In this issue

	ECOS Issue 176

Features

Secure social licence calls for 'big picture' thinking ‘Social licence to operate' has become central to the current debate between the mining and extractive industries and the community over activities such as coal seam gas (CSG) extraction in Queensland. But what does the term actually mean, and how is such a licence secured? Learn more

Whichever way you look at it, green buildings save dollars and make sense Green buildings are improving sustainability and helping to combat climate change. Australia is at the forefront of this effort, and is recognised a global leader in the green building space. There is, however, room for improvement. Learn more

Citizen science data for the birds? Properly executed, ecological surveys can tell us a lot about a species. We can use this information to decide what to manage when, if our management approach is working, or if there is a need for policy reform. But systematic surveys of large areas by professional scientists are expensive. Learn more

'Low hanging fruit' to enrich the tropics
Many tropical tree species largely ignored by modern agriculture could, if domesticated, form the basis of integrated rural development in the tropics, says agroforestry expert Professor Roger Leakey. Prof. Leakey says these trees have the potential to alleviate poverty, hunger and malnutrition while also countering environmental degradation and climate change.
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Fields of conflict: agriculture, food production and biodiversity
If ecological science is to contribute meaningfully to the pressing environmental concerns of the globe, it needs to do more than document the decline of biodiversity. The theory and experimentation that underpins ecology should ultimately inform the decisions required to wisely and sustainably manage natural resources, and the rehabilitation and protection of conservation areas.
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A safer passage back to the wild
More than 30 dedicated volunteer wildlife rehabilitation networks in Australia rescue sick, injured or orphan animals and prepare them for release back to the wild. The Wildlife Information Rescue and Education Network (WIRES) in New South Wales, for example, fielded more than 100 000 emergency phone calls and rescued more than 56 000 native animals in 2010 alone.
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Lens onto a hidden world Had I not already been an initiate to the beauty of bats, I would certainly have been converted after reading this book. Learn more

When the rivers ran wild: fishing tales from another world The author of the book True Tales of the Trout Cod, is intrigued by the strong social and cultural connections that Australians have to the Murray–Darling Basin's native fish and waterways. The recollections he has documented point to a very different river system than the one we see today. Learn more