Research on the impacts on schooling of COVID and bushfire and flood disasters has found academically the kids are mostly OK. It’s their well-being and recovery from trauma that demand our attention.
They overlook a vast body of evidence that crown fire – the most extreme type of fire behaviour in which tree canopies burn - is more likely in logged native forests.
First the fires, then the pandemic. It’s not just the damage to infrastructure, houses, environment and farmland that makes recovery difficult; the emotional and physical toll is often gruelling too.
Evacuation and relief centres are often the first place disaster-affected people go, and should provide a minimum standard of living and care. But this standard is not always met.
A year since the fires, I feel an underlying sadness and concern for the future. From my discussions with other conservationists, I know I’m not the only one to feel this way.
The federal government has ordered a national koala audit, but the animals are notoriously difficult to detect. But accurately counting koalas is critical to saving them.
Ahead of National Science Week, Chief Scientist Alan Finkel reflects on the growing value of citizen science, emphasising the need for more collaboration as we deal with an evolving climate.
Scientists and bureaucrats moved logistical mountains to rescue the eastern bristlebird from bushfires this year. As climate change worsens, wildlife evacuations will become more common.
The story of the Kangaroo Island Micro-trapdoor spider offer insight into the challenges ahead for invertebrates – the tiny engines of Australia’s biodiversity – after this year’s cataclysmic fires.
When the post-bushfire rains finally arrived, the situation for many fish species went from dangerous to catastrophic. A slurry of ash and mud washed into waterways, sending oxygen levels plummeting.
Koalas are notoriously difficult to detect. Traditional methods are costly and labour intensive. So we found a more efficient way to locate koalas in eastern NSW, using drones.