Sustainable Development Goals
Griffith University is aligned with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and is committed to contributing to a sustainable future, protecting our planet’s ecosystems, and ensuring a liveable environment for present and future generations.
Early heat warning system to help save lives in changing climate - 9 December 2021
A Griffith University-led three-year project to develop an early warning system in homes during extreme heat events has received more than $2 million in funding. The EtHOs project, was awarded $2.35 million by global charitable foundation Wellcome to help limit the thousands of lives lost each year to heat stress. Led by Dr Shannon Rutherford, from the School of Medicine and Dentistry, EtHOs is a multidisciplinary research team within the Climate Action research group that includes experts in aged-care nursing, IT, human physiology, engineering, climate science, health economics and environmental epidemiology.
PowerPoint slides - The Glasgow Climate Pact - December 2021
Prof Brendan Mackey presented "The Glasgow Pact - was it a success and what does it mean for Australia and Queensland?" at the Griffith Sciences End-of-Year event in December 2021.
Event recording - The Queensland Drought Resilience Relief and Recovery Forum - December 2021
Prof Brendan Mackey presented "What is the science saying about climate change, extreme weather events and their impact on Queensland communities?" at the Red Cross forum held at Griffith University in December 2021.
Labor’s 2030 climate target betters the Morrison government, but Australia must go much further, much faster - 3 Dec 2021
The Labor opposition has pledged to reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions by 43% this decade based on 2005 levels, claiming the plan will create jobs, cut power bills, boost renewables and provide business certainty. But it falls short of what experts say is needed for Australia.
Why COP26 fell so far short of expectations - 1 Dec 2021
With negotiations at the Glasgow climate change summit complete and delegates from the 197 participating countries on their way home having signed on to the Glasgow Climate Pact, Griffith University academics have unpacked what was achieved and whether COP26 was failure.
Event recording - The Legal Protection of the Amazon - November 2021
The Amazon fires of 2019 and 2020 heightened attention on the region and brought the question of Amazon conservation to the forefront of international debate. This webinar which was held in November 2021 shed light on how legislation, domestic and international litigation, market-based mechanisms, and private sector initiatives may contribute to protecting the Amazon.
Institute of Modern Art event recording - A tour around the mudflats - November 2021
Kaya Barry and Samid Suliman from Griffith University meditated on the connections formed by migratory birds between people, places, species, histories and futures and help us reimagine regional ecologies and human geographies in our warming world.
Reconsidering Australia’s Interests After Glasgow - 19 Nov 2021
Dr Wesley Morgan considers Australia’s approach to international relations to address climate change and what this means after Glasglow, in this article from the Australian Institute of International Affairs.
Griffith partners with new HEAL research network - 17 Nov 2021
Researchers from Griffith University will have a key role in a new national research network known as Healthy Environments And Lives (HEAL). The network will comprise 100 researchers tasked with creating a national risk assessment of current and future health burdens driven by environmental change in Australia.
The guide to why the COP26 summit ended in failure and disappointment (despite a few bright spots) - 15 Nov 2021
Dr Rob Hales and Prof Brendan Mackey provide an overview of the shortcomings and positive outcomes from COP26 in The Conversation.
Pacific Beat - 15 Nov 2021
Tuvalu's climate minister has hit out at last minute moves to water down COP 26 text on coal as 197 countries including Pacific nations signed off on a deal in Glasgow. Dr Wesley Morgan talks with the ABC Pacific Beat and says the Glasgow Climate Pact shows how Australia is out of touch with the rest of the world and will have to return to COP next year with stronger emission cuts.
Good COP, bad COP: Climate wins and losses from Glasgow - 14 Nov 2021
An opinion piece in the Sydney Morning Herald including from Dr Wesley Morgan. COP26 has finished and the question on everyone’s minds is: “was it a success or a failure?” Climate change is the world’s most wicked and complex problem, so there is no simple answer.
Podcast - Gender Card (Episode 23) - Climate Change - 12 Nov 2021
Dr Melissa Jackson, Climate Action Beacon, Research Fellow, joins a discussion with Nance Haxton, explaining how she’s using innovative technologies such as water meters, to empower local communities as they face increasing water supply limitations, exacerbated by the impact of climate change.
P.L.A.C.E - 12 Nov 2021
The Climate Action Beacon - Place, Loss, Aesthetics, Creativity, Extinction (PLACE) - Oxley Common project - was launched in partnership with the Creative Arts Research Institute. Vanessa Tomlinson (composer), Stuart Cooke (poet), Simon Linke (freshwater eco-acoustician) and Andrew Brown (computational artist).
Aunty Mati - The Water-Saving Superhero - 12 Nov 2021
As part of the - Climate resilient and sustainable water, energy and waste systems project - Griffith University in collaboration with the Torres Strait Island Regional Council, Torres Strait Regional Authority and local Torres Strait Islander artists have released a children’s education resource - Aunty Mati The Water-Saving Superhero - for dissemination across the Torres Straits and FNQ.
Wrap up of COP26 - 12 Nov 2021
Hear from Dr Wesley Morgan of the Griffith Asia Institute discuss the wrapping up of the COP26 negotiations, in this ABC Radio interview on the World Today with Sally Sara (from 4:05).
What the draft COP agreement means for Australia - 11 Nov 2021
Prof Brendan Mackey, Climate Action Beacon Director and Coordinating Lead Author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, discusses what the draft agreement coming out of COP26 means for Australia, in an interview on ABC Radio Capricornia with Paul Culliver (from 2:03:12).
Analaysis of US and China working together on climate change - 11 Nov 2021
Prof Caitlin Byrne, Griffith Asia Institute Director, discusses what the US and China pledge to work together on climate change means, in an interview on ABC News with Patricia Kavelas (from 53:00).
Why the Australian government must listen to Torres Strait leaders on climate change - 10 Nov 2021
In this Conversation article, Eddie Synot from Griffith Law School outlines the fight of the Torres Strait Islander Peoples for their rights for protection of their people, islands and culture through the courts.
Federal government announces plan to fund carbon storage, but not everyone is onboard - 10 Nov 2021
The federal government is seeking to overhaul the Clean Energy Finance Corporation's investment rules to allow it to invest in carbon capture and storage. Listen to Prof Brendan Mackey, Director, Climate Action Beacon, and other guests discuss carbon capture and storage on ABC RN Drive with Patricia Karvelas.
Climate summit wants nations to return next year with tougher 2030 targets - 10 Nov 2021
Some commentary, including from Dr Wesley Moragn, regarding Australia's emmissions target, in the Sydney Morning Herald.
COP26 update: Where do we stand? As COP26 wraps up this week, where have we landed? - 10 Nov 2021
An article in Cosmos including statements from Dr Wesley Morgan about how far countries have come since the COP in Paris.
The fate of our planet depends on the next few days of complex diplomacy in Glasgow. Here’s what needs to go right - 10 Nov 2021
A new, grim projection, released overnight by Climate Action Tracker, has dashed the cautious optimism following last week’s commitments at the UN climate talks in Glasgow. It found the world is still headed for 2.1℃ of warming this century, even if all pledges are met. Read further from Dr Wesley Morgan in The Conversation.
Australians want more action on climate change: survey - 10 Nov 2021
A new national survey finds that Australians support a net-zero carbon emissions target and want a carbon tax to fund renewable energy and a phasing out of all fossil fuel mining. These are the initial findings of the National Climate Action Survey, one of Australia’s first longitudinal national surveys to capture changing societal perceptions about climate change and, significantly, climate action.
PNG and Fiji sign up to carbon offset scheme - 10 Nov 2021
In Glasgow, on the sidelines of the COP26 negotiations, Fiji and Papua New Guinea have signed up to the Indo-Pacific Carbon Offsets Scheme. It is an Australian initiative and part of the government's plan to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Read more from Dr Tess Newton Cain about concerns Pacific countries may be constrained in how much they can push for Australia to transition away from coal as they will be deriving an economic benefit from the scheme.
Climate change impacts on gender inequality - 9 Nov 2021
Prof Susan Harris Rimmer, Climate Action Beacon, Justice Theme Leader, talks with The Drum, about how we ensure a just climate policy transition.
A tour around the mudflats expanded lecture - 9 Nov 2021
Dr Kaya Barry and Dr Samid Suliman will deliver a lecture at the Institute of Modern Art (IMA) on Saturday 20 November 2021 at 4pm. The lecture is based on their recent essay ‘A tour around the mudflats’ (in e-flux Architecture) and is part of the IMA’s exciting Open Day 2021 program. The lecture draws upon research supported by the Climate Action Beacon.
COVID, Climate Change and Australia’s Community Radio sector - 4 Nov 2021
It is generally accepted in climate communication that the most meaningful and impactful messages draw upon local stories. Climate responses are often distant global discussions that don’t translate to the everyday lived experience of local communities. Accepted more broadly is that climate change is not a science problem but a social problem. Read more from the Climate Action Beacon team working on the project - “Warming Up: Building the capacity of community broadcasting to communicate climate change”.
Land, culture, livelihood: what Indigenous people stand to lose from climate ‘solutions’ - 4 Nov 2021
In the first major deal of the Glasgow climate summit, more than 100 nations have pledged to end, and reverse, deforestation by 2030. As the declaration states, forests store vast amounts of carbon dioxide and are essential to stop global warming beyond 1.5℃ this century. Read more including from Dr Rob Hales and Dr Tim Cadman from Griffith University.
Prof Caitlin Byrne on ABC talks about COP26 and Climate Diplomacy - 1 Nov 2021
Prof Byrne discusses the significance of big players like Russia and China missing from COP26 in Glasgow and the G20 summit in Rome.
The ‘Difficult Conversations’ we need to have - 1 Nov 2021
Griffith University is hosting a series of cutting-edge discussions around the Difficult Conversations we need to have about climate justice during COP26. Griffith’s Climate Action Beacon, a cross-disciplinary team with climate action expertise across science, health, business, creative arts and law, will present the Difficult Conversations Series from 1-5 November 2021 at the State Library of Queensland.
ABC experts say technology is not enough to stop global warming - 1 Nov 2021
Dr Tess Newton Cain joins ABC's Weekend Breakfast team for a look ahead to COP26. What are Pacific leaders expecting from Australia and the global community when they meet in Glasgow?
3 changes you can make to help tackle climate change - Oct 2021
Last month’s dire report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change may have left you feeling overwhelmed, or unsure what to do next. We often hear about ways everyday people can tackle climate change, but which acts will make the biggest difference?.
Climate action research shines amid COP26 negotiations - 31 Oct 2021
With all eyes on the global climate summit held in Glasgow, Griffith University researchers are investigating how climate change really impacts our communities, businesses and environment, and developing practical pathways to enable a climate-ready Australia. Griffith Climate Action Beacon, directed by climate change expert Professor Brendan Mackey, has harnessed climate action expertise across the university’s disciplines including science, health, business, creative arts and law.
Australia's climate plan not well received in Pacific - 29 Oct 2021
President of the Federated States of Micronesia David Panuelo describes the Australian government's new climate action plan as ‘somewhat hollow’. Concern in the Pacific that Australia's refusal to adopt a new 2030 emissions reduction target will weigh down negotiations at the COP26 climate summit. Dr Wesley Morgan is a Research Fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute, Climate Action Beacon and he's also a Researcher at the Climate Council, he spoke with ABC News Radio's Glen Bartholomew.
The Conversation - Glasgow showdown: Pacific Islands demand global leaders bring action, not excuses, to UN summit - 22 Oct 2021
The Pacific Islands are at the frontline of climate change. But as rising seas threaten their very existence, these tiny nation states will not be submerged without a fight. Read more in the Conversation from Dr Wes Morgan of the Griffith Asia Institute and Climate Action Beacon.
Online event - Building a net zero future for business - 28 Oct 2021
Join the Global Compact Network Australia, WWF Australia, Griffith University, and leading Australian businesses as they launch ‘Building a Net Zero Future: Australian Businesses Taking Science-Based Climate Action’. The event will present findings about the motivations and business processes adopted within organisations that have set science-based targets.
Pacific Update from Late Night Live - 20 Oct 2021
Dr Tess Newton Cain from the Griffith Asia Institute and working on Climate Action Beacon (Justice Theme) projects discusses Pacific matters with Phillip Adams on Late Night Live, including about Pacific leaders preparation for COP 26.
Griffith hosts vital disaster debrief and planning sessions - 19 Oct 2021
Disaster management experts have gathered at Griffith University’s Nathan campus (18 and 19 October) for the inaugural Resilience in Practice Symposium, coinciding with the 10-year anniversary of the Queensland-wide floods in 2011.
Australian business leaders and industry groups unite to advance climate economy transformation - 15 Oct 2021
An alliance of business leaders, industry and community groups are committing to a five-year alliance to get on with the job of planning and delivering our sustainable economy transformation. Engineers Australia, the Planning Institute of Australia, the Australian Youth Affairs Coalition and the Infrastructure Sustainability Council are among the first to join.
The Conversation - What is COP 26 and why does the fate of Earth, and Australia's prosperity, depend on it? - 14 Oct
In just over two weeks, more than 100 world leaders will gather in the Scottish industrial city of Glasgow for United Nations climate change negotiations known as COP26. Their task, no less, is to decide the fate of our planet. Read the article in the Conversation from Dr Wes Morgan of the Griffith Asia Institute working on Climate Action Beacon, justice themed projects.
Interview: Australian ecologist hopes COP15 to consolidate global biodiversity conservation efforts - 7 Oct 2021
An Australian ecologist said he hopes the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity will set higher conservation targets and further consolidate global biodiversity efforts.
The implications of climate change for Australian strategic and defence policy in relation to the alliance & Pacific island states - Oct 2021
The Griffith Asia Institute in conjunction with the Climate Action Beacon has released a new Regional Outlook Paper discussing the Australian strategic and defence policy response to climate change in relation to the United States-Australia Alliance and the Pacific island states.
Here's what south-east Queensland councils are doing about climate change - 2 Sept 2021
Intense bushfires, worsening droughts, storms and floods — south-east Queensland has already experienced climate change and is in line for more. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) sixth assessment report, released in August, painted a bleak picture of humanity's impacts.
Climate change widespread, rapid, and intensifying – IPCC - 9 Aug 2021
Scientists are observing changes in the Earth’s climate in every region and across the whole climate system, according to the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report, released today.
Griffith Review Edition 74: Nothing more to say - 21 July 2021
At the start of the northern hemisphere summer, essayist Sarah Miller wrote a piece for Nieman Lab called ‘All the right words on climate have already been said’. Read more from novelist Jane Miller in Griffith Review.
2021 Climate Communication Award Winners - July 2021
The 2021 New Directions for Climate Communication Research Fellowship will be awarded to Anne Leitch and Bridget Backhaus of Griffith University, Queensland, Australia for their project: Warming Up: Exploring creative audio production for climate change communication on community radio.
A tour around the mudflats - May 2021
Welcome to the shores of Moreton Bay, just to the east of the sunny, sub-tropical city of Brisbane (or Meanjin, in the language of the Turrbal people), Australia. Our tour begins here at Brisbane Airport, on the reclaimed tidal mudflats at the mouth of the Brisbane River (Maiwar). Join Dr Samid Suliman and Dr Kaya Barry in this Survivance tour which is a collaboration between the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and e-flux Architecture.
