Restoring entire ecosystems is a difficult and expensive process. Thankfully, certain species, called ecosystem engineers, can make restoration easier. Gaining social and political support is critical too.
The giant bird Genyornis went extinct in Australia around 50,000 years ago.
Peter Trusler
These new sanctions target individuals and entities rather than whole countries, in the hope of punishing the true perpetrators and avoiding the incidental suffering of innocent people.
Australia’s approach is welcome but doesn’t go far enough. New Zealand’s plans are much bolder. Here’s how they compare.
Researchers discovered five new species of black corals, including this Hexapathes bikofskii growing out of a nautilus shell more than 2,500 feet (760 meters) below the surface.
Jeremy Horowitz
Black corals provide critical habitat for many creatures that live in the dark, often barren, deep sea, and researchers are learning more about these rare corals with every dive.
Firefighters battling to extinguish a wildfire.
Ververidis Vasilis/Shutterstock
We have relatively strict, but not infallible, gun laws in Australia. So to stop 3D guns becoming more available, we need to look at stopping the digital design files.
Wayne Lawler / Australian Wildlife Conservancy / AAP
The prime minister’s visit comes after a fractious year between the two countries, including tensions over China’s role in the Pacific and the postponed election in Solomon Islands.
Young women lack voice and visibility in discussions about family violence in Australia, and particularly intimate partner violence. This must change, urgently.
Invasive alien species are a growing concern for both the environment and economy.
Shutterstock
Scott Hardman, University of California, Davis; Daniel Sperling, University of California, Davis, and Gil Tal, University of California, Davis
We’ve heard all the concerns about switching to electric cars before. But California, a market with many similarities, shows why Australia is well placed to accelerate its transition.
When public services don’t work for Indigenous peoples, it’s more than just a case of policy failure. As long as colonial assumptions are embedded in the system, there can never be real progress.
Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences, Auckland University of Technology, and Professor of Political Science, Charles Sturt University
Faculty Member, Asian Studies Program, Georgetown University; Visiting Fellow, Department of Pacific Affairs, Australian National University., Georgetown University