Environment
Democracy, Environment, Peace, Social Justice
Protecting Our Right To Peaceful Dissent In The Face Of Climate Breakdown
It is difficult to overstate the importance and influence of disruptive, peaceful protest and non-violent direct action in social change. On countless issues like women’s rights, LGBTIQ+ rights, justice for First Nations people, rights for workers, or campaigns against racism and xenophobia, large-scale protest, including disruption and direct action have been an essential ingredient of success. Globally, recent months have... Read More
Culture, Environment, Social Justice
Do Nuclear-Powered Electrons Have Balls? Hyper-Masculine Domination VS Ecological Politics
There’s been a flurry of stories recently about men apparently choosing not to recycle, or carry reusable shopping bags, because they’re worried people might question their sexuality. The reporting is based on research by Janet K. Swim, a professor of psychology at Penn State University, studying the perception of certain pro-environmental behaviours as having a particular gendered nature. She did... Read More
Democracy, Environment, Peace
Time To Rebel: Civil Disobedience For The Planet
The Extinction Rebellion (XR) movement has grabbed headlines since late 2018 with its repertoire of non-violent but disruptive tactics to raise climate awareness and protest government inaction on impending ecological collapse. The UK-born phenomenon has transformed into an international movement which continues to gather momentum. XR activist Jayne Forbes speaks here about her experiences in the London blockades and citizen’s... Read More
Economy, Environment, Social Justice
Lessons From The Election Part 2: Unions And The Environment Movement
There has been significant debate over both the role of unions and the environment movement in the 2019 Australian Federal Election. Godfrey Moase argues the two need to work more closely if we want to see action on climate change. This is the second part of a two part series on lessons for social movements following the 2019 Australian Federal... Read More
Economy, Environment
Emancipation In The Anthropocene
In 1958 Hannah Arendt published, The Human Condition.(1) At the beginning of this wide-ranging work, Arendt proposes “a reconsideration of the human condition from the vantage point of our newest experiences and our most recent fears.”(2) The major historical event which motivated this study was the launch of Sputnik I by the Soviet Union and the prospect this technological advance... Read More
Culture, Environment, Social Justice
Balginjirr “A Special Place On Our Home River Country”!
We are pleased to share with you this incredible poem by Dr. Anne Poelina, part of the Green Institute Report ‘Rebalancing Rights: Communities, Corporatations and Nature’. I came home to our river country, our place… our space… today. I stood at your grave site and recall the first night when I came back to my mother’s land, and now I... Read More
Democracy, Environment
Rights Of Nature, Earth Democracy And The Future Of Environmental Governance
This paper formed part of the Green Institute Report ‘Rebalancing Rights: Communities, Corporatations and Nature’. Around the world, people are working hard to protect their local communities and local ecosystems from the destructive impacts of excessive industrial developments. One strategy that is receiving growing attention is changing the legal status of nature from being human property or, at best, a... Read More
Environment
Signing Up For Extinction
“We’re worried that we’re going to see the extinction of [the Swift Parrot] within our careers—before the end of them” 1 Last November, Prime Minister Morrison signed up for extinction. He put his name to the Regional Forest Agreements (RFAs) through which the Commonwealth devolves environmental responsibility to the states and washes its hands of the outcome. Unless overturned by... Read More
Economy, Environment, Social Justice
Our Power: The Latrobe Valley, Hazelwood, And Our Energy Future
The Latrobe Valley is home to three brown coal mines and four power stations which have provided Victoria with over 80 per cent of its power, every day, for over 90 years. The documentary Our Power traces the footsteps of the Latrobe Valley’s history, starting from the coal community’s birth in the 1920s to the establishment of the State Electricity... Read More
Democracy, Economy, Environment, Social Justice
Green Anti-Immigration Arguments Are A Cover For Right Wing Populism
With the backdrop of dramatic decrease in migration to Australia in 2018 to a 10 year low, the population debate has reared its ugly head. In recent months Dick Smith has run an advertising blitz with the title ‘overpopulation will destroy Australia’ that compares population growth to cancer and recently took stage at Dark + Dangerous Thoughts at Mona arguing... Read More
