Greening the Apocalypse

This week the team chats with Chris Walsh, expert in the health of rivers, streams and their landscapes at the University of Melbourne and a senior member of the Melbourne Waterway Research- Practice Partnership with Melbourne Water. They talk about biodiversity in rivers around the world, introduced species wreaking havoc in Australian rivers and looking after our creeks and streams in increasingly urbanised landscapes.

Adam and Jed chat with Mark Tyler (organiser at Earthworker) and Ella Ryan (worker/owner at Redgum Cleaning Coop) about co-ops, economic democracy and democracy in the workplace. What are the challenges to unions and cooperatives working together?

Bushy, Adam and Jed sit down with Dr Josh Healy, chatting about the changing nature of "work" from traditional manual jobs with long careers to gigs with turbulent change and no long-term stability. They discuss a range of solutions and promising directions in this space.

Adam and Sarah talk to David Holmgren on Retrosuburbia: Energy descent, what Melbourne might look like in 40 years, and the retrofits people can implement at home.

Ross Harding is a creative sustainability consultant. His business, Finding Infinity, provides self sufficiency advice, with projects ranging from houses to city blocks. They work not only on the technical and financial solutions, but equally the culture required to create the transformation. The team talk about changing the way people live, trying and failing at corporate sustainability and future ways of living.

Patrick Jones calls himself a 'neo-peasant'. Bushy, Adam and Jed chat to the writer, community gardener, artist and author of The Art of Free Travel with Meg Ulman, about his lifestyle.

Bushy, Kate and Jed chat with Lisa Howard of the Bendigo Botanical Gardens. They talk planting and planning for a changing climate, the roles of urban design, and botanical gardens in cooling the city and suburbs.

Bushy, Kate, Jed chat to Ary Hoffman, expert in insect ecology and the decline of flying bugs. The team look at the historical context and evolution of insects on Earth, the War on Bugs and looking ahead to our ecological future with insects.

Bushy and Jed chat with Margot and Louise from the Country Women's Association, who are here to show that the CWA is about more than cake. They are advocating for and facilitating social change and support to those in need in their many branches.

Adam and Jed hear from Kat Lavers (Hobson's Bay City Council) on her research into the co-benefits (psychological, social, health etc) of urban food growing and how to approach councils.