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UN Rio+20 Side Event - Responding to the Global Soil Crisis
27 April 2012
Global soil degradation is increasingly being recognised as a threat to food security, biodiversity and fresh water security. Scientists, alarmed that the rate of topsoil loss is now exceeding the rate of soil formation, are determining the environmental sustainability thresholds for soil erosion and calculating the timescales at which the world runs out of topsoil. At the same time, the fundamental role of soil in the delivery of ecosystem services including food and fibre production, fresh water regulation and support of biodiversity, has largely been ignored in international policy. Given projected increases in global population this issue now has critical significance.
To bring further attention to the issue of global soil degradation, and to build support for the issue to be addressed at Rio+20, the Australian Government hosted a side event to the informal-informal negotiations for Rio+20 at the United Nations in New York on Tuesday 25th April. The Hon Robert Hill, Adjunct Professor of Sustainability at the United States Studies Centre and former Ambassador to the UN, chaired the event. Speakers included members of the US Studies Centre Soil Carbon Initiative international coalition of soil scientists, Professor Rattan Lal from Ohio State University, and Professor Alex McBratney from the University of Sydney. Dr Neil McKenzie, Chief of Land and Water with CSIRO represented the Australian Government. The UN Convention on the prevention of Desertification and Drought (UNCCD) was represented by Dr Nandhini Iya Krishna, from the UNCCD New York Liaison Office.
The Benin Ambassador to the UN and representatives from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the European Commission, the Ghana Mission to the UN, the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies in Potsdam, Germany, the United States Department of Agriculture and the Savory Institute responded to the presentations.
Super Tuesday Live!
9 March 2012
On Wednesday 7 March a large crowd gathered at the Manning Bar to watch the Super Tuesday results unfold on the most important day of the US primary calendar.
Live coverage of the results was followed by a panel discussion moderated by ABC NewsRadio host John Barron. The audience heard a panel of US Studies Centre experts deconstruct the results as they came to light. Panel members included CEO Professor Geoffrey Garrett, Chair in US Media and National Correspondent of The Atlantic Monthly Professor James Fallows and Research Associate and Editor of The Spectator Australia Tom Switzer.
The Super Tuesday excitement kicked on into the evening with a trivia competition.
Karl and Ching Eikenberry
27 October 2011
Ching Eikenberry will presented at a special roundtable discussion with students looking at Afghan women today. The former United States ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry and his wife Ching Eikenberry are talking in Sydney and Canberra this week as visitors of the United States Studies Centre and the Australian National University.
US in the World Lecture - with guest Shanto Iyengar
11 October 2011
US political campaigning is undergoing dramatic change thanks to the ‘freedom from the press’ encouraged by new media, says campaign expert Shanto Iyengar who visited Sydney as a guest of the Centre last week. Shanto addressed the Centre’s undergraduate Global America and US in the World students alongside Geoffrey Garrett.
Bob Carr: Postgraduate Information Evening
6 October 2011
Former NSW premier and Centre board director, Bob Carr, spoke to the gathering about the US presidency – including his recent reassessment of John Kennedy having listened to his 1963 ‘peace speech’ urging an end to the Cold War. The night at Sydney’s MLC Centre was intended to provide information and enable prospective students and their families to speak to academic, administrative staff, and former students, about the US Studies Centre’s postgraduate course offerings. Dean Fernandez, graduate, Master of Letters in US Studies and Lauren Haumesser also presented on this fun-filled evening.
US In the World Lecture with guest Peter Hartcher
4 October 2011
Peter Hartcher talks to Geoffrey Garrett in the World Lecture theatre about U.S politics. Peter Hartcher is an Australian journalist and the Political and International Editor of the Sydney Morning Herald.
Roundtable Event - Two Perspectives of Sustainable City Development
19 September 2011
A roundtable event of two perspectives of Sustainable City Development was held in the Institute Building of the United States Studies Centre. Martha Schwartz, Ray Nagin and Edward Blakely attended. They discuss the sustainable city, and how it can feed itself with minimal reliance on the surrounding countryside, and power itself with renewable sources of energy. The crux of this is to create the smallest possible ecological footprint, and to produce the lowest quantity of pollution possible, to efficiently use land; compost used materials, recycle it or convert waste-to-energy, and thus the city's overall contribution to climate change will be minimal, if such practices are adhered to.
Bill Chafe and Ray Nagin: Global America Lecture
19 September 2011
C. Ray Nagin is the former Mayor of New Orleans. He visited Australia for the US Studies Centre National Summit in 2009 and the Emergency Management and Business Continuity Summit in 2011 and is guest lecturer with William Chafe. William Chafe is the Alice Mary Baldwin Professor of History at Duke University, USA. He was special guest speaker at the US Studies Centre's National Summit in 2007 and visited the Centre again in 2011. They are joined by Geoffrey Garrett. Geoffrey Garrett is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Sydney.
Washington Soil Security meeting
15 September 2011
The Soil Security Meeting in Washington DC discussed a number of global issues which are all going to be affected by the state of the world soil resource. One of many challenges over the next 40 years will be soil conservation. Water comes from the soil which is related to food production. Andrea Koch is the project leader of the United States Studies Centre's Soil Carbon Initiative. Professor Robert Hill, Professor Rattan Lal, Professor Lynnette Abbott, Professor Alex McBratney, Professor John Crawford and Dr Denis Angers were among the group who spoke at the meeting.
John Howard: US in the World Lecture
13 September 2011
Former Prime Minister John Howard is a member of the US Studies Centre Council of Advisors. In February 2011 Howard reflected on the US-Australia alliance to a packed audience at an event hosted by the US Studies Centre. In September 2008 he was the guest of honour at a US Studies Centre dinner hosted by Chairman of the Macquarie Group David Clarke. It was standing room only in Professor Geoffrey Garrett’s 'US in the World' undergraduate lecture as former Prime Minister John Howard explained to students and guests what the 9/11 Decade meant for him, for Australia-US relations, and for the world.
VIDEOS & INTERVIEWS
Dr David Smith analyses how Obama's public support of same sex marriage may affect his re-election chances.
Edward Blakely discusses his new book 'My Storm' and the lessons that Australians can learn from Hurricane Katrina.
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