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SBS Australia
06-05-2025
- SBS Australia
How to enjoy Australia's wilderness areas responsibly
It's important to plan your visit and travel safely, including checking seasonal weather and bushfire advice. Stay on designated trails and roads, so you don't damage plants or the environment. Take only memories, and do not pick wildflowers or remove any plants or wildlife. Whether you're checking out wildflowers for the first time or are an experienced traveller exploring the outback, being a respectful visitor in the bush ensures that Australia's precious native plants and animals can be enjoyed by everyone. This means, staying to designated roads and tracks, following signage and advice, not littering or damaging the landscape, and not removing native plant species or wildlife. Terry Dunham is a citizen scientist and native orchid researcher from Albany in south-west Western Australia—a region in which he has enjoyed exploring since he was a child. 'It is always astonishing to witness the huge diversity of plant species, which exist in Western Australia. Our south-west region is one of the worlds biodiversity hotspots, and were fortunate to enjoy the wildflowers all year round,' Terry says. Bushwalkers on the Ravensthorpe Range The Australian bush is home to a large variety of plant and animal species, including some threatened species—those which are at danger of becoming extinct. Terry says that all native plants should be considered special, because they are all an important part of the ecosystem. 'The collapse of one species has an impact on everything around it - from insects, especially native bees, to birds, small vertebrates and larger animals. These changes take place over a long period of time so we need to be mindful of the long-term effects of our short-term enjoyment. It is a privilege, not a right to be able to visit and experience our beautiful native bushland areas and plant communities.' Jonnie Cobby is a Yankunytjatjara and Arrernte man who lives on Wardandi Nyoongar country in south-west Western Australia where he works as a national park ranger. 'When entering national parks or other wilderness areas, there is no limit to the variety of things one might encounter, it's that opportunism that makes exploring these areas so appealing,' Jonnie says. He explains that being mindful of your behaviour when , will help to ensure that these special places can be enjoyed by others both now and into the future. Behaviours such as staying to the path, taking your rubbish away with you, leaving the area as you found it are all great examples of the desired behaviour we want to see visitors abide by. Jonnie Cobby As certain environments can be fragile and sensitive, when visiting or exploring it is important to be respectful of the natural and cultural values of an area. 'Being culturally aware and appropriate towards Traditional Owners of an area and their history will only enhance a visitor's understanding of an area and potentially aide them in connecting with an area they are visiting,' Jonnie says. Originally from China, photographer Sophie Xiang now lives in Perth and teaches wildflower phone photography. She spends a lot of time enjoying the Western Australian bush capturing images of plants, flowers and occasionally wildlife. 'Walking in the bushland is like an adventure. Through my lens capturing the beauty of the plant's circle of life is my absolute passion. I love being out bush photographing the amazing nature of our Australian bush, but sometimes it makes you sad when you notice that other visitors have littered, left rubbish behind, or damaged plants or trees,' Sophie says. And as Sophie explains, you can get magical photographs without damaging the environment. 'When hiking or exploring, stay on the trail, to avoid damaging any plants. You can still get that perfect shot for social media without damaging the environment or ruining the experience for others. Don't pick wildflowers—as it's illegal in Australia, especially don't dig up orchids or remove them, without a suitable environment they will not survive, and protect native wildlife such as lizards or other reptiles. Don't try to remove them.' Originally from China, photographer Sophie Xiang now lives in Perth and teaches wildflower phone photography In his role as a national park ranger, Jonnie Cobby has seen first-hand the detrimental impact on the environment that the behaviour of some visitors can cause. Things as reckless as people in four-wheel drives accessing areas that are off limits, has obvious impacts such as vegetation damage, soil compaction and potential weed and disease spreading; to something seemingly more innocent as straying from a designated path to get that perfect photo, could be unknowingly trampling plants that are sensitive and rare. Jonnie Cobby As Jonnie explains, the collection of firewood from within National Parks and reserves which are non-designated areas, can impact native wildflowers and fauna habitat. It is also illegal to remove wildflowers, other plants, and animals from within any National Park or conservation reserve in Australia. Queen of Sheba orchid. Credit: Picasa 'Native flora and fauna is protected under legislation within Australia and it is imperative to conservation efforts and the local environment, that plants and animals are not removed from these areas,' Jonnie explains. Depending on whereabouts in Australia you are out exploring, as Terry Dunham explains, in some locations there are plant diseases or biological pathogens that may be present, and which can be spread on footwear, equipment or vehicles. 'For example, in Southwest Western Australia, the destructive Phytophthora dieback fungus poses a significant threat to the Australian environment. We should all take a brush to clean and remove all organic matter from your boots and hiking equipment, and where possible stay on designated roads and tracks,' says Terry. Weed seeds can also be transferred on boots and clothing, so it's important to check your footwear and clothing before leaving an area, as well as checking your vehicles' tyres and underbody for any mud that may have stuck. Being respectful of the environment will help ensure that Australia's beautiful flora and fauna is protected and available for everyone to enjoy. 'Our plants will endure massive environmental threats in the future, so we need to ensure everything, no matter how small, is done to save our flora,' says Terry. 'Never remove anything from the bush, including seeds, nuts, flowers, leaves, bark, sticks or branches. It is illegal to do so, and if everyone took mementos, flowers or sticks from the bush we would have habitat loss in vulnerable areas. Do not stage photos, such as clearing vegetation away from a plant. Watch where you tread, and of course do not pick the wildflowers.' Jonnie Cobby, National Park Ranger. Visitor information for national parks and other tourist areas is readily available online. Before you head out to explore in the Australian bush, Jonnie explains that it's important to plan your visit to —including being mindful of emergency information such as seasonal road closures and bushfire warnings. 'Areas can be affected by extreme weather events, including high temperatures, so people need to consider their own safety prior to visiting. Appropriate clothing, hydration requirements, communication plans, using hiking registers for longer, remote experiences are just some of the safety elements people need to consider,' Jonnie says. 'Take nothing but photographs, leave nothing but footprints. I think that is a clear simple message that everyone can follow easily.' So plan ahead, show respect to the environment you're visiting, and as Terry highlights, exploring the Australian bush can be a very special experience. 'Our native bush reserves, National Parks, road reserves, coastal heath, private bushlands and other remote areas are such a beautiful, colourful place to explore. These places are very uplifting, healing and energising. Walking in these pristine environments on the surface of this planet is something to be forever grateful for.' For further information about visiting national parks around Australia you can check: Parks and Wildlife Services WA NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service National Parks and Wildlife Service SA National Parks and protected areas QLD Parks and Wildlife Service TAS Subscribe or follow the Australia Explained podcast for more valuable information and tips about settling into your new life in Australia. Do you have any questions or topic ideas? Send us an email to australiaexplained@
ABC News
26-04-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Mixed reaction from Port Augusta community over Coalition's nuclear plans
June Lennon had a simple response when asked about the Coalition's plan to bring nuclear power generation to Port Augusta. "Never again," she said. The Yankunytjatjara and Antikirinya elder was four months old when her parents covered her with a tarpaulin to protect her from nuclear weapons testing at Emu Field, in outback South Australia, in 1953. The impact on her family was significant. In the aftermath they experienced vomiting and seizures, while later on, there were rashes and lasting mental health issues. June Lennon was covered by a tarpaulin during nuclear weapons testing at Emu Field in 1953. ( ABC News: Brant Cumming ) "I've experienced … the loss of our family members, who were young when they passed on and should be still with us today," she said. More than 70 years Stay updated: Catch the latest interviews and in-depth coverage on "Our families lived through it, they didn't like it. Why would anyone else like it?" she said. " It's not worth it — it wasn't worth it back in 1953, and it's definitely not worth it today. " A monument marks ground zero at Emu Field. ( Supplied: Burrinja Cultural Centre/Rosemary Laing ) Town's roots in power generation Port Augusta is one of seven locations across the country earmarked to host nuclear power plants if the Coalition wins the federal election. The plant would be built on the site of the town's old coal-fired power station, which was decommissioned in 2016 and later demolished. Nearly 200 workers lost their jobs when the plant shut down, and the region looked to a future in renewable power generation — but the results have been mixed. The former coal-fired power station was decommissioned in 2016 and later demolished. ( ABC News: Brant Cumming ) The Port Augusta City Council said the community has experienced "announcement fatigue" in the years since the plant closed. "Despite multiple project announcements for the area following the closure of the former stations, only a few wind and solar projects have come to fruition," the council said. Gary Rowbottom, who spent 17 years working as a mechanical technical officer at the plant, joined the push for renewables after he was made redundant. Gary Rowbottom says the Coalition's nuclear plan is not practical. ( ABC News: Brant Cumming ) He said nuclear power would be too expensive, take too long to implement, and would not be a good fit for the electricity grid. "I'd like to think that the Port Augusta public will look beyond the superficial jobs aspect and ask themselves: 'Is this what the electricity system really needs? Is this what the long-term health of the planet really needs?'" he said. The Coalition has presented Port Augusta is one of seven sites earmarked by the Coalition for nuclear power. ( Four Corners: Ryan Sheridan ) Economic boost a selling point For others in Port Augusta, the prospect of more jobs is a more appealing selling point. Small business owner Tony Mitchell has ridden the economic highs and lows of recent decades and said nuclear would bring renewal. Tony Mitchell says nuclear power would bring jobs and economic rejuvenation to Port Augusta. ( ABC News: Brant Cumming ) "Trying to keep some of the kids in the region and some of the people that are doing professional development and those sort of higher studies, I think that's sort of the bigger benefit for the town," he said. " We had the coal-fired power station that employed hundreds … I think this is another transition. " Read more about the federal election: Want even more? Here's where you can find all our 2025 But Mr Mitchell said there was a fear of nuclear among parts of the town, and residents were not fully across the details of the Coalition's plan. "It came out of the blue for us," he said. Town, and household, divided The nuclear plan has divided Port Augusta since it was announced nearly a year ago. Neil and Julie Dedman live at Commissariat Point, across the Spencer Gulf from where the plant would be located. Neil and Julie Dedman have opposing views on the Coalition's plan to build a nuclear reactor in Port Augusta. ( ABC News: Brant Cumming ) They have opposing views on the proposal. "I believe it's the way of the future with energy requirements," Mr Dedman said. "If we want industry, this is the sort of power we need." Photo shows The Words ABC News Daily with the ABC Listen logo beside it. Blue and pale green striped background. Submit your election questions and tune in for a weekly explainer of the latest election news. Listen to ABC News Daily on ABC listen. But Ms Dedman said the plant would only bring a significant number of jobs to the region during the construction phase. "Then it will be down to minimal staff," she said. She also feared South Australia would "end up becoming a dumping ground for the waste". "I can't see Victoria or New South Wales or any other state wanting it in their backyard, it will end up in South Australia," she said. Nuclear among a range of issues On the streets of Port Augusta, a range of topics are on the minds of voters. The influence of the nuclear policy on the outcome of the May 3 poll remains to be seen. Other election issues raised with ABC News included cost-of-living, housing and crime rates. Swinging voter Trevor Paynter, another former power station worker, says he supports the nuclear proposal — but it won't sway his vote. "I think there's way more pressing issues in the short-term than a nuclear power station in Port Augusta," he said. Loading Having trouble seeing this form? Try
The Guardian
18-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
All fores! Miranda July among artists to create feminist mini-golf course in Melbourne
The acclaimed author and film-maker Miranda July is among a group of artists who are building a mini-golf course in Melbourne to celebrate the sport's little-known feminist history. Swingers: The Art of Mini Golf will take over the Flinders Street station ballroom, an abandoned space above the busy Melbourne railway station, as part of the city's annual Rising festival. July, whose latest novel All Fours became one of the most talked about novels of 2024, is one of nine artists selected by the festival to create a hole on the nine-hole golf course. Others include the Yankunytjatjara artist Kaylene Whiskey, whose colourful works celebrate female pop culture figures such as Dolly Parton and Tina Turner; and Tokyo's 'half human, half toy' artist Saeborg, who creates disconcerting, cartoonish latex sculptures. Swingers' curator, Grace Herbert, says she wants to celebrate the 'surprisingly subversive' history of mini-golf, which originated in 19th-century Scotland after a group of women endured antagonism from male players while playing at St Andrews Links, one of the oldest and famous golf courses in the world. The women decided they needed their own club and established the St Andrews Ladies Golf Club in 1867, with Mrs Robert Todd Boothby as president and Miss Ellen Boothby as vice-president. A nine-hole mini-golf course, called the Ladies' Putting Green, was laid out for them by the famed Scottish golfer Old Tom Morris. Herbert says Swingers will be family-friendly and will take roughly 45 minutes to an hour to complete. 'It's a nine-hole mini-golf course, except that each mini-golf hole is also an artwork,' Herbert says. 'Every hole will be playable, though they may not be exactly what you would think playing a mini-golf hole will be like.' While she wants to keep July's work a secret, Herbert reveals it would be the final hole. 'Usually on the last hole of mini-golf, it eats your ball so you don't get it back. When you play Miranda's golf hole, you'll be able to take some words from Miranda home with you. It is a really generous work.' Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning Whiskey's work will be the first hole, Herbert says, and will draw on her childhood experiences travelling from her home in Indulkana, in the APY Lands, to play golf in Adelaide as a child. 'Being Kaylene, of course we'll have Dolly Parton there and you'll have to putt through Cathy Freeman's leg.' And Saeborg's work will involve her usual inflatable animal latex body suits and will require players to don a strap-on animal tail and use it to putt. 'I guess you'll become a human-animal hybrid to complete this course,' Herbert says. Sign up to Saved for Later Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia's culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips after newsletter promotion Herbert says though she played mini-golf obsessively as a kid, she hadn't known its history as a women's sport: 'When we told the artists about the history, I think it excited them so much, because nobody knew about it either. And also because they'd be giving something a go that they wouldn't normally do.' The other artists creating holes are the Singaporean-Australian sculptural artist Nabilah Nordin, the Turner prize-nominated British Romany artist Delaine Le Bas; and the Minahasan artist Natasha Tontey, with three more names to be come. 'Each of the artists is responding to the history of mini-golf, and has been prompted to think about things like obstacles and their removal – in both a literal sense and a metaphorical sense, in response to that surprisingly subversive history that that mini-golf has,' Herbert says. 'Obviously people have fun but it is also political and I hope that people can also engage with those ideas and that history.' This is the third time the Flinders Street ballroom has been transformed into an exhibition by Rising, after a show dedicated to the Melbourne sculptor Patricia Piccinini in 2021 and the immersive Indigenous show Shadow Spirit in 2023. The rest of the Rising festival program will be announced in March. The annual winter festival will run from 4-15 June this year, with Swingers running for an extended season until 31 August.
The Guardian
15-02-2025
- General
- The Guardian
‘I knew those things couldn't sit in a box': Lowitja O'Donoghue's niece sheds new light on her extraordinary life
Sorting through a deceased loved one's belongings is rarely easy, but for the family of the trailblazing Lowitja O'Donoghue, who died last year aged 91, the task has been almost insurmountable. The late matriarch's Adelaide home – which she described as a 'gallery' – was a testament to her life's work as one of the country's most prominent Aboriginal leaders. Its contents will soon feature at an exhibition at the Bob Hawke prime ministerial centre in Adelaide, retracing the Yankunytjatjara woman's journey from stolen child to pioneering nurse to formidable Aboriginal rights campaigner. O'Donoghue's niece, Deb Edwards, says the idea for the exhibition came after she and her daughter spent 12 months sorting through her beloved Aunty's possessions. 'She was quite a collector,' says Edwards. 'I just knew those things couldn't sit in a box.' O'Donoghue was taken from her home in South Australia's APY lands as a toddler and raised by missionaries at the Colebrook children's home, where the matron told her she would 'never amount to anything'. It only spurred her on. O'Donoghue was the first Aboriginal nurse to study at the Royal Adelaide hospital – enlisting the help of the then SA premier to overturn the hospital's initial rejection of her application because of her Aboriginal heritage. After a decade nursing, she became more actively involved in Aboriginal rights organisations and began working her way up the ranks of the public service. O'Donoghue would go on to play a critical role in some of the most historic moments in Indigenous affairs, including the 1967 referendum, the passing of the Native Title Act in 1993 and the 2008 national apology to the stolen generations. She found her birth mother after a chance encounter with relatives in Coober Pedy in 1967, but after more than 30 years apart it was an uneasy reunion. The documentary evidence of her extraordinary life has, until recently, been bundled in boxes at the National Library of Australia – and in Edwards's lounge room. When Edwards and her daughter pried them open, they found copies of every nursing exam O'Donoghue had taken; a framed copy of Paul Keating's Redfern speech signed by the then prime minister; and a report she'd written, outlining a model for the first national elected representative body for Indigenous people, which she would later chair. There were personal mementoes too: black and white photos of O'Donoghue, young and in love, with her husband-to-be in the Flinders Ranges; a letter from her sister as she approached retirement, which read: 'We loaned you to the commonwealth … it's time to come home now.' Edwards says they speak to her aunt's ability to have 'a foot in each world'. She recalls when her own daughter, Ruby, was born. 'It meant the world to her, and she totally immersed herself in me being a new young mother … yet the next day she could go, 'Well, I'm jumping on a plane because I'm going to meet Nelson Mandela',' she says. The mammoth task of curating the exhibition is ongoing, but Edwards – also the head of the Lowitja O'Donoghue Foundation – hopes it will show a softer side of the woman famed for her staunch advocacy. Earlier this month, on the first anniversary of her aunt's death, Edwards and her daughter went to the site of the old Colebrook home in the Adelaide foothills. There is a sculpture of an Aboriginal woman, eyes downcast and empty arms outstretched, called The Grieving Mother. They laid flowers in her arms. When O'Donoghue's biographer asked what motivated her life's work, she replied: 'Because I loved my people.' For Edwards, the answer is just as simple. 'It's what she'd want me to do.' Lowitja – A Life of Leadership and Legacy will be held at the Kerry Packer civic gallery, managed by the Bob Hawke prime ministerial centre, University of South Australia in Adelaide from 4 June to 25 July 2025.
