Earth Matters

'Our History is the Future.' Nick Estes on the Long Tradition of Indigenous ResistanceNick Estes is Kul Wicasa, a citizen of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe. His new book is ‘Our History Is the Future: Standing Rock Versus the Dakota Access Pipeline, and the Long Tradition of Indigenous Resistance’Taking the movement at Standing Rock as his starting point, he traces the traditions of Indigenous resist...

The vision of the  Aboriginal carbon foundation  is to catalyse life-changing, community prosperity through carbon farming. The main method used is a return to traditional ways of burning off savanna.  Savanna burning is about reducing emissions from fire by burning in the early dry season when fires are cooler and patchy. Rowen Foley talks about pioneering this  indigenous carbon credit scheme th...

this week on Earth Matters our guest JOCELYN HARTE - The Resource Recovery Officer City of Whittlesea as we yarn about environmental initiatives at the recent Whittlesea Community Festival and we are also talking about other environmental initiatives such as recent changes to kerbside recycling and how we can better reduce waste plus we yarn on the new changes coming in on the 1st of July with E w...

On March 15th more than 1,5 million young people in 2069 cities of 125 countries across world went on strike from school calling for real climate action. In Canberra students spoke to a massive crowd overflowing from every edge of Garema Place. The speeches were some of the best I have ever heard and now Earth Matters brings some of them to you as well as music and chants. Hear the mass phone call...

Hydrogen has been touted as the next technology for power storage, in both large and small scale. It’s often talked about as a green energy, but it all comes down to how the hydrogen is produced.  In February this year Victoria’s Environmental Protection Authority approved a trial project to convert brown coal to hydrogen.  Led by the multinational corporation Kawasaki Heavy Industries. It would i...

Big profits for agribusiness & military are recklessly risking the spread of a new GMO technology called Gene Drives around the world, regardless of their currently largely unknown consequences. Gene drives to genetically code mice populations into extinction are set to be released in Western Australia by the CSIRO in partnership with the US Military & WA Dpt of Conservation. Meanwhile, in Africa,...

The National Shark Summit 2019This week on Earth Matters a conversation on the latest from the NATIONAL SHARK SUMMIT which took place in Sydney from the 21st to the 22nd of February 2019In this program today we hear 2 different perspectives from 2 experts as we explore their interest in the national shark summit. Thanks to our guests Nicola Beynon – Head of Campaigns – The Humane Society Internati...

Wadu, a Gidabal and Arakwal elder sat down with Muzz, and dozens of others, in the middle of Uki's main street to block a water extraction truck. They needed to make the point that there is nothing in water mining for locals and they want it to stop. Taking water from private land  for sale to bottled water companies is a lawless gold rush in Northern NSW. Lewis Walker: elder of the Gidabal tribe...

Water is Life - First Nations fight for water justiceToday, we’re bringing you First Nations voices in the fight for water. First up, the Royal Commission. Rene Woods, Nari Nari man and Chairperson the Murray Lower Darling Rivers Indigenous Nations (MLDRIN). Next we hear from the Water is Life convergence. The Water is Life national gathering brought First Nations people, and supporters, from arou...

In what is a national environmental disaster this week on the program we yarn about the health of the Murray-Darling river systems. I’m joined by our guests William Brian Bates also known as 'Badger Bates' a Barkindji Traditional Owner and Elder and Grant Rigney Ngarrindjeri man whom are both living at different ends of the Murray Darling river systems and both men on country are passionate about...

Part 2 of the 1080 Summit focuses on the poisons impact on dingos. Australia and New Zealand use almost 95% of the world's supply of 1080. It is rated a category 1 poison by the WHO - their most toxic category, with no known antidote. Many farmers also lose working dogs to this poison. Animal welfare groups around the world, the RSPCA, PETA, Humane Society International, Predator Defense Network a...

Coal power's toxic health toll [encore broadcast] This week we bring you a story we first aired in 2007. Coal-fired power stations emit toxic chemicals and particulates that are highly damaging to human health. And our governments - both state and federal - are failing to protect us. This is revealed in a report by Environmental Justice Australia. It’s called Toxic and Terminal and it highlights h...

Last year the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas. This represents the culmination of a long historic struggle for the rights of diverse grass roots peoples around the world who continue the struggle to define their own culturally appropriate and bio-diverse foods and agriculture systems. This week three w...

This week on the program you’ll hear from John Harvey. As we yarn about 2 of his latest films. One documentary in post-production and the English name for the documentary ‘Water Shield’ about the community and the McCarthur River mine in NT in post-production and a short film WATER already released in which John Harvey continues to explore environmental issues and storytelling told through his own...

Join the audience for Part Two of the Ten80 Summit into the effects of 1080 poison use in Australia.1080 poison is one of the deadliest toxins in the world. It is colourless, odourless, and one teaspoon has the capacity to kill up to 100 adults. It causes a slow, agonising death and has no antidote. It is classified by the World Health Organisation as “highly hazardous” and as a result, it has bee...

Earth First!  is a radical environmental network that first emerged in the United States during 1980 in response to the pro-development policies of the Reagan government. Its members adopted a "No Compromise" position which called for an end to logging and mining in old growth forests and other biodiverse places, as well as the restoration of damaged ecosystems. Music has formed a key part of the...

Dec 9 marked the seventieth anniversary of the United Nations Genocide Convention. Djuran Bunjileenee Borun MunDunDarung (aka Robert Thorpe) an Elder from both the Krautungalung Clan (Gunai/Kurnai) & Djap Wurrung Clan (Gunditjamara) in Occupied Victoria discusses the ongoing issue of how genocide is still legal in colony-Australia, despite our being signatories to the convention. Also,what the sha...

Coming up this week on Earth Matters you'll hear post Victoria state election reaction from Matt Ruchel - Executive Director: The Victorian National Parks Association. And we take a look at the Victorian state government recent election promises as they shall deliver investment across many of our Victoria's parks and camping sites. Overall the investment is $105.6 million to create new and upgrade...

The new  logging rules for public forests  have just been released. They are  described as disaster for old growth forests, rainforest, river health, threatened species, Koalas, and global warming. Liz and Jos camped under trees looking for owls and sea eagles, conducting citizen surveys of two NSW forests on the block be logged: Corruna Forest and the Corn Trail bushwalking path. Long time activi...

Over a century of phosphate mining has eaten out the tiny Pacific island nation of Nauru. While the mining continues, today Nauru is better known as the site for Australia's offshore detention camp incarcerating people seeking asylum. Amongst all the media coverage of Nauru, what is too often missing is the voices of Nauruans. Today on Earth Matters we're listening to Nauru, to its people and envi...

Cats kill one million birds in Australia every day. Beloved as pets, they are one of the greatest threat to Australian native wildlife.  To protect birds, bettongs, skinks and lizards in “The Bush Capital”, all Canberra’s  new suburbs require 24 hour cat containment.  This also cuts vet bills and helps neighbours get along.  We visit Di s place to look at her cat enclosure. Find out why, when you...

Forest Defenders conference Thailand. In a worsening climate for activists and civil society, 50 environmental defenders from around Southeast Asia came together in Thailand to talk about security, strategy and the situations they’re facing. As attendees explained, killings are just the most extreme form of a wide range of repressive strategies being used against activists in the region. We hear f...

Hear the insights of Ken Peters Dodd,  a sovereign  Birriah man whose  ancestors were  forced from their land west of Bowen in Queensland.  Now he has returned with his family to live on Birri country, perform ceremony  and defend it from the proposed Urannah dam,  from Adanis plans and from climate change.  Giyou Peters Dodd  gives a clear call for us all to clean up the planet.  Senator  Larissa...

This week on Earth Matters you’ll hear how Country musician Roger Knox survived back to back plane crashes and then going on to continue to perform his music releasing albums and touring for audiences across Australia. Roger shares his personal story of the 2 plane crashes and yarns about suffering immense pain and standing strong when up against his own health battles. Rogers says the bush remedi...

Greening 'Red October'.2017 marked the centenary of the October revolution in Russia that ultimately brought the Bolsheviks to power and lead to the formation of the Soviet Union. When we think of the USSR we often think of environmental and human tragedy. But 100 years on from the 1917 revolution it is perhaps more important than ever to re-assess the environmental record of the Soviet Union and...