Of all the effects of ageing, perhaps the most dreaded, is dementia. It's confronting for the person, their family, and everyone around them. The common perception is that there isn't much that can be done if you get it. That, however, is probably not true. Tara Jewell is studying this question for her PhD at the University of Canberra. Her work centres around the brain and healthy ageing. In particular, she's looking at personalised nutrition. Tuning nutrition for the individual is a new and pr...
Jul 27, 2025•56 min•Ep. 224
What was the world like ten, twenty or a hundred thousand years ago? What was the environment, the plants, the animals and the insects? And, importantly, how did these mesh into an ecosystem? To answer these questions about deep time, we need, not just sophisticated techniques, but the skill and passion of people like our guests today. Dr Alex Wall and PhD Student Jalen Nalbant are paleoecologists . In this interview by Sophia and Rod, we look at what that means and why it matters today. You can...
Jun 17, 2025•52 min•Ep. 223
Let's start with a big question: what are the pillars of civilisation? There are a few possible answers, but our guests today might argue that the list should include soil. Humble, dirty dirt, crawling with larvae, fungus and bacteria is an under-appreciated champion because, without it, we would not be here. To celebrate the magic of soils, Sophia Dacy-Cole has just submitted her PhD which includes an exhibition that celebrates soil ( Instagram and website ). Joining us is Dr Alex Wall, a paleo...
Apr 27, 2025•52 min•Ep. 222
Image source: https://physics.anu.edu.au/news_events/?EventID=457 One of the joys of science is delving into the deepest mysteries of the universe. What holds it all together? Part of the answer, of course, is gravity. That's the force that allows us to sit or stand without floating off into space. But it's much more than that, because without gravity, there would be no Earth and no Sun. In this episode we enjoyed a conversation with Distinguished Prof Susan Scott from the ANU. Professor Scott i...
Dec 23, 2024•51 min•Ep. 221
What does 'sustainability' really mean and how do we get there? This radio documentary features some of Australia's most eminent thinkers. A wide ranging analysis digs into the fundamental causes of our predicament, based on interviews I recorded for the book with Stephen Williams Sustainability and the New Economics and The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation co-authored with Mark Diesendorf. This is a re-podcast from the Post Growth Australia Podcast https://pgap.fireside.fm/7rethinksustain • P...
Dec 10, 2024•57 min•Ep. 220
This Earth Science Week on Fuzzy Logic we chat with experts from Geoscience Australia about harnessing the power of space technology to tackle our biggest challenges. For fifty years, the partnership between Geoscience Australia and the United States Geological Survey has revolutionized our understanding of the Earth from space. Through the Landsat program, we’ve gained invaluable insights into our environment, from monitoring deforestation and urban growth to managing water resources and agricu...
Oct 17, 2024•54 min•Ep. 219
A triumph of our civilisation are the things that go on under the covers without us even noticing. When you pour stuff down the sink or flush it down the toilet, where does it go? Luckily, we don't need to think about it...until somebody does the wrong thing. That's when we should hail the invisible, unsung heroes of this story. That's right, these are the people that go down into the bowels - literally - of a city's plumbing to do what must be done. We can do our bit, it's not difficult... thin...
Sep 17, 2024•14 min•Ep. 218
A guest podcast from Valerie Albrecht. This podcast offers reflective space to consider the relationship between sustainability and spirituality. Is there one? Could practising sustainability nurture spirituality? Could practising some form of spirituality help us to live more sustainably? Could spirituality help us to give right place to all that is losing sustainability? Contributors from a cross section of professions and viewpoints share their knowledge, perspectives and wisdoms: a Heritage ...
Sep 11, 2024•33 min•Ep. 217
The race to net-zero is accelerating. Governments around the world are increasingly committing to achieve net-zero emission targets. But what does that mean and can clean energy help achieve this? Join Broderick as he discusses the move to net zero in Australia with Dr Andrew Feitz, Director Low Carbon Geoscience and Advice and Dr Marcus Haynes, Computational Geoscientist. Thanks to Geoscience Australia for this week's guests.
Aug 19, 2024•52 min•Ep. 216
Happy National Science Week! This episode Broderick talks to two event holders for National Science Week. Heather Massie shares her story in bringing the life of Hedy Lamar to the stage through her one-woman play HEDY! The Life & Inventions of Hedy Lamarr. Then, Liz Lea and the Chameleon Collective share their experience telling a story of a reef through dance in the show Reef Up! For more details on HEDY! The Life & Inventions of Hedy Lamarr and to book tickets head to www.HeatherMassie...
Aug 11, 2024•56 min•Ep. 215
How far off 'sustainability' are we today? How did we get here, and where do we go next? These are questions tackled by Rod Taylor at a U3A event in June. This wide ranging talk is based on the book co-authored with Mark Diesendorf, The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation . Other links: Sustainable Population Australia https://population.org.au Steady State ACT https://steadystateact.org Touching the Void https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHYwxoYsK0A&ab_channel=WackyWanderlust...
Jul 04, 2024•49 min•Ep. 214
If you know the term cognitive dissonance , it applies to ability of a person to hold entirely incompatible ideas in their head at the same time. If people can have it, so can a government. Take these two statements: 1) We will work towards a sustainable future 2) We will pursue economic growth The evidence is overwhelming: we cannot do both of these things because economic growth is the antithesis of sustainability. Pasting a veneer over this chasm are terms such as green growth and weightless ...
Jun 19, 2024•8 min•Ep. 213
How do you cope with the dire trajectory of climate change? It's a tough question that we all now face. In this episode, ACT Greens MLA tells the story of her climate journey.
Apr 30, 2024•10 min•Ep. 212
If there were a single invention of humanity that you remove, what would that be? In this episode we revisit a personal story broadcast on Radio National in 2006. This is part of our series, Rethinking Sustainability .
Apr 07, 2024•10 min•Ep. 211
So it's okay to clear the Amazon jungle? Almost certainly you disagree with that statement, but how do you respond when someone says that to you? In this episode we think about 'that' conversation. How do you convince somebody that they're wrong? But first, is it even worth even trying? You'll find a summary of Fran Peavey's Strategic Questioning at commonslibrary.org/strategic-questioning and the full PDF commonslibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/strat_questioning_manual.pdf . From our series Rethi...
Mar 22, 2024•9 min•Ep. 210
When somebody makes a statement that is foreign to your thinking, how do you react? In this episode, Rod Taylor recounts a conversation with the Brazillian, Fernando. What does it mean to raze the Amazon jungle, why should somebody like him care? Why should anybody care? The answer of course, is that it this cannot be sustained. While we hear that word thrown around so often, we should remember the end point of something that is unsustainable - is literally - the end....
Mar 16, 2024•8 min•Ep. 209
Today's episode should prompt us to ask, how should we measure the success of our society? Is it the growth, consumption, GDP and the size of our armies? Or perhaps it should be about opportunity, the strength of our communities and how we care for people less well off. Michael Bayliss from Sustainable Population Australia looks at what growth is really doing to social equality. Michael invites you to sign the Position Statement on Population . If you would like to contribute to these podcasts, ...
Mar 07, 2024•10 min•Ep. 208
As Andrew Skeoch says in this episode, there is much we can learn from Nature, if only we sit quietly and listen. Andrew takes that a step further by recording the beautiful songs of birds around the world. And, as he says, it's more than simply enjoying the aesthetics because the birds use their song to build relationships and navigate a shared environment. Andrew is author of Deep Listening to Nature . This podcast is part of the Rethinking Sustainability series....
Feb 29, 2024•17 min•Ep. 206
On page 2 of the newspaper there's a story about melting icecaps. On page 3 there's a full page ad for this week's bargains. Somewhere here there's a disconnect. Meanwhile, shopping is - literally - sold to us as something we should do more of. But does it really make us feel better? Artist and thinker Jeremy Barrett ponders these things as he wanders through his local shopping maul. Jeremy's exhibition of paintings & mono prints is at the Tuggeranong Arts Centre, 2 February - 28 March. The ...
Feb 22, 2024•11 min•Ep. 205
It seems every day we're hit with more bad news. War in the Ukraine, floods, droughts and melting ice caps. In this episode, Rod Taylor mulls over how we cope. Do we give up and fall into a pit of despair, or do we carry on regardless? This episode is part of the Rethinking Sustainability series.
Feb 15, 2024•9 min•Ep. 207
The standard line is that governments* are always short of money and must balance their budgets. But what if that's not true? It changes everything if government money is not the contraint we're told it is. In this episode, Stephen Williams describes a way of thinking about economics that should revolutionise our approach. * Federal governments of monetary sovereign countries . Stephen Williams and Rod Taylor are editors of Sustainability and the New Economics . To learn more about MMT, we highl...
Feb 08, 2024•10 min•Ep. 204
What could happen when people decide to do something about unemployment in their community? In this episode of our new series, Rethinking Sustainability , Robin Krabbe describes an initiative of Live Well Tasmania .
Feb 01, 2024•10 min•Ep. 203
In 2024 we have smart phones, smart cars and even smart washing machines. We also have climate change. So are we intelligent but not wise? These are questions Sue Ferris ponders as part of our new series Rethinking Sustainability . Sue Ferris is the author of Let’s Not Lose Them
Jan 25, 2024•10 min•Ep. 202
It's a fair bet that if you're listening to this podcast, you care about sustainability. But unfortunately has become grossly abused, almost to the point of meaningless. This podcast marks the start of a new series, Rethinking Sustainability , where each week we'll be broadcasting a new episode. And if you'd like to contribute an episode, please get in touch. https://rethinkingsustainabilitypod.blogspot.com/...
Jan 19, 2024•8 min•Ep. 201
What makes a system fragile? In this short talk, Rod sketches what drives a system towards collapse. Can you see the parallels to our civisliation today? Proceedings from the NENA conference , November 2023 in Canberra. More about the book, The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation here.
Nov 18, 2023•14 min•Ep. 200
The word "sustainability" has become cliché, loaded with myths, half-truths and outright lies that try to convince us that a few tweaks to ‘business as usual’ will be enough. What then, does ‘sustainability’ really mean? A fundamental problem requires fundamental solutions - yet these are often completely ignored. In this talk at the Conservation Council, sponsored by Sustainable Population Australia , Rod Taylor digs into the themes of the in The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation co-authored w...
Nov 01, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 199
We are fortunate to live on a planet that surrounds us with the wonders of nature. From frogs to koalas and even snakes and sharks. Yet what are we to make of the sixth great extinction now underway, caused by humans? Suzanne Ferris' book Let's Not Lose Them: Endangered Species in Australia embodies both the joy of life and a warning that we are unwinding our life support system. Joining us in this conversation is Jeremy Barrett, in which we touch on the economic thinking that is driving environ...
Oct 16, 2023•27 min•Ep. 198
We open today's broadcast with a question: what would you do if you did not have access to your doctor, your GP, a hospital or even a local pharmacy? Without "western medicine", this is what indigenous cultures have been doing for thousands of years. For all its prodigious advances in medical science, what do these cultures have to teach us? This is a theme that has driven Valerie Albrecht for many years across many countries. And now she's distilled much of what she's learned into a beautiful n...
Sep 17, 2023•50 min•Ep. 197
This week Broderick and Camille are joined by geoscientist Dr Verity Normington and science communicator Alice Ryder, both from Geoscience Australia, to discuss their new exhibition Rocks that Shape Australia . The Rocks that Shape Australia exhibition explores how rocks can be valued by Australians for many different reasons, including their economic, historical, cultural and environmental significance.
Aug 13, 2023•51 min•Ep. 196
That our civilisation is unsustainable is abundantly clear. And yet we plough onwards as if business as usual in the faith that somehow the problem will fix itself. In this seminar, authors Dr Mark Diesendorf and Rod Taylor outline the themes in their new book, The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation . The seminar is introduced by Professor Lorrae Van Kerkhoff from the ANU Fenner School with keynote speaker Dr Richard Denniss from The Australia Institute. Recorded at Thor's Hammer in Canberra, 4t...
Jul 12, 2023•43 min•Ep. 195
