By Kim Powell Seven million Australians are overweight, and two million of us are obese. Our well-rounded figures indicate that two in three Australian males aged over the age of 25 are now overweight, and physical activity is the second biggest risk factor for disease in this country, second only to tobacco smoking. The financial...
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Tackling the taboo
By Kim Powell Illegal drugs. It seems not a week goes by without the issue making the news. The South Australian Democrats leader Sandra Kanck stirred the debate in May by saying that the refusal to allow partygoers to test drugs at dance parties is counter-productive to minimising harm and that people will continue to...
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An impressive street approach
By Jane Garcia Does your street furniture reflect the values and aspirations of your community? Is it creating a sense of ‘this is a place people want to be’? Ian Dryden is an industrial designer with the City of Melbourne. For more than 19 years he has helped create and implement a range of furniture...
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Green report for the public
By Jane Garcia Government departments and agencies have done well at tracking environmental and social data but not so good at turning this information into a well developed report which can demonstrate what it means, according to a sustainability reporting expert. Linda Funnel-Milner is the director of Corporate Responsibility Australia and the chair of stakeholder...
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Urban scrawl
Kim Powell looks at the different ways some councils have approached the problem of graffiti. Brisbane City Council The issue of graffiti in Brisbane is being tackled by the Brisbane City Council and Queensland Government agencies. Transport and Main Roads Minister Paul Lucas says the majority of graffiti vandalism involves criminal trespass, which is dangerous...
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Price check on public transport
By Kim Powell Only 20 to 30 per cent of the costs of running public transport are recouped through fares, so given how little revenue it raises, would more people use public transport if it was free? Daniel Bowen, president of lobby group Public Transport Users Association in Victoria, says the “number one reason more...
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Larger than life fun
By Jane Garcia When I was in primary school my friend Jasmin and I used to imagine ourselves inside our favourite TV show and play ‘Land of the Giants’ while waiting for our parents to pick us up from school. There was no fancy equipment involved, just a set of climbing frames, some swings and...
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Imperative that local government shows leadership in sustainability
By Jane Hammond in Perth Local councils could do much to halt the march of global warming and climate change, a leading scientist told the Local Government week convention in Perth in August . Dr Mark Diesendorf from the Institute of Environmental Studies at the University of NSW said urgent action was needed to stop...
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Half of WA’s councils are financially unsustainable: report
By Jane Hammond in Perth Most councils in Western Australia are in dire financial straights with more than half found to be financially unsustainable by an independent study commissioned by the WA Local Government Association (WALGA). The interim findings of the eight-month Systemic Sustainability Study were released at the annual Local Government Week convention in...
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Downer urges Australians to think big
By Jane Garcia in Sydney Just as the Socceroos proved they could join the ‘big league’ in playing in the World Cup, Australia should back itself when it comes to foreign policy and advancing its interests at a global level, according to Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer. Speaking at The Centre for Independent Studies’...