Environmentality 27 November 2013, Robert Bender, Biodiversity and our Natural World

It is amazing the information you can find on the world wide web.  Instead of updating this blog I have been listening to the different calls from frogs all around Melbourne - boring some of you say?  No way, have a look at the Healthy Waterways Frog Census it a great site.  

(Spotted Marsh Frog)

Southern Brown Tree Frog

For those of you that live near major waterways like the Merri and Darebin Creek or the Yarra River you will have a great time identifying some of the more familiar calls.

You might wonder where all this talk about frogs has come from.  We had Robert Bender in the studio today.  Robert has a deep passion and incredible knowledge of biodiversity and aptly reminded me that our world is made up of so many important living things and it is vital that we all play a part in making sure they continue to exist.  

Robert has just come back from a scientific field trip with Earthwatch to the wet tropical rainforests of far north Queensland.  The area that Robert and the team from Earthwatch were collecting their information forms part of the great dividing range and is home to 80 species of animals that are only found in this area. 

Listen To The Show and find out what the lead scientist of this expedition, Stephen Williams of James Cook University findings tell us about the effect of climate change on the birds, reptiles and mammals of the wet rainforests of FNQ.

For those of you that are looking for a birthday or Christmas present that is a little different, not too expensive and very beautiful, take a look at Daylesford Nature Diary, Six Seasons in the Foothill Forest, by Tanya Loos Full of great photos and information exploring the 6 seasons around Wombat State Park.  Of course the 6 seasons are not only relevant to Victoria.  The original custodians of our beautiful country hunted, gathered and created a sustainable environment over six seasons of the year for 40,000 years, not four seasons that the Europeans believe exist.

The music played today was a mix of different ages and styles. Robert kicked us off with 

The Bonny Swans by Loreena McKennitt from the The Mask and The Mirror album

Fool by Sarah Blasko and the album Fool

Way out West by the Dingoes from the The Hits of the Seventies

I Can Make you Love Me, by British India, from their I can Make you Love me album

We leave you today with photos of yellow robin chicks as they grow and leave the nest that Robert was keeping an eye for a PHD student.  Make sure you listen to the show, to find out more. It was a great one!

 
 

Environmentality 20 November 2013, Jodie Jackson, My Everyday Garden

Basil, Thyme, Rosemary, Chives, Parsley, Oregano, Sage, Lavender, AloVera, these are just a few of the herbs you can grow in your very own Melbourne garden.

Herbs have been around for centuries and used across the world for all manner of things.  They are medicinal; steep Sage in hot water for sore throats, culinary; stuff your roast chicken with lemon thyme to give it a beautiful flavour and aroma and place bay leaves in your pantry to ward off moths.

Thanks very much Jodie for coming into the studio today. We had a lively discussion about herbs, a few recipes thrown in and what to do with all those snails that are invading the garden.  Jodie suggests collecting them and feeding them to ducks at your local parkland - great idea!  You will have to Listen to the show  to find out more.....

 But if you like your snails why not whip some up with this Tasty Recipe but make sure you know what you are doing, don't just collect and cook them!  Jaime told us today that some snails carry tinea.

The weather has been so seasonally crazy of late that it is hard to imagine that anything that is supposed to be blooming in order for us to make relishes and pickles is going to provide any fruit.  We will have to keep our fingers crossed.

It is not too late to plant tomatoes, zucchini, capsicum, cucumbers, beans, chillies and lots more.  The ABC Gardening website has a great guide on what to plant when and where.

If you live in Melbourne, Brite Industries, a not for profit disability support service are having their annual plant sale on Saturday 23 November, Cnr of Belfast Street and Dallas Drive, Broadmeadows.  They have a huge range of flowers, herbs and vegies all at hugely discounted prices.

Jaime showcased music from Woodlock, a Melbourne band formally from Yarrawonga.  Jaime heard them busking in the the city.  Their album Lemons, sounds pretty good https://www.facebook.com/WoodlockMusic

Have a great week.

Environmentality 13 November 2013, Jason Kimberley, Cool Australia

If the Government's attitude toward the warming of OUR world is getting you down, check out Cool Australia's website http://coolaustralia.org/ for a tonne of inspiration and plenty of good news to put a smile back on your face.
Cool Australia are leading the way with their free interactive online education tools and resources for teachers and students.  Resources and curriculum cover topics such as energy, waste, water, consumption, biodiversity, climate change and sustainability, to name a few.

Thanks to Jason Kimberley, CEO and founder of Cool Australia for joining us on Environmentality today. Jason gave us a snippet of his former life as adventurer, author and photographer and what drove him to start Cool Australia, download the show to hear more.

You don't have to be a teacher or a student to make a change, check out the enviroweek site: http://www.enviroweek.org/ take the challenge and see how easy it is!



Smokey took us back to his formative days with his music selection today,

The Flaming Lips, Race for the Prize, from their album The Soft Bulletin
The Velvet Underground, Sunday Morning, The Velvet Underground & Nico album, and Heroin from the same album

Next week on the show we have the famous Jodie Jackson, garden guru, hopefully she will be updating us on all things green and the great melon challenge.

Environmentality, 6 November 2013

Good afternoon everyone,

Unfortunately due to conflicting calendars and events beyond our control the Environmentality team did not take to the air today.

Please join us next week 13 November when we speak to 

Jason from Cool Australia.