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SPA reflects on our hugely successful 2019 public forum
27 April 2019
On Saturday 27th April 2019, Sustainable Population Australia (SPA) hosted a free public forum: “Population, Sustainability and Quality of Life: what future do we want for Australia?”
Almost 100 members of the public attended the beautiful EcoCentre at Griffith Univeristy, Brisbane Queensland. We were fortunate to enjoy some powerful and motivating presentations from a variety of speakers including: Hugh Possingham (The Nature Conservancy); Sue Arnold (Australians for Animals); Steve McDonald (President of Redlands2030); Cameron Murray (Economist and Sustainable Australia Party candidate); Crispin Hull (Journalist for the Canberra Times); Charles Worringham (spokesperson for The Greens); and Kelvin Thomson (Former Labor MP for Wills).
Given that population has been dismissed as a fringe issue in the past, the diversity of our enthusiastic speakers is indicative of the contrary – that people from all walks of life are now aware of the impacts of population growth and are keen to talk about it!
Our speakers covered a variety of topics such as the impacts of population growth on the environment, habitat, urban planning and infrastructure. They explored some of the reasons why many sectors of our society continue to uphold the belief that rapid population growth is necessary for a prosperous economy whilst debunking several enduring myths around ageing societies. The information delivered was sometimes alarming as the impacts of population growth are increasingly felt throughout society and in our natural environments. However, there was also cause for hope and a call to arms, especially from Kelvin Thomson who shared his wisdom on what we all must do to address these serious problems.
The presenters were invited to join a Q&A panel, where some real postive, constructive and dynamic conversations were had with the audience.
Videos for Dr Cameron Murray, Kelvin Thomson, Steve McDonald and Charles Worringham are all now available on the SPA YouTube Channel. All contain powerful messages and we strongly recommend sharing these videos or any others on our YouTube channel with your friends, family and networks.
We would also like to provide:
– The transcript of the speeches from Sue Arnold and Crispin Hull
– The presentation slides from Hugh Possingham, Sue Arnold and Cameron Murray.
These pdfs can be found at the bottom of the page and provide a wealth of insight and wisdom. Again, we invite all to share.
A huge thank you to everyone who came along, the presenters, all who volunteered on the day and last but not least, to Jane O’Sullivan and the Queensland branch for making possible such a successful, well-run and essential event.