Greenfluence

We spoke to Elaine Johnson who broke down how litigation can support vulnerable communities and peoples from the very evident and cascading effects of climate change.

With the recent UN report of imminent threat of 1.5C overshoot, coupled with extractive fossil fuels practices and expansion, the work of her practice, Johnson Legal is as important as ever.

Elaine explains planning and development as foundation ofenvironmental laws, being her area of expertise but also supporting clients; Denman Aberdeen Muswellbrook Scone Healthy Environment Group (DAMS HEG) and Friends of Rock Art.

We also discussed the role of the lawyers in the environmental field and how to assess the growing need for climate litigation in a country lagging to create urgency and action.

Enjoy the full episode.

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DAMS HEG case

Friends of Rock Art case

We spoke to Ingrid Burfurd of The Superpower Institute all about carbon markets, reform well overdue and one that Australia needs to have.

Increased emissions link to externalities and our inability to price destruction of fossil fuels. Ingrid steps us through the journey... Australia's fall from carbon leader with the dismantled ETS, all the way to 2026, where she gives three huge reasons why the time is now.

The centrepiece of her research is the Polluter Pays Levy, would becharged based on source of initial production. It would cover 80% of Australia's emissions, with modelling showing it raises $22b a year between 2026 and 2050.

Listen more for:

➡️ Targets and Gen Z being key to getting carbon market reform in action

➡️ Supporting lower-income families, and household support package with energy price changes

➡️ Distributing fossil fuel wealth fairly in Australia - Fair Share Levy

➡️ Need for alternatives to tackle fuel security and sovereignty in Australia

Don't miss the full episode in the comments.

Toilet paper was never meant to be this sexy - that's until Who Gives A Crap came along! We had the privilege speaking to Bernie Wiley, Director of Sustainability at this iconic Aussie brand.

Getting under the hood of the outward cheeky marketing unveiled a social enterprise integrating consumer preferences, transparency, and sustainability for more than a decade.

WGAC's open source approach allowed an open discussion with Bernie.

• How sustainability is integrated into toilet paper production and consumer choice between bamboo or recycled fibres.
• 50% profit donation model as a non-negotiable and trade-offs in sustainability journey

• How as a CSO Bernie interprets buy-in internal stakeholders
• What differentiates the &BLOOM team and their importance to WGAC's sustainability progress

Bernie gave us a thoughtful and rare insight into life at a successful and fast-growing social enterprise. Don't miss the episode, and grab some WGAC for your bathroom too!

Can critical minerals really help us decarbonise or is theirpurpose far broader? Ian Hiscock, Principal at EnergyShift Institute gave us a deep dive into how they function. Our conversation explores its importance inglobal supply chain and geopolitics, including the ongoing Iran war.

Listen on to learn:

• Why critical minerals are hugely interdependent onthe Strait of Hormuz
• A breakdown of metal value chains
• Tension between the terminology of green products and low carbon supply chain
• Why Ian is a “free markets guy” when it comes to industrial policy
• Challenge and opportunity of the nickel industryin Indonesia

Enjoy the full episode in the comments below

It is enlightening speaking to practitioners such as Michelle Maloney on Earth-centred governance, given the challenges facing human prosperity from extractive models and short-term thinking.

A pioneer in the Earth-laws space, Michelle is the National Convenor and co-founded Australian Earths Laws Alliance (AELA) in 2012. A fundamental belief is better understanding how our living world works then rearranging our systems - bringing the concept of 'rights of nature.'

Yet, it involves radical transformation on how we think - decolonising our thinking and incorporating Indigenous thinking.

Some of the fascinating work AELA involves community work through their 'Greenprints' program through bioregional governance projects.

If you're a curious thinker, or looking at how our societies can grow sustainably- this is a must listen!

AI is not a new phenomenon, but over the last four years, and it’s accessibility has reshaped how we operate. So, it’s not surprising that the processes and design for human interaction are as important as ever.  Just ask Myfanwy Wallwork, Head AI Governance, Learning and Development at UTS Human Technology Institute.

As a senior leader in AI governance, executive education and organisational transformation, her speciality is in translating AI policy, safety and regulatory frameworks into practical capability.

Myfanwy highlighted “control and agency” early in the conversation, which became an important theme. A vital narrative in reframing automation as the warranted doom and gloom, job fearing scenario to one where organisations can capitalise on improved systems and employee support. From a social lens, the causation of improved productivity through AI could be revolutionary but only if organisations improve their workflows.   

 The question around decision making and accountability was also key in the conversation, who becomes responsible for the quality of using AI? A rarely talked about challenge is the gap between understanding how the technology operates and reviewing deliverables evident in interactions between middle management and graduates. 

Yet, Myfanwy makes it clear human connections are indispensable, the decision making ability when the future becomes difficult to predict. 

An important and timely conversation, hear more: 

• Four key principles of Human Centred AI

• Considerations for AI at the policy level and across borders

• What is the ‘human’ skill vital for process or decision making?

Don’t miss the full episode!

Kaushik Sridhar is not your typical ESG consultancy founder. From being an ex-tennis pro, kidnapped by Hezbollah and learning an adapting to four distinct cultures - his life experiences have cultivated a genuine resilience and perspective and honesty which is rare in the space.

With over 20 years' experience in corporate sustainability, including experience in Evolution Mining, Regis Healthcare and KPMG he took the leap in starting his own consultancy, Orka Advisory, in 2024. "Orka" being the Swedish word for "the will to get things done" is fitting for Kaushik's philosophy incorporating not only advisory work, but coaching, public speaking and teaching.

Kaushik's holistic and candid takes and understanding of the sustainability space created an enjoyable conversation:

• Why Kaushik's ambition in sustainability was to make his job redundant
• Importance of the KISS principle in ESG
• Failures in shaping Kaushik's sustainability journey
• Four key sustainability skills organisationsmust upskill on

Don't miss Kaushik's journey, as he continues to pay it forward - both through sustainability but more importantly life perspective.

The law and litigation in the climate space is fundamental. Decarbonisation is one aspect, but also as a lever to change behaviour of the most powerful public and private institutions.

So, speaking with Jennifer Balding to kick off Season 9 was a privilege. Her work at ASIC to secure the first regulatory enforcement for greenwashing against listed companies in Australia was a game changer, but underpinning her professional work is a strong sense of justice and democracy.

Appreciating the challenging state of our climate, Jennifer, using her three decades of legal experience began Viridis Legal. Viridis is a legal and consultancy firm aiming to support civil society to hold corporate Australia accountable for harm to climate and the environment. As a climate observer, she also commits as a grassroots level supporting protests and importantly observing the role of police.

Hear more about:

• A concerning tactic used by fossil fuels to dismiss the advocacy of NGOs
• Climate litigation trends - including ASIC enforcement of greenwashing and the International Court of Justice ruling
• Corporations - how they balance the legal implications of net-zero and also green hushing
• Jennifer's career advice - getting involved in a broad range of things

This was an insightful conversation and Jennifer's dedication to honour justice in respect of our planetary boundaries through the eyes of the law is certainly admired.

Don't miss it!

What if the most impactful way to boost long-term productivity was nature?

For too long Australia it’s been in crisis, we look at labour,interest rates, business efficiency – recently AI, all while exploiting loopholes and complacency with our broken environmental laws.

In our first episode for 2026, Greenfluence partnered with Leon Wiesner from EnviroEducate to discuss the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act – Australia’s biggest environmental and nature law reform in decades.

This legislation goes a long way in addressing land clearingexemptions, the renewable energy roll-out, approval of fossil fuel projects, governance mechanisms between the state and federal powers and the Matters of NationalEnvironmental Significance standard.

These robust laws reduce adverse environmental impacts while increasing the speed of the renewable transition, improving private-public funding mechanisms, creating market opportunities (biodiversity markets) and creatingsignificant employment opportunities.

An important episode to record and dig into a huge policyreform.

Hope you enjoy it.

(Disclaimer: Views expressed in the podcast and snippets are that of the individuals and are not spoken on behalf of any Australian government entities)

Our final episode release for 2025, saw us speak to a passionate changemaker and leader in circular and sustainability education, Lottie Dalziel, founder of Banish.

Her inspiration actually started from a 2018 New Years Resolution (it clearly worked!) on doing better for the planet. Following this, Banish has established their Banish Recycling and Diversion Program (BRAD) helping diverting hard-to-abate waste from reaching landfill, creating recycled gifts, run corporate workshops and done community collaboration. In fact, in FY24 Banish kept 7.8T tonnes out of landfill. Her contributions to sustainability and entrepreneurship saw her receive NSW Young Australian Award (2023) and Forbes' 30 Under 30.

But Lottie's journey is not just about numbers and awards, but empowering community with personal action and to create systemic change.

Hear about:

• How the BRAD program came to be and product innovation
• Challenges in Australia's waste sector
• A big myth of recycling in Australia
• Lottie's book to help you take action and save money

Heading to the holiday season, don't miss this inspiring conversation with Lottie and get on board with Banish!

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Banish: https://banish.com.au/