• National resilience needs a system-wide approach

    Gillian Savage     |      April 19, 2023

    Until policymakers fully adopt a systems approach in their thinking and planning to improve national resilience we’ll continue to trade one priority for another.

  • Resilience in Australian agriculture

    John Coyne     |      March 16, 2023

    Prioritising the right places to invest in national resilience will be challenging, but shoring up the resilience of our food production to reduce vulnerabilities is a logical place to start.

  • A more resilient north

    Open Forum     |      March 3, 2023

    Resilience won’t be achieved if local communities continue to be required to compete with each other for one-off, sector-specific federal or state grants. Sustained investment is needed that taps into local strengths and supports nation-building opportunities.

  • The Maribyrnong River flood review

    Bernie O'Kane     |      February 23, 2023

    Just as ostriches were reputed to bury their heads in the sand to avoid seeing danger, so the Victorian authorities are refusing to confront the lessons of recent flood disasters in Melbourne.

  • Chip wars

    Robert Wihtol     |      February 20, 2023

    A new book, “Chip War” is essential reading for anyone who would like to understand the importance of semi-conductor supplies in modern geopolitics.

  • Strategic fuel security

    Tim Close     |      February 12, 2023

    Ten years ago, retired Air Vice-Marshal John Blackburn released a landmark study that revealed the fragile state of Australia’s liquid-fuel security, and things are little better today.

  • Costing the Earth

    Madeline Hamilton Combe     |      February 6, 2023

    Your super is likely exposed to major nature-based risks. How big a risk? We don’t know – because to date, banks and super funds haven’t looked into it but that’s likely to change.

  • True grit

    Sarah Jefferson     |      February 4, 2023

    It’s no surprise that children who are given few boundaries and endless praise at home and school tend to lack the resilience they need when faced with life’s tough challenges, so how can we help them develop the resilience they’ll need in later life?

  • Australia’s chip crisis

    Flavio Macau     |      January 31, 2023

    Computer chips were in short supply during the pandemic, now actual chips are an endangered species.

  • Get out

    Open Forum     |      January 28, 2023

    Flight, fight or freeze? UNSW Sydney expert Dr Milad Haghani’s research shows people should urgently rush away from the scene of an emergency such as a mass shooting event, to improve potential outcomes for everyone in the area.

  • Planet polycrisis

    Michael Murray Lawrence     |      December 19, 2022

    ‘Permacrisis’ is Collins Dictionary’s 2022 word of the year, but polycrisis is a more accurate term to describe the world’s ongoing crises and how they’re interacting with one another.

  • Strengthening sovereign arms manufacturing

    William Leben     |      December 9, 2022

    Russia’s calamitous invasion of Ukraine has brought renewed focus on questions of munitions stockpiling and production capacity, given the vast quantities of munitions consumed in a prolonged conflict.