Our seas are on the brink of an ecological catastrophe, but as scientific guidelines are ignored and catches become ever bigger due to industrial-scale overfishing, the international community has failed to act.
Australian treasurer Wayne Swan will unveil an ambitious $2 billion climate change program in Tuesday's budget, the biggest investment of its kind, the largest slice of which will be pumped into developing low emissions technology programs.
Having adopted Australia's National Water Initiative, the Victorian government has moved regulate the state's thirsty timber plantations, making them accountable for the water they use.
One of the largest indigenous groups remaining in Europe, the Sami have been herding reindeer in the Arctic for centuries, but their lifestyle is now at risk as they find themselves on the front line of global climate change.
As she draws up detailed plans to reduce carbon emissions, Penny Wong, the Australian Climate Change Minister, faces fierce arguments from fossil fuel companies that are on a collision course with the latest scientific predictions on global warming.
Premier John Brumby has a vision for Melbourne in a climate-changed age, but sustainability experts fear that it is too wedded to coal and cars to match the scale of the environmental problem.
