UniSuper take note: there's no retirement on a dead planet

Shutterstock HESTA, the industry super fund for health and community workers, plans to dump its shares in thermal coal mining companies. Beyond that, its Net Zero by 2050 program announced on Friday commits it to cutting the carbon emissions in its portfolio by one third by 2030, and to “netContinue Reading

We developed tools to study cancer in Tasmanian devils. They could help fight disease in humans

Shutterstock Emerging infectious diseases, including COVID-19, usually come from non-human animals. However our understanding of most animals’ immune systems is sadly lacking as there’s a shortfall in research tools for species other than humans and mice. Our research published today in Science Advances details cutting edge immunology tools we developedContinue Reading

Stopping koala extinction is agonisingly simple. But here's why I'm not optimistic

Shutterstock On Tuesday, a year-long New South Wales parliamentary inquiry revealed the state’s koalas are on track for extinction in the wild by 2050, without urgent government intervention. Habitat destruction and fragmentation for agriculture, urban development, mining and forestry has been the number one koala killer since European occupation ofContinue Reading

Lockdown returns: how far can coronavirus measures go before they infringe on human rights?

DANIEL POCKETT/AAP As of this morning, ten “hot spot” postcodes in Melbourne’s suburbs have gone back into Stage 3 coronavirus lockdown. In these suburbs, stay-at-home restrictions will be enforced by police patrols, “booze bus”-style barriers and random checks in transport corridors. In what Premier Daniel Andrews described as “extraordinary steps”,Continue Reading