In this issue


ECOS ECOS
Issue 202



Features

Can farmers live with dingoes?
ECOS has been exploring the ecological value of dingoes and other apex predators within ecosystems, as part of a wider debate about whether such predators should be culled or conserved in areas where they come into conflict with humans and human property. Now we ask, is it possible for dingoes and livestock grazing to co-exist?
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‘Primary’ forests? Yes, there is a difference – and we need them more than ever
What often gets lost in the public debate about forests is the fact that they are not all the same. This is not just a rhetorical point. The world's ‘primary' forests – those barely touched by industrial human activity – naturally sequester and store vast amounts of carbon from the atmosphere; are home to species found nowhere else; are a source of abundant freshwater; and provide sustainable livelihoods for forest-dwelling Indigenous communities.
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How flesh-eaters helped shape our ecosystems
Australian carnivores exhibit a remarkable diversity, from the small antechinuses found in rainforest trees, to goannas living in the heat of the central and western deserts. Each plays a vital role in our ecosystems, keeping other predators and herbivores under check and exerting ecological pressure from the top down.
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Listening to the land
Imagine yourself in the middle of the rainforest. Close your eyes. What do you hear? Perhaps the rustling of ground birds scratching around in the leaf litter, the sudden whip of a whipbird, the machine gun rattle of Lewin's honeyeater, the swish of the high canopy as the wind passes overhead.
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Australia should export more ideas and fewer greenhouse emissions
As climate negotiators meet at the United Nations' Lima summit, which comes hot on the heels of the landmark US-China climate deal, there is a renewed focus on how the world can move to a lower-emissions future.
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Urbanisation brings animals and diseases closer to home
Our world is becoming increasingly urbanised. In 1950, just 30 per cent of the world's population lived in urban areas. This number is now over 50 per cent and rising. Among urbanisation's many environmental challenges is the increased risk of pathogen transmission.
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Megadosing the environment? How toxic waste from drug manufacture can create problems
We've all heard about the pollution of our waterways from drug and cosmetic residues in our sewage and wastewater. But what about the waste discharged from pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities, especially the growing number of factories in places like India and China?
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In Brief - Round-up of sustainability news

Data show 2014 has been Europe’s hottest year on record
 
 
Jarrah forests show resilience as SW WA climate dries and warms
 
 
A sense of belonging to the planet can shape perceptions of climate change
 
 
Looking for a summer hols project? Paint your roof lighter
 
 
Top scientists to lead new biodiversity and climate science hubs
 
 
Global and Australian warming continues: CSIRO
 
 
Longer-lasting lithium batteries for electric cars being developed here
 
 
Ten-year plan to save Kakadu’s threatened species gets federal support
 
 
Pace of climate change will challenge reptiles and amphibians
 
 
Hybrid cell solution brings solar efficiency to record high
 
 
Smart mirror beams heat from buildings into ‘cold space'
 
 
Young Australians meet to (re)generate their love of nature
 
 
Greener cities are cooler cities in summer: new guide reveals how
 
 
Study of overgrazed kelp-beds shows how to avoid ecosystem ‘tipping points'
 
 
Australia's warmest-ever spring, and prospect of ‘moderate’ El Niño
 
 
National digital soil map opens window to better landscape management
 
 
Probability and pest eradication: it may not be over when it’s ‘over’
 
 
Underwater robot sheds new light on Antarctic sea ice
 
 
New emissions standards help track policy progress towards mitigation goals
 
 
CrocBITE snaps up support to improve croc awareness globally
 
 

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