2025: Nature’s next chapter
So many of us can attribute our love of nature to environmental communication pioneers such as Sir David Attenborough, Dr Jane Goodall or Rachel Carson. Who is following in their footsteps to fly the flag for nature?
There is growing urgency to protect what’s left of our ecosystems and biodiversity. How do we cut through, inspire and communicate this urgency – on a local and global scale?
And importantly, how does this translate to action on the ground? For the 10th annual John Paul Memorial Lecture, we’re delighted to present three of Victoria’s most outstanding environmental storytellers.
What is the future of environmental storytelling?
DR KYLIE SOANES
is an Australian scientist on a mission to save nature in our cities and towns
ANNETTE RUZICKA
is an award-winning visual storyteller dedicated to telling stories for the good of the Australian environment
DR JEN MARTIN
is an author, broadcaster, scientist and founder of the University of Melbourne’s Science Communication Teaching Program
2024: Deep Nature Connection
‘We cannot protect something we do not love, we cannot love what we do not know, and we cannot know what we do not see. Or hear. Or sense’ – Louv.
Nature needs us more than ever – and we need nature. As we face the increasing biodiversity crisis fuelled by environmental destruction and climate change, deepening our connection with nature is vital. By deepening our understanding of nature, we can better protect it.
How do we encourage more people to connect with nature? How do we inspire people to care? And how does this relate to private land conservation and restoration efforts across Victoria and Australia more broadly?
How do we encourage more people to connect with nature? How do we inspire people to care? And how does this relate to private land conservation and restoration efforts across Victoria and Australia more broadly?
In this webinar, we hear from three experts whose work focuses on human-nature connection
Lily van Eeden
Is a conservation scientist specialising in how people interact with nature and how values and social norms shape our attitudes and behaviours towards nature. Lily currently lectures at RMIT in environmental science.
Claire Dunn
Is a writer, speaker, barefoot explorer, rewilding facilitator and founder of Nature’s Apprentice. Claire believes that a reclaiming of our ecological selves and belonging is key to regenerating wildness on the planet.
Fiona Murdoch
Manages a 490 ha property, Raakajlim, in the Mallee, for conservation and restoration. She is a restoration ecologist, covenantor, and builds awareness for the mallee through public on-ground works and research.
2023: Big Restoration
The UN has declared that we’re in the decade of restoration. But how do we restore ecosystems in ways that give us the biggest bang for our buck?
Biolinks are big restoration projects that aim to restore habitat and link ecosystems across entire landscapes.
Find out what gains are made when you link bush patches, and link organisations and people. The whole might just be greater than the sum of the parts.
Biolinks are big restoration projects that aim to restore habitat and link ecosystems across entire landscapes.
Find out what gains are made when you link bush patches, and link organisations and people. The whole might just be greater than the sum of the parts.
In this webinar, we bring you stories from three exciting biolinks projects that are linking and restoring landscapes at inspirational scales.
Gondwana Link
Gondwana Link is one of Australia’s largest and most ambitious restoration project, linking the wet forests of Western Australia through to the Nullarbor—ecological and social rejuvenation working together. Presented by Keith Bradby, Gondwana Link CEO.
Biolinks Alliance
Biolinks Alliance restores and reconnects large landscapes across Central Victoria, supporting and amplifying community-driven conservation. Presented by Sophie Bickford, Executive Director of Biolinks Alliance.
Reconnecting Northland
Reconnecting Northland is catalysing the impact of communities across Northland, New Zealand, to revitalize biodiversity on behalf of nature and future generations. Presented by Eamon Nathan, General Manager Reconnecting Northland.
2022: Healthy Country
Australia has been cared for and shaped by Indigenous peoples over tens of thousands of years, but that was disrupted by colonial systems of oppression and displacement with disastrous changes to the environment.
Indigenous peoples’ responsibility to care for Country, has in many ways been denied though contemporary land planning and management.
This event asks how do we care for Country in contemporary Australia, and how might western science embrace Indigenous knowledges to achieve healthy Country outcomes?
Indigenous peoples’ responsibility to care for Country, has in many ways been denied though contemporary land planning and management.
This event asks how do we care for Country in contemporary Australia, and how might western science embrace Indigenous knowledges to achieve healthy Country outcomes?
Featuring three experts in Indigenous culture, ecology, and caring for country.
Maddi Miller
is a Darug woman whose research looks at ways to bring non-Indigenous and Indigenous sciences together to understand and care for Country.
Dozer Atkinson
is a Bpangerang elder who works to bring cultural practice and knowledge to the people of north-east Victoria.
Jack Pascoe
is a Yuin man and ecologist in the Otways. He will speak about fire practice, past and present in the Otways forests.
2021: Fenced reserves – how far can conservation go?
Many of our native Australian species are threatened by cat and fox predation, so a simple solution is to fence the predators out.
Fenced reserves have protected some of our most threatened species, but they also present challenges.
Can we create whole ecosystems inside fenced reserves? Can we create similar without the fences? Join us for a wonderful look into the world of fenced reserves.
Fenced reserves have protected some of our most threatened species, but they also present challenges.
Can we create whole ecosystems inside fenced reserves? Can we create similar without the fences? Join us for a wonderful look into the world of fenced reserves.
Featuring three experts in ecology and endangered species in Victoria.
Katherine Moseby
is a desert ecologist, specialising in threatened species reintroductions. She has co-founded three fenced reserves including one of Australia’s first. She will discuss the pros and cons of fenced reserves and how we might be able to achieve similar results without fences.
Adrian Manning
is an ecologist who helped to establish Mulligan’s Flat Woodland Sanctuary. He will talk about the science behind our attempts to recreate ecosystems.
Annette Rypalski
is an ecologist at Mt Rothwell, near Geelong, which is part of a larger conservation network managed by Odonata (CEO Sam Marwood). Annette and Sam will share their insights into conserving endangered species in Victoria.