If the budget ditched the Stage 3 tax cuts, Australia could save every threatened species – and lots more

12 May 2023

Sarah Bekessy, RMIT University; Brendan Wintle, The University of Melbourne, and Rachel Morgain, The University of Melbourne The Albanese government has made bold environmental promises over the last year. Given the parlous state of nature in Australia, these commitments are important. The promises include ending new extinctions, fixing national nature laws and protecting 30% of […]

Nature is in crisis. Here are 10 easy ways you can make a difference

21 April 2023

Matthew Selinske, RMIT University; Georgia Garrard, The University of Melbourne; Jaana Dielenberg, Charles Darwin University, and Sarah Bekessy, RMIT University Last month, Sir David Attenborough called on United Kingdom residents to “go wild once per week”. By this, he meant taking actions which help rather than harm the natural world, such as planting wildflowers for […]

Our laws fail nature. The government’s plan to overhaul them looks good, but crucial detail is yet to come

11 December 2022

Brendan Wintle, The University of Melbourne; Martine Maron, The University of Queensland, and Sarah Bekessy, RMIT University The Albanese government has just released its long-awaited response to a scathing independent review of Australia’s environment protection law. The 2020 review ultimately found the laws were flawed, outdated and, without fundamental reform, would continue to see plants […]

Melbourne revegetation plan calls for on-street parking to go undercover

29 November 2022

New research reveals up to half of Melbourne’s on-street parking spaces could be converted into hectares of new green space, without a net loss of parking for the public.

RMIT joins Social Sciences Week

23 August 2022

This year the Centre for Urban Research, Urban Futures Enabling Capability Platforms and Social Change Enabling Capability Platform are presenting a number of events as part of Social Sciences Week. With online and in-person events, these sessions look at how social sciences help us make sense of an uncertain future. How to live in a […]

Green interventions, and blue bees: rethinking what we know about gardens

19 May 2022

There is a growing understanding that bees are crucial to food security, biodiversity and a healthy environment, but bees are much more than stripey, hive-dwelling, honey-makers. This World Bee Day, open your eyes to the rich world of bees!

I want my vote to count for nature: how do the major parties stack up?

18 May 2022

The animals and plants at risk of extinction finally made it onto the political agenda last week, as Labor and the Greens launched biodiversity policies ahead of the federal election.

It takes more than words and ambition: here’s why your city isn’t a lush, green oasis yet

07 July 2021

The idea of transforming cities from concrete jungles to urban forests is a popular one, and there have been some truly inspiring, exemplar projects in recent years. But has your city actually turned into a lush oasis yet? No, neither has ours.

Top ten ways you can help boost Australia’s biodiversity

05 June 2020

On Word Environment Day, we take a look at some of the simple ways we can individually and collectively help boost biodiversity in our own backyards and beyond.

How should I vote if I care about preventing the extinction of nature?

17 May 2019

Some voters heading to the polls this weekend may be casting their ballot with biodiversity in mind, after a major UN report released last week highlighted the global extinction crisis facing more than a million species.

Mapping our urban forests

05 April 2019

How do we ensure we have thriving and extensive urban vegetation as our cities develop, consolidate and grow? This is one of the key urban challenges of Australian cities.

The small patch of bush over your back fence might be key to a species’ survival

13 December 2018

It may not look like a pristine expanse of Amazon rainforest, but the patch of bush at the end of the street could be one of the only places on the planet that has a particular species of endangered animal or plant.

Small habitats crucial to species survival: study

10 December 2018

Local patches of bushland play a much bigger role in conserving biodiversity and supporting the survival of endangered species than previously thought, according to new research.

Nine things to make Melbourne even better

30 October 2018

Here our experts share everything you need to know about how policymakers can make Melbourne more liveable, improve our liveability, reduce commuter crushes and increase housing affordability.

Here’s how to design cities where people and nature can both flourish

24 October 2018

Aside from benefits for people, cities are often hotspots for threatened species and are justifiable locations for serious investment in nature conservation for its own sake.

RMIT research inspires community gardening for wildlife state-wide

04 September 2018

The new community initiative Gardens for Wildlife, based on RMIT research, will serve as a role-model across Victoria to encourage gardening to support local wildlife.

Buy, protect, resell: Revolving natural heritage protection?

10 August 2018

Finding ways to conserve and protect heritage assets on privately owned and managed property is an ongoing challenge for policy makers.

Informal greenspaces: Values, perceptions and use

Apart from formal parks and gardens, street verges and other planned greenspaces, most cities have pockets of unplanned vegetation and leftover open spaces, including vacant lots, railway verges and drainage channels.

Ask not what nature can do for you

09 August 2018

In our recent paper, we ponder whether the increasingly prevalent trend for framing nature in terms of ecosystem services is actually helping to build public engagement in conservation.

Embracing the chaos

06 August 2018

By transcending disciplinary boundaries researchers can reconceptualise human-nature relations. Issues of the scale of mass species extinctions or climate change are never going to be solved by a single discipline acting alone. 

Let’s get this straight, habitat loss is the number-one threat to Australia’s species

18 October 2017

Earlier this month, Australia’s outgoing Threatened Species Commissioner Gregory Andrews told ABC radio that land clearing is not the biggest threat to Australia’s wildlife. His claim caused a stir among Australia’s biodiversity scientists and conservation professionals, who have plenty of evidence to the contrary.

Are conservation covenants a secure way to protect nature on private land?

18 August 2017

Recent RMIT research has revealed that conservation covenants in Australia are proving an enduring way to protect nature on private land.

Residential wild-life gardening for collaborative public-private biodiversity conservation

23 May 2017

In cities, matching conservation action is needed on public and private land to conserve biodiversity: protecting patches of native habitat on public land, extending buffers around them, and improving connections between them through corridors and stepping stones in gardens and other land-use areas.

Insects and the city: Conserving the little things that run our city

All species in this planet are delicately interlinked to each other in a beautifully complex network of ecological interactions. In cities, insects are key components of urban ecological networks and are greatly impacted by human activities.