Welcome to The Sustainable Hour #324. In The Tunnel on 22 July 2020 we meet three artists, who use their art to make a difference and push their ideas somewhere new:

Our first guest is choir maester Stephen Tabener. Stephen has been leading community choirs for many years. He tells us what he’s been doing during lockdown when he has experimented with a new tunnel project he calls the ‘Massive Singlet’, examplifying the amazing creativity that has been unleashed via Zoom while we’ve been in the grip of Covid-19. Stephen sees singing as an important part of protest rallies and community development, and attests to its proud tradition all over the world.

We welcome 13-year-old singer Rory Phillips as he talks about the creation of his latest song ‘The Truth’. Rory, accompanied by his proud mum Samantha Taylor, impresses with a maturity far in excess of his years. We will be watching his progress with a great deal of interest. We couldn’t resist playing his song as he left us.

In the run up to the International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem on 26 July, we reconnect with mangrove expert and artist Zahidah Zeytoun Millie. Zahidah has studied and drawn mangroves all over the world. In a covid-free world, we would be getting ready for the mangrove arts festival ‘Mangroves from the Water’ that she has been preparing for over several years. But not to be deterred, she is carrying on. In her spare time she is doing a PhD on her passion. Zahidah tells us how her festival plans are going as she launches a poster competition to promote the festival that’s been put back 12 months.

Colin Mockett‘s Global Outlook today looks at three items. We hear about the bold plans that the Democratic candidate for the upcoming US Presidential election, Joe Biden, has recently announced. The environmental agenda he would bring in if he won the presidency will cost $2 trillion. They will create many jobs and they will allow the United States to meet its global responsibilities concerning reducing their carbon emissions. This bold plan is in stark contrast to the Trump administration’s inability to take the climate crisis seriously.

Earlier this year, Colin told us about the low prices that oil had reached. Today he tells the same story about Australia’s liquified natural gas. Australia is the world’s largest exporter of this product, but prices are so low that a third of the ships carrying the gas are just storing it. They are waiting in the hope that the price will increase. Observers of the market is saying that the fossil fuel age is reaching its endgame.

Colin also reports about tensions within our LNP government. The last manifestation of this is the decision about who should be on the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) committee. A chairperson has been chosen but the makeup of the rest of his committee is far from settled as their ideological fault lines once again show themselves.

That’s us for another week. If you like what we do, feel free to share us far and wide. And as the week progresses,