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Wednesday 30/11 relief - Consumer decisions

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Wednesday 30/11 relief - Consumer decisions

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This report is powered by InstantAtlas™ Data Visualization & Presentation Software

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Environmental change: Source, sink, service, spirituality

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Environmental change: Source, sink, service, spirituality

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Dirty Jobs Down Under: Cane Toad Hunting

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An environmentally responsible option for invasive species management

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The Ocean Cleanup launches to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

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The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Explained | Research | The Ocean Cleanup

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Climate Action Summit 2019 Press Materials

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Climate Action Summit 2019 Press Materials

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Highlights from the United Nations on Climate Change and the Climate Action Summit

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UNITED NATIONS UN Climate Change Summit 2019

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On 23 September 2019, the Secretary-General of the United Nations will host the Climate Action Summit in New York with the objective of boosting ambition and rapidly accelerate action to implement the Paris Agreement. The Secretary-General aims to demonstrate a leap in collective national political ambition and massive low-emission movements in the real economy.

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Climate Action Summit 2019 Press Release

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Climate Action Summit 2019 Press Release

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Inlcudes key commitments and announcements by nations and business leaders

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If anyone has a subscription lemme know

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Infant mortality rate Australia and Indonesia

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Infant mortality rate Australia and Indonesia

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Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email yourself a file again!

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Wellbeing in Australia and Indonesia submission

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Wellbeing in Australia and Indonesia submission

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Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email yourself a file again!

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Prezi presentation

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About 74.4% of the population can read and write Australia's rate is 96%, not a dramatic difference between the countries Effects on literacy rates: The higher literacy rates are, the more people can be educated on medicine and health. This is one of the many factors that could

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See how countries measure up against one another.

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The 2017 How's Life? report shows the latest data on well-being in 35 OECD and 6 partner countries. It describes how inequalities touch many different aspects of people's lives, examining well-being gaps by gender, age, education and income, and migration status. It also looks at governance and well-being.

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Wellbeing

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Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email yourself a file again!

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How can we measure the wellbing of a country?

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How can countries measure the well-being of their citizens?

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Infant mortality rates in wealthy nations

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Infant mortality rates in wealthy nations

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infant mortality rates wealthy countries

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r/dataisbeautiful: A place for visual representations of data: Graphs, charts, maps, etc. DataIsBeautiful is for visualizations that effectively convey information. **Aesthetics are an important part of information visualization, but pretty pictures are not the aim of this subreddit.**

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What Is the Big Mac Index?

The Big Mac index is a survey created by The Economist magazine in 1986 to measure purchasing power parity (PPP) between nations, using the price of a McDonald's Big Mac as the benchmark.

Purchasing power parity is an economic theory that states that exchange rates over time should move toward equality across national borders in the price charged for an identical basket of goods. In this case, the basket of goods is a Big Mac.

The Big Mac Index is also known as the Big Mac PPP or Burgernomics.

Key Takeaways

Understanding the Big Mac Index

According to PPP theory, any change in the exchange rate between nations should be reflected in a change in the price of a basket of goods.

One of the key insights of the Big Mac Index is that a basket of goods in one country can rarely be precisely duplicated in another country. For example, an American basket of groceries and a Japanese basket of groceries will likely contain very different products. A Big Mac, though, is always a Big Mac, allowing for slight local differences in ingredients.

The editors of The Economist stress that the index should not be taken too seriously. "Burgernomics was never intended as a precise gauge of currency misalignment, merely a tool to make exchange-rate theory more digestible," an explainer on the site indicates.

Nevertheless, the Big Mac Index has become a global standard for price comparison. The Economist website shows the index in 54 countries, revealing that a Big Mac is relatively pricey in Switzerland, while people in Indonesia, India, and Taiwan are getting a bargain.

The Big Mac Index In Use

In August 2023, The Economist concluded that a Big Mac cost $5.58 in the U.S. and £4.19 in the U.K. The difference between the implied exchange rate of 0.75 and the actual exchange rate of 0.78 suggests the undervaluation.

As The Economist editors are quick to note, the Big Mac Index is not a perfect instrument.

As of 2023, McDonald's has outlets in 111 of 195 countries. Thus, this methodology cannot be used to analyze the PPP between the U.S. dollar and countries without a McDonald's, such as Bolivia or Iceland.

Nevertheless, economists consider the index to be a relatively accurate real-world indicator of local economic purchasing power since the pricing of a Big Mac, like most consumer goods, must take into account local costs of raw materials, labor, taxes, and business premises.

What Is the Big Mac Index?

The Big Mac index is a measurement sometimes used to discern the difference in purchasing power parity between two countries where BicMacs are sold. It began as somewhat of an economics joke, but it turned out to be fairly reliable.

Is the Big Mac Index a Good Indicator of Inflation?

The costs of raw materials, labor, transportation, taxes, and others are priced into Big Macs, so it is safe to say that the price of a Big Mac can reflect inflationary pressures.

What Is the Most Accurate Inflation Indicator?

The Consumer Price Index is considered the most accurate indication of inflation.

The Bottom Line

The Big Mac Index measures the cost of a Big Mac in different countries and indicates the difference in purchasing power parity between them. It has become accepted as a fairly reliable currency parity indicator for developed, developing, and non-developed countries (as long as Big Macs are sold there).

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What Is the Big Mac Index? Definition, What It Shows, and Example

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The Big Mac index was created by The Economist to measure purchasing power parity between nations, using the price of a Big Mac as the benchmark.

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GDP per capita and shares of global population

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GDP per capita and shares of global population

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Join Dame Judi Dench in Borneo as she takes a remarkable journey to explore one of the oldest rainforests in the world. Together with some of the most eminent scientists she discovers how essential the forest is for us.

Sunday 7.40pm on ABC and iview.

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Join Dame Judi Dench in Borneo as she takes a remarkable journey to explore one of the oldest rainforests in the world. Together with some of the most eminent scientists she discovers how essential the forest is for us. Sunday 7.40pm on ABC and iview.

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Measuring economic wellbeing

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The limitations of G.D.P

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Stopping deforestation in Borneo

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Health In Harmony's mission and that of their Indonesian partner, Alam Sehat Lestari (ASRI), is a difficult one-stopping forest loss in western Borneo, a region with one of the world's highest deforestation rates. As planetary health professionals, we seek solutions that address the underlying social conditions that lead to forest loss. But those social factors are complicated, involving issues like government policy, population growth, poverty, indigenous rights, gender equality, and education. Tackling such a complex problem requires comprehensive and flexible solutions and more than a bit of creativity.

Gunung Palung National Park | Photo: Katie Homes

Focusing on the area around Gunung Palung National Park, ASRI uses a 5-pronged approach that combats deforestation on multiple fronts.

1. Monitor: To understand the problem and inform our actions, we first gauge the extent of forest loss and its causes. We make regular visits to communities that border the park to check for evidence of deforestation, like farm clearings, logging roads, and sawmills. We also cultivate a network of locally recruited forest guardians who update us about forest clearing activities and conditions in their neighborhoods. We back up these efforts by using satellite images to measure forest loss in each village and throughout the park. Finally, we survey households across the region to learn about changing social and economic conditions. Combining all these methods-site visits, local partners, satellite imagery, and surveys-gives us a complete picture of where the damage is being done and why.

2. Provide healthcare: ASRI's defining innovation is to reduce deforestation by providing healthcare to communities. When we began working here a decade ago, medical expenses were one of the main pressures driving communities to log within the national park. The only hospitals were expensive and far away. In a medical emergency, families were driven to poach timber to cover the costs of travel and treatment. Today we operate a nearby clinic that meets the health needs of local communities, reducing the costs of treatment and the pressure to log. In addition to providing low-cost healthcare to anyone who needs it, we give additional discounts of up to 70% to villages that work with us to stop illegal logging. Our aim is to turn the financial incentive on its head-instead of logging to pay for medical treatment, communities can now save money by giving up logging altogether.

3. Find alternative livelihoods: Many people who clear forests do so because they lack access to more sustainable jobs. We respond to this need through programs that provide training, assistance, and money to people who want to switch careers. Through our organic farming program, for example, we train former loggers and other community members to make a living without clearing forests or using chemical fertilizers and pesticides. At the same time, our kitchen gardens program empowers housewives to better feed their families and earn extra income by growing organic produce. Our newest initiative, the chainsaw buyback entrepreneurship program, targets logging couples who want to start their own businesses. We buy their chainsaws, develop business plans for both husband and wife, and provide no-interest funds to get their business ideas off the ground. With just a small investment, several loggers and their wives have already become café or restaurant owners, farmers, barbers, and traders. All these programs operate on the idea that slowing deforestation is sometimes as easy as giving people a choice.

4. Educate: Perhaps the most impactful action we can take in the long term is to teach future generations to value the natural world. Few adults in our area have access to higher education, and many have not progressed beyond primary school. Education gaps translate into poor economic opportunities and reduced environmental awareness, driving people to clear forest to make a living. We fill these gaps by operating conservation education programs tailored to all ages. Our clinic patients watch videos about forest conservation in the waiting room, posters in the clinic hallways highlight local biodiversity, and we visit rural communities to teach families about the links between human and environmental health. We also partner with primary schools to teach a three-month environmental education curriculum, the ASRI Kids course, which includes field trips to the national park. Our newest education initiative, ASRI Teens, provides advanced learning and volunteer opportunities for middle and high school students. Finally, every year we provide paid conservation internships to local university students. Taken together, our education programs increase environmental awareness and improve economic opportunities for the communities who have the most to lose from deforestation.

5. Restore: Protecting Borneo's remaining forests is critical, but the long term survival of the island's landscapes depends on also restoring areas that are already degraded. Most of the forests where we work, including 20% of the national park, have been cleared by farmers and loggers, and the remaining forests survive only as isolated islands. We enlarge and reconnect these fragments by reforesting degraded lands in the national park. By replanting areas with native rainforest trees and protecting them from wildfires, we restore critical habitats and reconnect populations of orangutans and other native species. We supplement this with our garden to forest program, which helps communities that farm inside the national park to switch from intensive farming to sustainable agroforestry. We provide supplies, training, and money to farmers who want to replace their crops with native trees that provide marketable fruits, building materials, and other products. The goal is to eventually restore the entire park to native forest and ensure that nearby communities are invested in its protection. Our reforestation programs are thus the most ambitious and farsighted actions we take, aiming not just to halt but actually to reverse forest loss decades and centuries into the future.

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Our Solution: How to Stop Deforestation in Borneo - Health In Harmony

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Health In Harmony's mission and that of their Indonesian partner, Alam Sehat Lestari (ASRI), is a difficult one-stopping forest loss in western Borneo, a region with one of the world's highest deforestation rates. As planetary health professionals, we seek solutions that address the underlying social conditions that lead to forest loss.

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Deforestation in Brazil Dropbox submission link

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Deforestation in Brazil Dropbox submission link

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Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email yourself a file again!

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Childish Gambino covers Tamia 'So Into You' for Like A Version

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Al Jazeera news clip on deforestation in Australia

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Environmentalists combat land clearing in Australia

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Towards Zero Deforestation -  A plan to end deforestation and land clearing in Australia

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Australian deforestation statistics

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Tree cover loss data for Australia

"Tree cover threshold" is used for defining the tree cover area. For example, 75% includes only areas with more than 75% tree cover, whereas 10% includes all areas with more than 10% tree cover. 75% tree cover reflects a dense canopy.

Biomass and land use carbon emissions data for Australia

"Tree cover threshold" is used for defining the tree cover area. For example, 75% includes only areas with more than 75% tree cover, whereas 10% includes all areas with more than 10% tree cover. 75% tree cover reflects a dense canopy.

Tree cover data for subnational administrative areas in Australia

"This data is based on a definition of 30% tree cover. Areas with less than 30% canopy cover are excluded.

Carbon dioxide emissions data for subnational administrative areas in Australia

"This data is based on a definition of 30% tree cover. Areas with less than 30% canopy cover are excluded.

Biomass data for subnational administrative areas in Australia

This data is based on a definition of 30% tree cover. Areas with less than 30% canopy cover are excluded.
Archived forest data for Australia | Forest data for Australia

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"Tree cover threshold" is used for defining the tree cover area. For example, 75% includes only areas with more than 75% tree cover, whereas 10% includes all areas with more than 10% tree cover. 75% tree cover reflects a dense canopy. "Tree cover threshold" is used for defining the tree cover area.

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Biodiversity Assessment Working Group, 2009

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Biodiversity Assessment Working Group, 2009

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Continental pattern of Australia’s forest cover change, 2002–06

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Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy, 2011

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Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy, 2011

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Percentage of Australia’s native vegetation remaining

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Beef breifing paper

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Living Forests Report: Chapter 5

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WWF - The Australian deforestation crisis

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Australia - World Deforestation Hotspot | WWF-Australia

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Cattle ranching in the Amazon

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Cattle-ranching: biggest threat to Amazon rainforest

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Australia's recycling lie

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Exposing Australia’s recycling lie | 60 Minutes Australia

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Principles for sustainability

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Ethopia tree planting record

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Policy responses to deforestation in Australia

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Published on

Presentation delivered at #SCBO2016

1. 1. Deforestation in Australia: drivers, trends and policy responses MEGAN C EVANS F E N N E R S C H O O L O F E N V I R O N M E N T A N D S O C I E T Y , A U S T R A L I A N N A T I O N A L U N I V E R S I T Y S C H O O L O F G E O G R A P H Y , P L A N N I N G A N D E N V I R O N M E N T A L M A N A G E M E N T , U N I V E R S I T Y O F Q U E E N S L A N D @megcevans #SCBO2016 BRISBANE, 2016 C O N S E R V A T I O N O C E A N I A S T Y L E : H I G H L I G H T I N G O C E A N I A ' S U N I Q U E A P P R O A C H E S T O C O N S E R V A T I O N B I O L O G Y A N D O N G R O U N D O U T C O M E S

2. 2. Australia is now a global hotspot for land clearing. I support a call for stronger laws to #ProtectHabitat! http://thndr.me/x35NTr #SCBO2016 SCIENTISTS' DECLARATION: ACCELERATING FOREST, WOODLAND AND GRASSLAND DESTRUCTION IN AUSTRALIA Friday 8th July 2016 Today, scientists from across the world (including those listed), in conjunction with scientific societies and the delegates of the Society for Conservation Biology (Oceania) Conference, call upon Australian governments, especially those of Queensland and New South Wales, to take action. We call for the prevention of a return to the damaging past of high rates of woodland and forest destruction, in order to protect the unique biodiversity and marine environments of which Australia is sole custodian.

3. 3. The Brigalow Declaration Tuesday 25th November 2003 On open letter to the Prime Minister John Howard and Queensland Premier Peter Beattie on the need to end the clearing of mature native bushland in Queensland Dear Prime Minister and Premier Beattie, We the undersigned Australian scientists write to you concerning the issue of land clearing in Queensland. We endorse the leadership that you have both recently shown on this issue. We encourage you to implement a solution as fast as possible. Public Statement of Concern from Queensland Scientists 13th May 2013 As scientists with expertise in biodiversity conservation and sustainable development, we wish to express grave concerns about the future impacts of proposed changes to Queensland's Vegetation Management Act and the Water Act.

4. 4. Has the 'end of broadscale landclearing' already come to an end? SLATS Land cover change in Queensland 2012-13 and 2013-14 VMA (1999) VMA amendments

5. 5. Deforestation = bad news for biodiversity Land clearing in Cape York, Queensland | Kerry Trapnell, The Wilderness Society

6. 6. Drivers, trends and policy responses * Deforestation is a deeply political issue * Need to understand institutional (cultural and policy), economic and ecological dimensions "We are unable to combine values, interests and resources in ways which are not political" Davis 1993, Public Policy in Australia

7. 7. National Carbon Accounting System (NCAS) Australian Department of the Environment (2015) Deforestation trends * 7.2 million hectares primary forest cleared 1972-2014 * 7% reduction in primary forest extent from 1972 *assumes all primary forest in 1972 * 9.5 million hectares regrowth forest cleared over this period

8. 8. National Carbon Accounting System (NCAS) Australian Department of the Environment (2015) Deforestation trends * Majority clearing 1980 - 1989; loss of 4.7 million hectares of native vegetation (inc 2.4 Mha regrowth) * Queensland really good at cutting down trees * Primary deforestation declining (because there's less over time)

9. 9. Deforestation drivers Deforestation Sources of deforestation Agents and their land use decisions Underlying (ultimate) causes Macroeconomic variables and policy instruments Immediate (proximate) causes Factors that influence agent decisions (institutions, infrastructure, markets, technology) Angelsen & Kaimowitz 1999 World Bank Res Obs

10. 10. Deforestation drivers Deforestation Sources of deforestation Agents and their land use decisions Underlying (ultimate) causes Macroeconomic variables and policy instruments Immediate (proximate) causes Factors that influence agent decisions (institutions, infrastructure, markets, technology) Forest remaining! Angelsen & Kaimowitz 1999 World Bank Res Obs

11. 12. Deforestation policy responses * Some national level policy, but little to no regulatory teeth, e.g * Land clearing is a Key Threatening Process under EPBC Act since 2001 * Ecological communities receive EPBC listing when already extensively cleared (Tulloch et al. 2015) * National Heritage Trust aimed for NNL of native vegetation by 2001 * Current national framework aims for increase in native vege extent and connectivity by 2020 * Protected areas generally don't reduce deforestation (Pressey 2002) * Native vegetation mainly regulated at the State level

12. 13. I read all of Australia's native vegetation policies from 1970 - 2016 so you don't have to (please cite me)

13. 14. A (very) brief history of native vegetation policy Pre- 1980's Deforestation incentivised by Govts through low-cost finance, tax concessions, cheap land and lease conditions 1980 - 1989 Regulation framed around soil conservation and salinity prevention (WA), private conservation (SA), permits (Vic) 1990 - 2000 Rising public concern around biodiversity & ecologically sustainable development. "NNL by 2000" in Victoria 2000 - 2009 "End of broadscale clearing" in QLD VMA 1999 & NSW NVA 2003. Offset policies proliferated 2000 - 2016 Reviews & amendments (NSW, Vic, QLD, SA, WA), increased emphasis on offsetting & self-regulation

14. 15. Why the policy 'ping pong'? * Post- 2010 shift from 'command and control' to voluntary compliance and self-regulation * 'Red tape' reduction and EPBC one-stop-shop, EPBC Act standing bill * Opening up (and subsequent re-closing) of National Parks to grazing * Worsening terms of trade for agriculture during mining boom * Top-down regulation deeply unpopular with many landholders Farmers' terms of trade (ABARE 2003)

15. 16. ...what about "innovative instruments"? * Biodiversity offsets, carbon farming, private conservation are part of the policy mix, but do not substitute for regulation * Incentives are great, but: * We don't invest nearly enough * Subject to short term funding * Policy uncertainty  business risk * Require regulation to create scarcity (and therefore value) Evans MC, Carwardine J et al. 2015. Env Science & Policy

16. 17. We need an effective policy mix * Policy needs to control deforestation before it becomes "uneconomic" * Shift in focus on policy instrument type does not necessarily mean there will be a change in policy effectiveness * Diversity of policy instruments is needed (regulation, economic, education) * BUT - all policy types require monitoring, evaluation & enforcement to be effective Dovers and Hussey, 2013. Environment & sustainability : a policy handbook

17. 18. Thank-you PhD supervision Karen Hussey, Stephen Dovers, Stuart Whitten, Andrew Macintosh, Grace Chiu Helpful discussions Peter Burnett, James Watson Forest change data Shanti Reddy PCB Special Issue Vanessa Adams, Richard Kingsford, Rebecca Spindler Funding Australian Postgraduate Award, CSIRO top-up scholarship @megcevans

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Deforestation in Australia: drivers, trends and policy responses

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Published on Presentation delivered at #SCBO2016 1.

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What is biodiversity and why is it important?

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[Music plays and text appears: What is biodiversity and why is it important?]

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Biodiversity is the web of life.

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Biodiversity is the full variety of all the species that you see in the natural environment around you, like these witchetty bushes and Eremophilas.

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All those species across the face of the earth make up biodiversity.

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[Text appears: Genetic variability]

And it's not just species; it's also the genetic variability they have within them.

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And it's not just the genetic variability and the... all the species diversity, it's the diversity of ecosystems that they make up, and which you see behind me in this part of central Australia. Biodiversity is all those things.

[Text appears: Evolutionary history]

It's the evolutionary history which has given rise to that genetic variability in all these species.

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It's the functions that all those ecosystems produce in providing clean water, and in cycling nutrients.

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Biodiversity is all those things, and the processes that result from the living world. Biodiversity is the web of life.

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The concept of biodiversity first emerged during the 1980s, actually quite recently, because of concern about the impact of human beings on the planet.

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Given that human beings are so abundant and so influential in what we do, we are clearly having an impact globally.

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So biodiversity as a concept emerged as a way of highlighting the precious nature of that living world and highlighting the need for human beings to think more carefully about the values and benefits that they obtain from the living world, from biodiversity.

[Text appears: Values: why does biodiversity matter?]

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The diversity of life, and the diversity of human appreciation of it, is such that I think there's at least five categories of values that we need to consider in asking ourselves the question, or rather answering the question why is biodiversity important, and why does it matter. And the first of those is obvious, it's economic.

[Text appears: 1. Economic value]

In some places we human beings turn biodiversity into dollars.

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We harvest timber; we catch fish from the sea.

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Those direct uses of biodiversity provide economic wellbeing to many human communities.

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The second major value of biodiversity is what you might call ecological life support.

[Text appears: 1. Economic value; 2. Ecological life support]

Another way of phrasing it is ecosystem services.

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These are benefits that human beings obtain from the natural world, such as the provision of clean water, the pollination of crops, the control of pests and weeds by other species.

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The third one is in essence it's cultural.

[Text appears: 1. Economic value; 2. Ecological life support; 3. Cultural value]

That the world around us informs the way we feel about our country.

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Our great artists frequently represent the natural world in their artworks, and they hang in all the galleries throughout Australia.

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Including, I might point out, Indigenous painters, whose depiction of country is often deeply rooted in what we might call biodiversity.

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All Australians recognise, all those of us who've had the benefit of flying overseas and coming home, know about the impact of the smell of gum leaves when finally you get home again.

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You know in some senses the landscape around us tells us who we are.

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I mean we have an emu and a kangaroo on our coat of arms. And those values a very difficult to put any numbers on.

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But it doesn't mean they're insignificant. They're incredibly important.

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So that's a third value. There's a fourth one, and this one you might be able to put numbers on because it's recreational value.

[Text appears: 1. Economic value; 2. Ecological life support; 3. Cultural value; 4. Recreational value]

People love getting out in the bush and rejuvenating.

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It doesn't matter whether it's a tough bush walk in Tasmania, or you know just an easy bout of bird watching in the paddock down by the dam, or just jogging by a lake in Canberra, or Sydney, or Melbourne.

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The fifth one, I have left it til last because it's the scientific value.

[Text appears: 1. Economic value; 2. Ecological life support; 3. Cultural value; 4. Recreational value; 5. Scientific value]

And that might sound a little bit precious to be claiming that, but it's true.

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Australian biodiversity on the global scale is unique. There's nothing else like Australia. It must be said that there is a sixth value which you might describe as the negative value, the unpleasant aspects of biodiversity in its relation to human beings.

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[Text appears: 1. Economic value; 2. Ecological life support; 3. Cultural value; 4. Recreational value; 5. Scientific value; 6. Negative value]

You don't find many people arguing for the right to exist of the malarial parasite, or the smallpox virus.

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In Australia many people are frightened of crocodiles, for good reason.

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So there is a part of the natural world that we fear, and that's always present in all societies.

[Music plays and text appears: Biodiversity is declining]

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With seven billion people on the face of the planet the natural world is experiencing a decline.

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Biodiversity is declining, it's demonstrably occurring.

[Image changes to a computerised image of the world and text appears: from 'Welcome to the Anthropocene']

The nature of this impact, this universal impact that human beings are now having on planet earth has led to the development of a term which is the Anthropocene. Now the Anthropocene builds upon the geological eras, like the Pliocene and Miocene, and Pleistocene, so it's a deliberate play on the evolution of the earth over its history, to a point now where it is dominated by human activity. That is unique.

[Image has changed back to Dr. Steve Morton]

So it's a different geological era. We humans, our decisions now govern the future of the earth. It's up to us.

[Text appears: What is the role of science?]

[Image has changed back to Dr. Steve Morton]

So I think there are three challenges.

[Image changes to two men talking and looking at a lizard]

[Text appears: 1. Address biodiversity decline]

First of all to understand, analyse, and help deal with the ongoing decline in biodiversity.

[Image changes to various animals]

That's a big challenge for science.

[Text appears: 2. Understand complexity of biodiversity]

[Image changes to people recording measurements in the bush]

Secondly, understanding the full complexity of biodiversity. All those values and interactions that I spoke about before have a scientific component to them, and science is wrestling with the size of that task.

[Image of remote control device taking off and flying through the air]

[Image changes to open cut mine and text appears: 3. Inform resource use discussions]

[Image changes to farm fields]

And thirdly science is still working out how best to contribute to the discussions about tradeoffs between different forms of resource use with biodiversity implications, because it's those resource use activities that are causing the decline in the first place.

[Image changes to heavy machinery]

[Image changes to a large factory]

[Image has changed back to Dr. Steve Morton]

You could take the conversation we're having to be pessimistic, that you know biodiversity is declining, you know human beings are getting more and more abundant, you know it's all going to wrack and ruin - I actually don't think that way.

[Image changes to view from a plane flying above the ground]

Particularly in Australia we have so much to be proud of, so many aspects of our society are ready to deal with these problems.

[Image changes to group of people sitting on the ground, talking]

[Text appears: Social dialogue]

We have tremendous experience in our society at the sort of social dialogue, the political debate necessary to make sure these things are taken account of.

[Image changes to a scientific machine rolling along the ground]

[Image changes to a man looking through a microscope and text appears: Science base]

We have a fantastic scientific base.

[Image has changed back to Dr. Steve Morton]

We have community involvement in natural resource management, including biodiversity management, to an unparalleled level.

[Image changes to groups of people taking photographs in the bush and text appears: Community involvement]

[Image has changed back to Dr. Steve Morton]

Couldn't have been expected when I was a boy. There are many, many things to be positive about. Good reasons for optimism.

[Text appears: MUSIC - Premium Beat music tracks; ADDITIONAL FOOTAGE - Welcome to the Antrhropocene footage courtesy Anthropocene.info | Globaia.org, Shutterstock.com, Bruce Webber; ADDITIONAL IMAGES - Geoscience Australia, NASA, Woodside, Marie Davies, Sam Secker, Liz Poon, Malcolm Paterson, Creative Commons images (Flickr, Wikimedia): Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Environment & Primary Industries (Vic), geomartin, Bernard DUPONT, dilettantiquity, sunphlo; ARTWORK - Hans Heysen, National Gallery of NSW, Amy French and Lily Long, Martu Mili Artists]

[Music plays and CSIRO logo appears with text: Big ideas start here www.csiro.au]

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Chapter 1. What is biodiversity, and why is it important?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Music plays and text appears: What is biodiversity and why is it important?] [Image changes to view from a plane flying above the ground] [Image changes to a bird flying and landing in a treetop] [Image changes to fish swimming in the ocean] [Image changes to a lizard in the forefront, and a view of a city comes into focus in the background] [Image changes to a picture of the ocean and rocks] [Image changes to the sun shining through treetops] Biodiversity is the web of life.

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Deforestation causes and solutions

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Deforestation: Causes, Effects and Solutions

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A presentation about the state of the world's forests, the main causes behind deforestation, and what we can do about it.

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New York Declaration on Forests

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Soil salinity in Australia

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Sustainable development goal 15

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Goal 15 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs

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Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

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Pathways to deforestation-free foods