Search

There are no preconditions here that make policy reforms to reduce inequality, such as those canvassed here and the many others that have been advanced, impossible, relative to other past reforms. Among the 18 factors that consistently enabled or frustrated national policy reforms, some are notable here: A crisis, or urgent need for reform widely recognised, where an issue becomes a national priority. This is the ninth State of Australian (now Australasian) Cities Conference, an event that has grown in influence since it was instigated by urban scholar and advocate Pat Troy in 2003. After a brief, dismal iteration, I will reflect on why so many viable policy options to reduce inequality have not proceeded, drawing on a recent cross-policy sector analysis of the preconditions of Australian policy reform. [Extracted from the article]

The Mulloon Rehydration Initiative is a case study highlighting the challenges of integrating research into a catchment scale land‐repair project involving multiple landowners and partners. Starting with an innovative project in 2006 to install 'leaky weirs' on a single property, the project has now expanded to include stream rehabilitation works on 16 properties and aims to cover an area of 23,000 ha of the Mulloon Creek, NSW and its main tributaries. Here, we describe the establishment phase of the project and the design of its monitoring framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Suppressing expert knowledge can hide environmentally damaging practices and policies from public scrutiny. We surveyed ecologists and conservation scientists from universities, government, and industry across Australia to understand the prevalence and consequences of suppressing science communication. Government (34%) and industry (30%) respondents reported higher rates of undue interference by employers than did university respondents (5%). Internal communications (29%) and media (28%) were curtailed most, followed by journal articles (11%), and presentations (12%). When university and industry researchers avoided public commentary, this was mainly for fear of media misrepresentation, while government employees were most often constrained by senior management and workplace policy. One third of respondents reported personal suffering related to suppression, including job losses and deteriorating mental health. Substantial reforms are needed, including to codes of practice, and governance of environmental assessments and research, so that scientific advice can be reported openly, in a timely manner and free from interference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The challenges facing settlements relating to bushfire require integrated approaches that manage risks across a wide range of factors. This paper sets out a framework demonstrating how urban planning, when coupled with appropriate decision support and future scenario testing, can reduce risks relating to bushfire while considering future growth. Examples of how planning can modify aspects of risk in association with scenario testing are included. Five main categories of risk reduction treatments are shown. The paper contributes to risk reduction by providing practical mechanisms for risk avoidance and treatment via urban and land-use planning systems combined with forward scenario testing to guide existing settlements and future growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An editorial is presented which discusses the performance of Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) related to environmental issues and states it is not bright after the assessment of 41 institutions and it also discusses the articles in the issue including community attitudes and pets.

Military training areas (MTAs) in Australia are estimated to cover 2.3 per cent of the continent, or 18M hectares. Current Australian Defence Department policy requires that the values of MTAs be maintained by integrated land management (ILM), which can be defined as the assessment and balancing of competing demands to achieve optimal management of an area. We completed two evaluations of the Australian MTA management framework to determine whether it contained the key features of ILM. Phase 1 of this work involved a desktop study of whether: (1) there are clear management objectives for Australian MTAs that enable adaptive management; (2) the management framework is hierarchical allowing for management cohesion and integration; (3) elements of the hierarchy are consistent and have common objectives; and (4) there was dedicated funding. Phase 2 consisted of meetings with key Australian Department of Defence officials to discuss the operation of the MTA management framework. Our evaluation suggests that the Australian MTA management framework lacks key elements of ILM. Two major failings are a lack of clear, measurable management objectives negating the ability to implement adaptive management, and lack of a clear hierarchy of documentation, making coherent management impossible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Significant disaster and emergency management events are invariably followed by formal post-event inquiries and reviews. Such reviews identify lessons to improve future capacities and set the agenda for policy and management reform for emergency management organisations. As a result, there is a substantial body of reflections and recommendations gathered across all hazard types and jurisdictions by formal, structured inquiry processes that contribute to lessons management for the emergency sector. However, whether there is any coherence or core lessons emerging for the Australian sector from the totality of postevent inquiries is unknown. The work reported here identifies the recommendations from these inquiries. A meta-analysis of 1336 recommendations made in 55 Australian major post-event reviews and inquiries since 2009 revealed common themes. The recommendations were compiled into a comprehensive database and categorised into 32 themes. The analysis highlighted recurrent themes from recommendations spanning multiple jurisdictions. The study indicates the potential value for Australian and New Zealand emergency management agencies and jurisdictions of using the aggregate data organised as a resource for lessons management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This Comment records the details of an unusual multipartner ecological research programme studying Temperate Highland Peat Swamps on Sandstone in the Sydney Basin-Blue Mountains area of New South Wales. We draw lessons from the experience of designing and managing this multipartner ecological programme, which was based on a nontraditional funding source - that is an enforceable undertaking required of a coal mining company related to an occurrence at a mine site. The research programme encompassed geomorphology, ecohydrology and ecology of a number of sites. Given the currently constrained public-good environmental research funding and pressures for both researchers and managers to find new, collaborative ways of funding and implementing research, lessons drawn from such innovative experiences may be of wider utility. In particular, lessons are drawn from the programme regarding the time required to design collaborative processes and the need for explicit programme management capacities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Critical infrastructure (CI) has received much attention in research, policy and political discussions in recent years, following concern over exposure of infrastructure to terrorist attack, disruption through disasters, rising awareness of the interdependent nature of infrastructure in modern urban systems, and changes in the ownership of and responsibility for infrastructure assets. In this paper, we explore the implications of different framings of both “critical” and “infrastructure”, through two questions: critical how and for whom; critical when and at what scale? Framings of CI, and their increasingly important manifestations in policy and law, have deep but too-often unexposed implications: the lines drawn between what is defined as critical and that which is not concerns not only the physical or informational assets, but the inclusion/exclusion of communities and their places and values as important aspects of modern urban governance. We argue that a better understanding of what is critical about urban infrastructure is not just recognition of their vulnerability and interconnectedness, but also of the key linkages between critical infrastructure and human and environmental system integrity and equity within the context of capitalist urbanisation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

With over 50 inquiries in 75 years, Australian communities continue to suffer from the impact of extreme events whether fires, floods, cyclones, or other emergencies. Einstein is reported to have said 'Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results'. The insanity may not lie in responding to fires and emergencies the same way, and facing another tragedy, but in reviewing these events in the same way and expecting the quasi-judicial process to identify how to prevent the next one. This paper argues that it is time to do the post-event review in a different way and suggests some possible options for new approaches to learning lessons from tragedy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article revisits four Australian framework policies with implications for ecologically sustainable development to consider lessons for climate change adaptation. The competition, disaster resilience, sustainable development and water policies examined underline the difficulty in developing and implementing effective policy frameworks. We find that to succeed, a national policy in this federation needs: a coalition of stakeholders advocating for their implementation; medium to long-term bipartisan support; a focus on a perceived urgent national issue; significant socio-economic benefits; a focus on a limited number of core principles and systemic legislative reform with incremental implementation over many years; the allocation by the federal government of substantial funds for state implementation; requirements to report to the Council of Australian Governments; and support from central government agencies rather than marginalisation in the environment portfolio. These qualities are not inherent in the 1992 National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development and this explains why it is now moribund. These findings suggest that it will be particularly hard to develop and difficult to implement an effective national climate change adaptation policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildland fire managers make daily decisions about ways to allocate scarce resources to meet policy objectives. Making these decisions has become more challenging as the frequency and size of fires increase, as does associated risk to assets and costs of management. There is growing interest in using economic evaluation to inform resource allocation decisions, but little work has examined the economic evaluation needs of wildland fire managers, their current use of economic information and the factors that aid or hinder use. This study examined these issues through a survey of Australian wildland fire managers in fire management and policy roles. We found that despite strong interest in economic evaluation, managers have limited familiarity with most evaluation methods or use of the information derived. Several actions can improve the use and usefulness of economic evaluation for wildland fire managers: first, building capacity of managers to both commission and use economic information; second, integrating analysis of market and non-market benefits and costs as part of economic evaluation and third, better integrating economic evaluation with the broader context of decision-making processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to identify major shifts in the Australian environmental policy agenda over the past fifty years, and discusses the possible causes of and variables affecting agenda change. The issue of what comprises 'environment' policy is discussed, with reference to overlaps and intersections with other policy sectors such as agriculture, public health, energy and regional affairs. While the diversity of the environment policy domain complicates any analysis of trends, there have been two persistent trends of (i) an expansion from a more narrowly to a more broadly defined suite of issue (from environment to sustainable development) and incorporation of environment into natural resource management, and (ii) an increasing diversity of policy instruments being used. Consistent with the wide variety of issues confronted, pragmatism and convenience are often as influential as political ideology or underlying trajectories. The drivers of policy change are diverse, including biophysical factors such as drought, political leaders and international policy developments, and punctuations are often better interpreted as intensification or redirections of past policy trajectories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legal liability is an issue that concerns volunteer firefighters and may affect the ability of fire managers to perform their tasks. There are calls to guarantee firefighters will not be personally liable for actions undertaken in good faith. This paper reviews post-wildfire litigation in Australia and claims for compensation made against the New South Wales Rural Fire Service. Although the data are incomplete and likely to underestimate the actual claims history, analysis of the available data does show that the number of claims for compensation is small given the very large number of fires and hazard reduction burns across Australia. There is no evidence of extensive post-fire litigation or of fire agencies or firefighters being held liable for actions taken in the course of firefighting The evidence does not support assertions that there is an 'increasing flood' of legal claims arising from firefighting. Post-fire litigation is compared with other proceeding such as Royal Commissions and coronial inquiries. It is argued that it is not liability, but the lengthy post-event inquiry process and the risk of personal criticism that should be the concern of fire managers and firefighters. Post-bushfire litigation and non-litigated claims against the New South Wales Rural Fire Service are reviewed to determine the true extent of claims for compensation arising from Australian unplanned wildfires and hazard reduction activities. The effect of litigation is compared with other judicial proceedings such as coroner's inquests and Royal Commissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainability demands changes in human behavior. To this end, priority areas include reforming formal institutions, strengthening the institutions of civil society, improving citizen engagement, curbing consumption and population growth, addressing social justice issues, and reflecting on value and belief systems. We review existing knowledge across these areas and conclude that the global sustainability deficit is not primarily the result of a lack of academic knowledge. Rather, unsustainable behaviors result from a vicious cycle, where traditional market and state institutions reinforce disincentives for more sustainable behaviors while, at the same time, the institutions of civil society lack momentum to effectively promote fundamental reforms of those institutions. Achieving more sustainable behaviors requires this cycle to be broken. We call on readers to contribute to social change through involvement in initiatives like the Ecological Society of America's Earth Stewardship Initiative or the nascent Millennium Alliance for Humanity & the Biosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a context of global agricultural intensification, integrating conservation and agricultural production is a major challenge. We have tackled the problem using a transdisciplinary research framework. Our work focuses on part of the upper Lachlan River catchment in southeastern Australia. The region is dominated by livestock grazing, and is part of an internationally recognised threatened ecoregion because most native woodland vegetation has been cleared. In productive areas, most remnant vegetation occurs as scattered and isolated paddock trees, which are dying from old age and not regenerating due to agricultural practices. The policy context and industry trends present additional risks for sparse trees. These declining trees provide many ecosystem services, including enhanced water infiltration, shade for livestock, aesthetic and cultural values, and habitat for native species. Our research aims to identify management options and policy settings that enable landscape-scale tree regeneration while maintaining grazing production. Our findings highlight tensions between the trajectory of tree cover in the region and stakeholder values. Under status quo management, many scattered and isolated paddock trees will be lost from farms, although most farmers would like to see them persist. Case studies on selected farms reveal management strategies that may be more sustainable in terms of tree regeneration and agricultural productivity, such as rotational grazing. In addition to these applied insights, our work provides a case study illustrating how a transdisciplinary study can be conducted efficiently by a small team. Our pragmatic approach has successfully combined targeted disciplinary activities with strategic collaborations and stakeholder engagement, all united by shared landscape, case graziers, and outreach activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information on the workshop entitled "The Worlds of Ecology and Environmental Policy: Never the Two Shall Meet?" of the Ecological Society of Australia (ESA) in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory on December 4, 2009 is presented. It states that the workshop explores how the society, scientists, and policy-makers can fully incorporate science and policy. It says that the event attracted around 70 participants from government agencies, non-government societies, and academic institutions.

Purpose – Curriculum design is often a challenge. It is particularly so when the subject is sustainability, which is an aspirational but contested concept, draws on a range of disciplinary insights and is relatively new to university curricula. There is no single "right way", or even agreement across the disciplines that inform the collective enterprise about general approaches to sustainability curricula. The likely content is ill-defined and spans departmental units and budget areas in most traditional universities. Like other societal and institutional attempts at realising sustainability, curriculum design for sustainability is beset by difficulty, yet an essential intellectual activity. This paper aims to focus on these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The paper compares actual curriculum development processes for "sustainability" in two very different Australian universities, as studied using participant observation and qualitative interviews. Findings – The paper draws out some of the common challenges of interdisciplinary curriculum design for sustainability, and identifies four principles transferrable to other institutional adaptation settings. It argues that curriculum design is an opportunity to develop collegiality, and further advance the problem area under discussion. Originality/value – Case study research is often difficult to generalise to other settings. The opportunity to observe two sustainability curriculum design processes, operating in parallel, provides transferrable insights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Operationalising sustainability has proven difficult because the concept is ambiguous and fraught with contradictions. In response, sustainability indicator systems to characterise and measure sustainable development have been developed globally. The focus of this article is on how indicators function as an instrument of policy to enhance achievement of environmental and sustainability policy in Australia at national scale. In theory, by integrating information from the environmental, social and economic domains and then feeding knowledge to a wide range of policy sectors, sustainability indicator systems may facilitate cross-agency and -portfolio connectivity. Key characteristics of the various sustainability indicator systems developed to inform policy at the national level are described, noting the diverse approaches to indicator development in Australia. The structural relevance of indicator systems to the mechanisms of policy and institutions in Australia is discussed, and corresponding issues of institutional fit are analysed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solutions to environmental problems such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and land and water resource degradation require long term integration of economic, social and environmental policies. This poses challenges to specialised, hierarchical public administration systems. The study reported here examined strategies, structures and processes to enable environmental policy integration in six Australian states and territories, and some federal arrangements. The study found that the most prominent success factors, barriers and gaps that affect environmental policy integration relate to leadership, long term embedding of environmental policy integration and implementation capacity. Factors deserving further research and policy attention include leadership, cultural change and capacity building; embedding sustainability in structures and processes; development of a long term evidence based approach; strengthening decentralised implementation arrangements; and evaluation of policy integration initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adaptive capacity is increasingly recognized as essential for maintaining the resilience of social-ecological systems and for coping with environmental change. Four main requirements enable societies to successfully adapt to change: (1) the will and intention to maintain social-ecological resilience, (2) knowledge about current problems and the desired direction of change, (3) proactive behavior, and (4) the capacity to change existing patterns of behavior. The adaptive capacity of societies can be greatly enhanced by fostering the adaptive capacity of their individual members. Considerable knowledge about how to foster the adaptability of individuals exists in the science of education and in cognitive and social psychology. Developing the ability to learn flexibly in a variety of ways, contexts, and circumstances is an important element of developing adaptive capacity. The widespread implementation of modern teaching approaches in the education sector could make a substantial contribution to building and maintaining social-ecological resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper identifies external factors affecting the capacity of Australia's now-formalised 56 regional natural resource management (NRM) bodies and their community-based Boards to meet planning and management responsibilities. It demonstrates that little is known about the basic capacity-related characteristics of NRM regions, despite the lengthy and elaborate process of regionalism that Australia has embarked upon, with its associated and substantial devolution of responsibilities and resources. A suite of indicators is used to develop an ‘exploratory’ capacity typology of NRM regions. The ten regional ‘types’ identified are found to attract varying budget allocations under the Natural Heritage Trust Extension and National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality. There are indications that State and regional interests within and outside NRM can significantly influence the distribution of resources. An examination of resources allocated to capacity-building activities shows significant differences between regions in the scale of resources allocated (0–96% of total budget). The paper argues the case for intervention to reduce the gap between ‘have’ and ‘have not’ regions, and for further exploration of disparities in the allocation of resources to capacity-building activities. Clarification is needed of the extent to which capacity-building activities adequately target regional NRM bodies and their Boards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The environment has attracted more 'integrative' or 'interdisciplinary' efforts than any other substantive focus, one of which is the diverse and evolving field of environmental history. However, the theory and practice of interdisciplinarity, in environmental history and elsewhere, is unclear and contested ground. In this paper, we explore the nature of interdisciplinary work in environmental history. Drawing on three brief project narratives from environmental history, the paper discusses issues and problems, both intellectual and practical, that face those who seek to move across disciplinary boundaries in environmental history (as most of us do, wittingly or not). We then propose and discuss four 'intersections' that we believe have potential as loci of interdisciplinary engagement: mutual understanding; spatial scale and locale; time and change; and the environment and agency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In late 2002, nations will meet for the World Summit on Sustainable Development, and review a decade of progress since the UN Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio in 1992. This anniversary also presents an opportunity to review domestic policy progress, such as that of Australia in the ten years since its 1992 National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD). This paper reviews the past decade of environmental policy and progress to ESD in Australia, noting some globally significant advances as well as under-achievement. The paper identifies two reasons for under-achievement: the unprecedented nature and difficulty of sustainability problems, and the lack of suitable policy processes and institutional arrangements to address these, and suggests policy and institutional reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Suggests the use of the precautionary principle as a means to assess broad policy decisions to target direct or systemic rather than direct threats to sustainability. Ways in which policy decisions can affect the environment; Nature of sustainability problems; Potential targets for strategic environmental assessment; Relevance of the precautionary principle for policy assessment.

Environmental security and sustainability are complementary approaches to comprehending and resolving environmental problems. In contrast to sustainability, however, environmental security has performed poorly in terms of policy formulation. This is a function of its short history, its interdisciplinary nature, and its ambiguity. It is also a function of disagreements about which environmental problems can rightfully be called 'security' issues. As a way forward, this paper proposes a framework for identifying environmental problems that might reasonably be considered as security issues. Applying this framework, biodiversity loss, climate change, and nuclear power all qualify as environmental security issues. The framework is explained through an application to the issue of nuclear power. Sustainability policy provides many answers to these macro-problems, so the paper then explores the linkages between environmental security and sustainability. It argues that environmental security does not necessarily demand new policies, but rather in the first instance requires a renewed effort at implementing existing sustainability policies. To this end, environmental security requires new forms of governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes a strong role for environmental history in informing current policy and debate in the policy field of sustainability (or, sustainable development). The policy agenda of sustainability is noted, and the unique attributes of these policy problems identified. A three part 'typology of relevance' is proposed, comprising general historical perspectives, ecological and human baselines, and direct policy and institutional lessons. The idea of more immediate lessons is discussed further, with some indicative examples drawn from Australia. Environmental history is argued to have potential as an antidote to policy amnesia and ad hocery. Furthermore, if environmental history is to prosper, then environmental historians must construct explicit connections with pressing current issues. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Exposes the discrepancy between pronouncements of the Australian government concerning environmental protection and government effort in managing the Australian government. Review of efforts toward environmental protection; Influence of national and international policies on environmental protection; Case studies.

Under the general rubric of sustainability, societies are now struggling with the reconciliation of the demands of human systems and the health and continuation of the biosphere that supports them. Fundamental to coping with this challenge is the creation of decision-making and management approaches that possess an ability to operate in the face of pervasive risk and uncertainty In searching for clues to ways in which to meet the challenge, it would make sense to look to areas of human experience where change and the interaction of human and natural systems have been addressed before. We examine the intellectual areas of ecology and risk, and find that the attribute of resilience is a strong theme. A three-class typology of resilience (resistance to change; change at the margins; openness and adaptation), is developed to structure the discussion and clarify the issues. We argue that, whereas the nature of the problems facing humanity demands entertaining responses across this spectrum, current institutions and policy processes appear to be locked into "type 2"—change at the margins. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines the concept of sustainability (sustainable development, sustainable societies) with a view to providing a means of considering the idea in such a way as to be more useful to concerns of policy. A brief background is given, covering the historical development of the concept, the constituent ecological and social concerns that lie behind it, and some aspects of the sustainability debate in Australia. Some attributes of a sustainable future, as evident from the literature, are listed. The value base of the concept is recognized, and the correct place for sustainability concerns is identified within a simple policy-making model. The complexity of such a model in the real world is explored using a list of the contexts of sustainability, illustrated with examples from Australian natural resource management. Finally, the more dynamic and flexible nature of patterns of production and consumption in more sustainable societies is recognized and explained, as are two guiding directives to be applied in the search for models which display characteristics of sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recreational fishing, otherwise known as angling, is both a significant resource use and a leisure activity in Australia. It has not received much scientific or policy attention, having been perceived as unimportant relative to commercial fishing and characterised by poor social, biological and economic data. Attention is increasing, however, as the ecological, economic and social significance of the activity is realised. The article briefly reviews recreational fishing and discusses the reasons why the activity has traditionally been ignored by policy-makers and researchers. Current policy issues are identified, and a generalised framework suggested for policy and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses various reports published within the issue, including one on the benefits of floodplain restoration in the central Yangtze River basin in China, one on the enhancement of water security in Rio Conchos basin in northern Mexico, and one on adaptive management capacities in a river basin consortium in Rio São João, Brazil.

Environmental history can be made relevant to solve environmental issues, as examples of its utility in Australia demonstrate.