Australia


Smoke billows form the East Gippsland bushfires. Source: DELWP Gippsland, Dale Appleton

Bushfire-Ravaged Australia Is Crying for Climate Action

, climate scientist

January 10, 2020 4:02 PM EDT

I’m writing from Australia with a heavy heart and a growing sense of anger.

Uncontrolled bushfires, sparked in September and raging since October, continue to ravage the southern and eastern parts of the continent. So far, 25 people have lost their lives, thousands of houses have been destroyed, and whole towns have been razed to the ground. Countless native animals and livestock have died. Communities are grieving.  And there are months left to go in this fire season.

While the unfolding tragedy that has captured global headlines highlights our vulnerability in a rapidly warming climate, it also exposes a gaping absence of climate leadership both in this country and globally. Communities have been left shattered, exhausted and looking for answers. As a climate scientist who has been working on these issues for decades, I share below some thoughts on how we got here and the urgent new course we need to set. Read more >

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Lessons for Fighting the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Science

, Research Director, Center for Science and Democracy

July 25, 2017 10:05 AM EDT

With all the recent headlines about the Trump administration’s attacks on the government scientific enterprise—from dismissing scientists from advisory committees, to hiring untrained or conflicted heads of agencies, to blatant misinformation from administration officials—it can be difficult to think about the solutions. But we must. My new paper, out this week in Conservation Biology, does just that.  Read more >

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Australia’s Iconic Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Site at Risk from Global Warming

, Deputy director, Climate & Energy

May 26, 2016 3:06 PM EDT

A lot has changed since Captain Cook became the first European to try to navigate the Great Barrier Reef in 1770. It was the reports of Cook and naturalist Joseph Banks on their return to England that first alerted the scientific world to the existence of this biological marvel. The Great Barrier Reef is now one of the world’s most important coastal and marine tourism areas, but its future is at risk, and climate change is the primary long-term threat. Read more >

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Scientists Fight Proposal to Gut Leading Climate Research Center in Australia

Melanie Fitzpatrick,

February 10, 2016 4:27 PM EDT

The Australian government has announced plans to axe several hundred positions at a world-class government research organization. Gutting a flagship climate body is short-sighted, may be in breach of obligations under international treaty, and is simply absurd. Read more >

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The Vital Role of Protected Areas in Climate Disaster Risk Reduction

, , Deputy director, Climate & Energy

November 17, 2014 12:42 PM EDT

There’s been a huge buzz at the World Parks Congress in Australia this week about the need to implement carbon reduction plans and accelerate climate resilience strategies. Read more >

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