Climate Conversations

Barrie Slatter (pictured) was a recent speaker at the Goulburn Valley University of The Third Age Natural Resources session and here he talks with us on "Climate Conversations". Barrie, from Great Britain, is a great fan of Australia and has been here nearly 40 times, a string of visits that began when a teacher exchange program saw him lecturing at Dookie College. His presentation at the GVU3A to...

Rob Priestly (pictured in the Melbourne Age) has brought the fire and passion of an independent candidate to the usually conservative seat of Nicholls in northern  Victoria. Today's Melbourne Age (Sunday, May 15) carried the story: "‘One of the most likely to fall’: independent push gathers steam in regional Victoria". Also in The Melbourne Age, reporter Jane Sullivan tells readers: "Top Australia...

Investigative journalist, Rachel Donald, is behind the podcast "Planet Critical" and uses that platform to talk with influential people from all around the world. She says: "Essentially, it’s our behaviour that’s at the root of the problem. But so often this isn’t addressed as the root. Our economic system claims tech will save us from ourselves—but imagine we do find a silver bullet, do we have t...

Here is something different, "The Sweaty Penguin" podcast, argued to be "Antarctica's Hottest Podcast". Take a listen to the Business Green podcast: "Net Zero Innovate Podcast 2 Lord Adair Turner and the exciting world of green industrial innovation". Other Quick Climate Links for today are: "‘Criminalising our right to protest’: green groups’ anger over public order bill"; "Queensland floods: wom...

Peter Lewis (pictured) is the Director of the Sydney-based Essential Media and advocates for a strong civil society. Essential Media is many things, among them a polling company that gauges the attitudes and values of Australian society and through that work, Peter has a sound grasp of what it is that people here want and need, and how particular issues should be addressed. Peter is convinced that...

Melbourne's Professor John Wiseman (pictured) was one of a trio of speakers in a webinar, "What regions need on the path to net zero" organised by "The Next Economy". Other speakers were The Next Economy CEO, Dr Amanda Cahill, and Dr Gareth Edwards from the "University of East Anglia". Enjoy "Music for a Warming World". Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/climateconversations

Visit Sarah Wilson's podcast, "Wild" and hear about how to 'vote climate' on "THIS WILD ELECTION: EP 8, How to #voteclimate, with Richie Merzian". Today's Melbourne Age carries a fascinating, and critical piece, from the paper's Economics Editor, Ross Gittkins - "In this election, one critical issue stands above all others". Other Quick Climate Links for today are: "Greenhouse effect: Palms and la...

Simon Kerr (pictured) is known to many because of his music group, "Music for a Warming World", but his feel for words extends well past song lyrics, extending to this thoughtful and almost jarring piece about the climate crisis. Simon's most recent piece of writing - "It’s time to rapidly rethink the climate crisis"  - has appeared on the international website, Medium. Although Simon would never...

Finding success in failure can be little more than a "mind trick" or it can be a reality - my visit to the Echuca Moama Market on Mother's Day, Sunday, May 8, was in terms of recording interviews for this podcast, was unquestionably a failure, but for me, it was a success. This podcast is about keeping people abreast of climate change and helping them understand how they should respond  and that i...

Author, podcaster and "Climate Engager", Sarah Wilson (pictured), was one of six guests on a webinar staged last night (Friday, April 6) by the Australian Conservation Foundation - the event was entitled "Together We Can Solve the Climate Crisis". The six-strong panel took a deep dive into climate solutions that are here now, and ready to go. Taking Sarah's advice, check out the George Carlin clip...

Tatura's Jacob Dedman (pictured)has faithfully recorded images of the birds living in the town's Cussen Park, publishing them in a book, a book that is now available in its second printing; an improved edition. More can be discovered about the 17-year-old photographer at his website - "Digital Journey Photography". The birds of Cussen Park, just like our birds everywhere, need our help and it's th...

A public forum at Melbourne's St Paul's Cathedral entitled "Fighting a Climate Emergency" was held under a huge three dimensional (it is seven metres across) artwork of Gaia created by British artist, Luke Jerram. Ever worsening warnings of trouble for the Shepparton-based Nicholls electorate has reached a new level with the Climate Council declaring the Federal Seat to be the worst in Australia w...

President of the Goulburn Valley Environment Group, John Pettigrew (pictured), argues for leadership to help Australians navigate the climate crisis. Mr Pettigrew was interviewed by the ABC about the flooding in Nicholls and the fact that some 25% of homes in Shepparton will be uninsurable in the story - "Climate Council finds 25pc of homes in Nicholls electorate will be uninsurable by 2030 as flo...

Climate Conversations is eager to hear from ordinary people (I say that, but there is really no such thing as in our own way we are all unique and so rather special) about what they think about climate change. We will have a short conversation about the dilemma, I'll record that chat to create a new episode for Climate Conversations. So please come along a have a chat with me - I'll be set up and...

Shepparton's new multi-million dollar courthouse (pictured) is, along with the rest of the city, at risk of being uninsurable because of risks posed by climate change -  Shepparton proper is on a flood plain and so threatened with flooding. Yes, Shepparton is a benign place, but it is strikingly flat and while for decades that has been a bonus allowing for extensive irrigation, it is now a burden...

Charlie Prell (pictured) chairs Farmers for Climate Action and talks here with Climate Conversations about a recent media release from the group, "Farmers deserve certainty on net-zero target". Charlie's sheep farm at Crookwell, about an hour north of Canberra on the New South Wales southern highlands, hosts a wind farm and being able to see one of the turbines from his kitchen window, Charlie has...

Professor David Karoly (pictured) is retired and no longer working with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and having shed those shackles he can now present publicly with the honesty and frankness for which he had become known. A story from The Guardian has quoted him:  - "CSIRO has become ‘extravagant consulting company’, one of its former top climate scienti...

Today we have something of a mixed bag. First, we hear from a new member of the Climactic Collective, "The BIrd Emergency"; The publisher of the Climactic Collective, Mark Spencer, moved from Melbourne to New Zealand but has now moved back to the Victoria capital and reports from a small park above one of the city's freeways. Setting itself up for the Federal election, The Conversation polled some...

The podcast "Nourishing Matters to Chew On" talked with the Chief Executive of the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation (ARLF), Matt Linnegar, who helped us grasp more completely the importance of good leadership in these different and difficult times. Nourishing Matters to Chew is one of the many podcasts hosted by the "Climactic Collective" Other Quick Climate Links for today are: "‘It’s just...

Hello everyone! Ngadyu narri Coedie - My name is Coedie  As a Wangan Jagalingou man, I invite you to come to my Country.  I am writing to you from Waddananggu, where we have occupied Wangan and Jagalingou homelands for over 6 months now opposite the Adani/Bravus Carmichael mine pit.  I am inviting you to join me on my homelands for the Annual Tour De Carmichael – Cycle for Countrybeing held on Wan...

Better Futures Australia pulled together a powerful array of speakers to help us better understand the role transport plays in taking us closer to a plan to lower our carbon dioxide emissions. The event was hosted by Climate Action Network Australia's Program Director for Better Futures Australia, Lisa Cliff, and featured a researcher from The Australia Institute, Audrey Quicke; a Project Manager...

Senator Matt Canavan (pictured) has declared LNP's net-zero by 2050 target as "dead". Subsequently, some of his National Party compatriots have told him to "pull his head in". You can read about that in this story - "Net-zero ‘dead’: Nationals force climate war eruption in Coalition" and hear his National Party counterpart, Michelle Landry, telling him the pull his head in - "Matt Canavan told to...

Andrea Otto (pictured) is urgently worried about the climate crisis and as a Fusion Party candidate is seeking election on May 21 to the Federal, Seat of Nicholls. Andrea lives near Gunbower and works as an accountant with the Swan Hill Rural City Council and sees her home patch near Gunbower with its forests and magnificent waterways as both an inspiring and wonderful place to live. She is concer...

Bill Lodwick (pictured) represented the Australian Labor Party at the 2019 Federal Election when he contested the Seat of Nicholls and he is back again to contest the seat in the May 21 election. The Labor candidate was one of nine who fronted an audience of about 200 people at a "Nicholls Federal Election Candidates Forum " organized by the Committee for Greater Shepparton. The candidates' forum...

Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner (pictured) is a Marshallese climate activist and a poet convinced that words and art will help us deal with the climate crisis - she shared the stage with fellow climate activist and wordsmith, Bill McKibben in the final event in the 2022 Global Shifts Colloquium staged by Perry World House, "Islands on the Climate Front Line: Risk and Resilience." By coincidence, we feature a...