All articles
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Let’s stop feeling so guilty about global warming
Emma Thompson recently went to the Arctic aboard the Greenpeace ship Esperanza. She wrote these words after walking out onto the fragile sea ice for the first time alongside her 14 year old daughter Gaia. We’re told that it is all our fault, global warming — we want the fuel, we want our cars, and that…
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5 things you need to know about Sydney University
There’s something about Australia’s sandstone universities – they’re grand, prestigious, and a little mysterious. But the University of Sydney’s million dollar investment in Whitehaven Coal and their destructive Maules Creek Coal Mine isn’t just mysterious – it’s downright dodgy. Not only is Whitehaven responsible for the largest coal mine under construction in Australia, it is also flattening…
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6 JAWsome shark facts!
Do sharks make you think of the theme music from Jaws and shark nets at the beach? A whale shark photographed from above in Cenderawasih Bay National Park, Indonesia. Do sharks make you think of the theme music from Jaws and shark nets at the beach? It’s Shark Week – the perfect time to bust…
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The day giant LEGO people took to the streets of Sydney
At 9am on a Friday morning in the Greenpeace Sydney office, our giant LEGO friend, Katy, received a phone call from a supporter informing her that Shell is using it’s partnership with the well-loved LEGO brand to increase fuel sales and divert attention from its Arctic oil drilling. To #BlockShell we’ve got to ‘come together,…
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Carmichael coal mine’s impacts will be felt for generations
TEN MONTHS AGO I described pending decisions about coal developments on the Great Barrier Reef left by the outgoing Labor government as “a dead cat in Greg Hunt’s in-tray”. Originally posted on the ABC – 28 Jul 2014 I’ve met Greg Hunt a few times over the years and I reckon he’s a decent…
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Australia made history, but for all the wrong reasons
A few short years ago, putting a price on carbon was a sensible first step on the journey to tackle the main cause of climate change – our carbon emissions from increasing use of fossil fuels. Image via @geeksrulz on Twitter Since that sensible first step, the world and Australia have continued to warm. On…
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How tiny plastic people protested around the world
The news of LEGO’s cosy relationship with Shell has led to tiny protests erupting around the country – nay, the world. Famous national and international landmarks have been festooned with banners as the streets resounded the stamp of little plastic feet. In Sydney, a protest took place in front of the iconic Sydney Harbour…
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It’s time for LEGO to block Shell
Imagine you’re eight years old and picture the Arctic. There are no oil rigs, no industrial shipping and no politicians fighting over it. It’s just an endless sparkling expanse of sea and ice, populated by brave scientific explorers, magical animals and Indigenous Peoples who have called the far north home for millennia. An enchanted place…
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An Inconvenient Strewth? 4 things you should know about the Palmer-Gore climate speech
Watching last night’s press conference with Clive Palmer and Al Gore on climate change was one of the more bizarre moments I’ve witnessed in Australian politics. Image: twitter.com/SBSNews We won’t know exactly what Clive’s announcements mean for a little while yet. Based on past experience, what he said last night might not be his view tomorrow –…
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Dawn of the Dead: Whitehaven Coal, the zombie mining company
Whitehaven Coal Company is kinda like a zombie extra from Dawn of the Dead. Every time we think it’s finally gone, it staggers to its feet – minus an arm – and comes lurching back into frame. On the 12th of June, when the Land & Environment Court was just about to hand down its decision on whether…