In many ways July 2008 represents a turning point for the Australian economy. With the imminent release of the Garnaut Climate Change Review Draft Report [1] on Friday 4 July, the introduction of carbon trading [2], Minister for Climate Change and Water Penny Wong promising action on the crisis in the Murray-Darling basin [3], July 2008 will go down in history as the month when we really began doing things differently.

While we know the costs of not embracing change far outweigh those we'll be facing in coming months and years, what do we really know about how and where those changes need to occur? Environmental capitalism will affect the way we travel, the way we generate and use energy, the way we produce food and use water, it will affect the way we do business and the way we have fun, ultimately it will effect every aspect of our lives - but how?

This month on Open Forum we're trying to answer these questions, and we're inviting your comments and feedback on how we go about making an effective and efficient transition into this new way of operating.

Tell us what you're doing, and what you're going to do. Tell us whether your industry will survive into this new phase, or whether you will need to start up again. Tell us what it's costing, and how it's benefiting you and your employees, or you and your company.

Let's share our thoughts and work it out together.