Our favourite conservation journal articles of 2020
As part of the final work week of the year, some of us from ICON wanted to share our fav journal papers of the year. A synopsis of each paper is provided below, and as you would expect from an interdisciplinary group, they cover a diverse range of topics. Have a safe and healthy end […]
Celebrating NAIDOC Week 2020
2020 has been a year for reflection and delays, and in due style last week we celebrated a delayed NAIDOC Week. This is a time for delving deep, recognising and reflecting on the culture and peoples who have shaped this land through centuries of change. Always was, always will be… That was the theme for […]
We don’t need to import rare parrots – there are so many better ways to get close to nature
This is a Scarlet Macaw – one of the many magnificent species of parrot endemic to south and central America. An Australian Government study is considering whether it is appropriate to allow imports of these birds, following pressure from the local pet trade. Importing parrots from overseas has been banned since 1995. This is because importing birds, even when they’re spectacular, is a spectacularly terrible idea. I spoke to the ecologists in our group […]
ICON tells Victoria’s Parliament to ‘walk the walk’ on urban greening
The ICON Science group has submitted our response to the Parliament of Victoria’s ‘Inquiry into Environmental Infrastructure for Growing Populations’. Our city has grown rapidly – has our access to nature kept up? It’s commendable that our leaders have turned their minds to this topic, as COVID-19 has reminded us of the enormous importance of […]
Society for Conservation Biology Melbourne Twitter Conference
ICON scientists were out in force last Thursday and Friday at the first ever Twitter conference of the SCB Greater Melbourne Chapter. A huge congratulations to the organising committee and moderators (including ICON members Matthew and Holly) that braved the technology issues, found stray threads, and kept the tweets flowing. For many of us, it […]
Invertebrate use of rooftops in Melbourne
Green roofs are a peculiar kind of designed habitat. In already highly urbanised areas, where there is large pressure on efficient land use, green roof retrofits are a key strategy to bring back nature without losing building capital. While green roofs are known to have many economic and social benefits, such as stormwater retention and […]
National Reconciliation Week 2020
By Natasha Ward This year we celebrate National Reconciliation Week in a very different way than we could have ever predicted. From our homes, we mourn the loss of lives, families, culture and history. But we also work hard to look into the future. Whilst this may be like a random week chosen during the […]
Announcement: New ARC-funded Linkage Grant
We are excited to announce that ICON Science members Sarah Bekessy, Georgia Garrard, and Matthew Selinske, along with Emily McLeod (Zoos Victoria), Fiona Fidler (University of Melbourne), Yoshi Kashima (University of Melbourne), and Amanda Rodewald (Cornell University) have been awarded an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant. The grant is co-funded by partners Zoos Victoria and […]
What difference do protected areas make on vegetation extent and condition?
Logging road in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Photo by Roshan Sharma. Biodiversity is the variety of all life forms on Earth and underpins the health of our planet. It provides important ecosystem services like food and fibre that are the basis of human existence. However, exploitative human activities on Earth have created an unprecedented breakdown of […]
Haptic pathways: co-designing inclusive, civil and sensorial moments in the city
by Freya Thomas A few members of ICON Science recently collaborated with Dr Zoe Myers from the Australian Urban Design Research Centre in the School of Design at the University of Western Australia by entering a design challenge set by The City of Melbourne. Our design was titled: Haptic pathways: co-designing inclusive, civil and sensorial […]
