EarthChat

Seymour Vet, Andrew Hogan, and wildlife rescuer and carer, Jenny Oakley, join Ruth to discuss the impact of the recent fires that caused tragic losses of livestock and native wildlife, not to mention the cruel experience of being burnt alive. As well, we’ll hear how we (humans) are generally managing our duty of care for wildlife, farm, and domestic animals. As of 2019, over 30 countries formally...

What do you do when you see someone’s house being stolen or confiscated, their olive trees chopped down, their ground water diverted. What do you do when you see someone’s child stopped at a military checkpoint and harassed by soldiers who won’t let them get to school? What do you do when all these crimes are excused or ignored or the victims blamed? John and Di are part of a group which has decid...

Our guest this week is local environmental legend Jacqui Fulton. Mark Lyons talks to Jacqui Fulton from Broadford about her connection to various conservation groups. Her work on various aspects of Biolinks and biodiversity recovery is a fascinating topic and of interest to local and other listeners. Be ready too for a discussion about the environmental damage caused by wars. Now there is a curren...

Our guest this week is Dr Christlina Zdeneck from birdlife Australia. We discuss the major problem caused by the poisons commonly used to kill rodent pests. These poisons are readily available and widely used. The problem is that they are slow acting and when birds of prey kill the poisoned rodents the poisons accumulate in their bodies over time and sicken them. The birds then become ill and are...

Imagine 3,000ha of beautiful wetlands linking Merri Creek and the Southern reaches of Mitchell Shire. Imagine a space to be used by 200,000 people that would preserve natural beauty forever, maintain wetlands and habitat for all kinds of species. This proposed parkland, extending north from the existing marram baba Upper Merri Creek Parklands, would protect a significant green corridor – comprisin...

As a follow on to last Tuesday’s program on Eco-Anxiety, we now shine the light on Eco-Grief, a profound sense of loss felt in response to the negative impacts of global warming on the planet. It is an experience of deep sadness about the consequences of environmental degradation of our air, land, and waters, and the subsequent loss of many species, along with natural systems’ breakdown on our pre...

The Rise of Eco-Anxiety: positive and practical ways to prepare for and process climate related events. Climate anxiety is increasing worldwide and affecting a wide range of groups, especially younger people and other vulnerable groups such as older people and those with limited resources to take preventative action or adapt to climate risks. A 2023 Mission Australia study of 19 000, 15-19 year ol...

This week Marie  chats with  Julian Cribb. He is a very experienced science communicator specializing in environmental issues, the problems and what we need to do to alleviate them. He has written several books including "The Earth System Treaty" which presents a plan for humanity going ahead and outlines the issue we are facing which will be central to our discussion. You can find out more about...

Tim chats with Anthony Radford about how stories can have a positive impact on how people think and act. Anthony grew up in Broadford and is now a Bendigo-based media professional who cares deeply about good storytelling and strong local communities. Through Radford Media , he works with community organisations, Traditional Owners and businesses to help them tell clear, honest stories about who th...

Ruth welcomes back Cam Walker from Friends of the Earth (FOE) to talk about FOE’s current environmental focus including the latest fires in Victoria, both from FOE’s perspective and his own personal experience, having been on the ground as a CFA volunteer firefighter in the recent Harcourt-Ravenswood fires that destroyed 48 houses earlier this month. Cam brings a fresh perspective on how to prepar...

2026 has started with heartbreaking fires in central Victoria, floods on the South West Coast and political tremors around the world. Many of us are directly affected by the impact of the local fires and any sort of recovery will take a long time. Local communities have rallied with dedicated emergency support and compassion. The best of human behaviours is there in the midst of uncertain and diff...

Following the Victorian fires, on EarthChat we discussed the importance of a respectful  immediate response to people who are seriously affected.  We also acknowledged the fantastic efforts of our first responders who did such a wonderful job. On a related topic, we discussed the central role of bees and other pollinators in the health of our environment and how they are affected by climate change...

From our "best of EarthChat series" You may not know the name Violet Coco, but you would have seen her on the news, arrested for protesting in different places, all to highlight the precarious state of our planet. Violet is a passionate environment and social justice activist. She has been arrested 49 times in 6 years as a non-violent, direct action, change maker.  She was the first person sentenc...

In the State of Victoria, Australia’s first Treaty has been negotiated, legislated, and signed by the First Peoples Assembly of Victoria, the Victorian State Government and the Governor of Victoria. Treaty aims to build a new, just relationship, acknowledging history, respecting culture, and creating pathways for prosperity and self-governance, moving beyond past injustices towards a more equitabl...

It's 10 years since the first program, and with EarthChat is in good health, Peter Lockyer is pulling up stumps. So this week, Peter shares how EarthChat started, its objectives, and some highs and lows. EarthChat is a child of BEAM Mitchell Environment Group, and Peter Lockyer has also retired from the BEAM committee too, after about 15 exemplary years. He stays a life member of the BEAM organisa...

On this week's EarthChat, Jill and Tim talk with Andrew Kelly , a writer and waterways' advocate. As a writer, his focus is on children’s picture books, authoring and co-authoring many award-winning books, mainly with environmental themes. His most recent book is ‘ Prayer for a River ’ written with Uncle Glenn Loughrey.       He was the Yarra Riverkeeper for seven years, responsible for seeing the...

This week we are talking weeds starting with Serrated Tussock Grass. We will learn how to identify and control it. We will also chat about the severe damage it can cause, its economic effects caused by productivity damage. We will also explore other significant weeds that affect our local farms, the damage they do and eradication approaches.

Has it been a good year for the climate and our environment? Is the glass half-empty or half-full and is the water polluted in the glass anyway? Is there any good news? Well, yes! To explore this topic Jill Grant and Tim Budge review the year, highlighting the events which cheer us up and bring us hope, while also noting those areas where things may have gone backwards. We will also be talking abo...

We’ve heard a lot over the past year or so about our housing crisis. The commentary has dominated governments, and yet the suburban sprawl continues over farming and grazing land, over wetlands and precious green belts are disappearing. Blocks are too small to grow big trees for shade, and the “heat island” effect is real in our new suburbs with black roofs.  The sprawl grows. Housing shortages co...

This week we will be exploring our wonderful planet and why we need to act to protect it. We will attempt to unravel the complexities of nature and what we need to do for it to flourish. We will be explaining concepts like biodiversity, symbiosis and ecosystems

‘Othering’ is the process of viewing and treating a person or a group as "other," because they seem different, alien, or inferior to us. This "us vs. them" mentality often involves creating a dominant social group identity resulting in exclusion and stigmatizing another group due to assumed perceptions about the other’s race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. It can lead to marginalization,...

This week Marie chats with Paul Lloyd about their recent trip to Madagascar on a Rotary International project. The aim was  to deliver aid to a very poor school in rural Madagascar. “We arrived in Anatarrivo, the capital, as street demonstrations broke out and we had an eventful time  getting to our hotel. We spent three days under curfew before being able to fly south to Port Dauphin to start the...

Did you know that renewables produced more electricity than coal across the world in the first half of 2025? What a huge shift in a short amount of time. More change is to come, with projects like this photo , of an orchard in Switzerland (does the sun even shine there?) where panels produce 300MWh per year in electricity. What a harvest! The good news is that Australia is a world leader in solar...

  Legislation for Australia's first Treaty between the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria and the Victorian Government has just been introduced in the Victorian Parliament. An historic moment built on over 200 years of First Nations' advocacy. North East Representative of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, Levi Power, returns to EarthChat to chat with Ruth and Phil about this latest excitin...

Join Peter Lockyer, Vanessa Malandrin and Janice Mentiplay-Smith in a great discussion around the value of old trees, hollows and understory -  each part of a local ecosystem which has a valuable contribution to the whole.  The strength of this Web of Life is the sum of the parts - the more diverse, the greater the health. Hear from Vanessa, Facilitator at South-West Goulburn Landcare Network abou...