5 September 2008
With the theme "The Role of Trees & Arboriculture in the 21st Century", the 9th National Street Tree Symposium features two days of presentations, demonstrations and participation that will excite you about the value of trees and your unique role in improving the urban environment. The Symposium is being organised by TREENET, an independent non-profit organisation dedicated to improving the urban forest.
World Sustainable Building Conference 2008, Melbourne, 21- 25 September 2008
SB08 is a Conference that all those involved in any aspect of building, planning and policy making should not miss. It is an opportunity to network with the best in the sustainable built environment sector, be more informed, and be prepared for the future. A formidable list of acclaimed international speakers will challenge conventional thinking. SB08 outcomes will determine how different countries will respond to the challenge of applying a sustainability-filter to government and business policy on building and planning.
World-class environment vision for Mt Lofty Ranges
Associate Professor David Paton AM from the University of Adelaide will spearhead a world-class project to help revegetate the Mount Lofty Ranges, to stave off the effects of climate change and halt the loss of bird, animal and plant species. The multi-million-dollar program aims to:
- help re-establish native vegetation to 30% of the Mt Lofty region - an unprecedented scale globally
- prevent the loss of native flora and fauna
- promote the return of some native species that have disappeared across the Ranges
- provide major environmental outcomes that will benefit the State and local communities for generations to come
Rainwater tanks could save public $600m
Melissa Fyfe
The Age
August 10, 2008
TAXPAYERS would save more than $600 million if every new house and apartment block in Victoria was built with a rainwater tank, a State Government-commissioned study has found.
But the economic study found that conserving water was only a small bonus of widespread rainwater tanks. The biggest benefit would be in saving the Government millions of dollars in managing storm water...
Click here to read the full article in The Age.
Parks and Leisure Australia Conference, Melbourne, 9 - 12 November 2008
This year’s Parks and Leisure Australia (PLA) conference promises to offer everyone from the policy maker to the on-ground professional, senior manager, practitioner and student, a host of challenges and innovative ideas to discuss and workshop during the conference and to utilize back in the workplace. The conference theme, “Creating a Sense of PLAce” will focus on the role of the parks and leisure industry in Australia and highlight the significance of PLAnning and creating special PLAces for PLAy (being mindful of the challenges we face with climate change), managing and maintaining the PLAce engaging people, promoting the PLAce and confirming its importance to our society. Last year’s conference in Townsville was over subscribed so be sure to register early to avoid disappointment.
10 August 2008
Energy and Equity - Preparing households for climate change: equity, efficiency, immediacy
Climate change is one of the most pressing issues facing Australian society. The impacts of climate change will be particularly harsh on low income households and disadvantaged communities. CHOICE, ACOSS and ACF have joined forces to find fair responses to the climate change challenge that benefit all Australian households, including those on low incomes, publishing the report Energy and Equity - Preparing households for climate change: equity, efficiency, immediacy.
'Write it up' environmental education guide and workshops
The Write it up! guide was recently published by the Australian Association for Environmental Education (AAEE)(NSW) to assist educators in developing case studies of successful community education projects.
AAEE NSW, in association with Living Schools, is also delivering a series of free workshops in NSW based on the guide. Following the workshops, committed participants with outstanding projects will be provided with one-on-one support to complete and publish their case study for the benefit of other educators, providing valuable exposure for their program. The first of ten workshops will be held in Blacktown in Sydney on Friday 15th August; a flier is attached for your information. A second workshop will be held on the Central Coast on 28th August, with further sessions planned for regional areas later in the year. If you are interested to attend, please get in touch as soon as possible as places are limited.
Proceedings of Indian Myna workshop now available
“Proceedings of the North Coast Indian Myna Workshop” held in October 2007 in Coffs Harbour NSW are now available from the NSW NPWS Dorrigo Rainforest Centre. Price $30. People interested in purchasing it through mail order can call the Rainforest Centre on 02 6657 2309 or email dorrigo.rainforestcentre@environment.nsw.gov.au.
'Transition Towns' tackling peak oil and climate change head on
What is a Transition Town (or village / city / forest / island)? A Transition Initiative is a community working together to look peak oil and climate change squarely in the eye and address this BIG question: "for all those aspects of life that this community needs in order to sustain itself and thrive, how do we significantly increase resilience (to mitigate the effects of Peak Oil) and drastically reduce carbon emissions (to mitigate the effects of Climate Change)?" The resulting coordinated range of projects across all these areas of life leads to a collectively designed energy descent pathway. There are already several Australian communities participating in the worldwide Transition Towns Initiative.
Assessing the effectiveness of coastal management education
This research study by the Australian Research Institute in Education for Sustainability (ARIES) at Macquarie University considered the current effectiveness of various coastal management education approaches through a review of case studies and experiences throughout Australia, as well as selected international locations. The reviews were combined with a synthesis of literature on how education programs can most effectively promote not only awareness, but also participation and action to improve stewardship and management of the coast.
Sydney BioBlitz08 - Sunday 28 September
Want to be part of an outdoor search party exploring plant and animal wildlife with your very own expert? Imagine peering into bat traps, hunting for reptiles under rocks and logs or searching by torchlight for possums and gliders high in the treetops. On Sunday 28 September 2008 National Parks Association of NSW (NPA) and its NatureKeepers Program in co-operation with the City of Sydney and event partners Centennial Parklands, Moore Park Trust and Sydney Olympic Park, bring you an event that lets you do just that, with NatureKeepers BioBlitz08!
Join BioBlitz08 and you will team up with science experts from the fields of Botany, Mammals, Spiders and Insects, Birds, Reptiles and Frogs to participate in a fun, friendly hands-on biodiversity survey of plant and animal wildlife. Learn, explore, discover and record as many plants and animals as possible over a 24 hour period, and help provide a 'snapshot' account of the wildlife living in your urban backyard.
Centre for the Advancement of Green Roof Technology, Canada
The Centre for the Advancement of Green Roof Technology is evaluating the function and performance of extensive green roofs and living walls in the rainforest climate of coastal British Columbia in Canada. Through collaborations with industry, government and academic partners, the the Centre's vision is to help advance the widespread adoption of green roof and living wall technologies in the region.
Call for Papers/Presenters and Workshop Convenors - Queensland Coastal Conference 2009
The Queensland Coastal Conference 2009 will be the second State coastal conference to be held in Queensland and will provide an ideal opportunity for coastal planners and managers, social planners, community groups, engineers, scholars, the tourism and recreation industry and the development industry to share ideas and workshop solutions to assist in maintaining the values of Queensland's coastal landscapes. The theme "Waves of Change" aims to reflect the need for the immediacy of coastal issues to be recognised and addressed in a new way to avoid past mistakes and work towards a sustainable future. If you are passionate about Queensland's coastline and want to make a difference by sharing your experiences and knowledge with others then we encourage you to submit an abstract. The deadline for submitting abstracts is Wednesday 3 September 2008.
