When: Sunday February 21
Time: 3pm-4.30pm
Where: The Edge, Federation Square, Melbourne

As part of the Sustainable Living Festival the Alternative Technology Association is presenting the feature forum Bringing a safe climate future forward.

Climate change is without doubt the defining challenge of our generation, a challenge which requires action, commitment and innovation by all sectors of society to avoid the most dangerous impacts to our landscapes, our ecosystems, our economy and the choice of where we live.

What will a sustainable 2020 Australia look like and how do we get there? What sustainable technologies have already been developed and what can we expect in the next 10 years. How do we build sustainable communities? And what policies do we need in place to build resilience to climate change.

Five expert speakers from a range of backgrounds (sustainable technology, community development, architecture, water managment and policy) will discuss what a sustainable 2020 Australia should look like and how we can get there. Caroline Bayliss, Director of Global Sustainability at RMIT.

MC: Caroline BaylissCaroline is Director of Global Sustainability at RMIT University in Melbourne. In this role, Caroline works across a broad constituency, both within and outside RMIT. She has particular expertise in relation to sustainability assessments, sustainability indicators, sustainability and Triple Bottom Line reporting and sustainable procurement. Caroline is Deputy Director of the United Nations Global Compact Cities Programme. She is also a Director of the Voluntary Carbon Markets Association Limited, Director and Company Secretary of Eco-Buy Limited and member of the Lake Condah Sustainable Development Project Leadership Group.

Speakers
Dr Mark Diesendorf
Dr Mark Diesendorf teaches, researches and consults in the interdisciplinary fields of sustainable energy, sustainable urban transport, theory of sustainability, ecological economics, and practical processes by which government, business and other organisations can achieve ecologically sustainable and socially just development. Prior to joining the Institute of Environmental Studies in June 2004 he was senior lecturer in Human Ecology at the Australian National University (1994-1996), then Professor of Environmental Science and Founding Director of the Institute for Sustainable Futures at the University of Technology Sydney (1996-2001), and then Director of the private consultancy Sustainability Centre Pty Ltd (2001-2007).

Andrew Maynard
Andrew Maynard is the Director at Andrew Maynard Architects (AMA) named in Wallpaper magazine’s Architects Directory, an “annual guide to the world’s most innovative practices”. Since AMA was established in late 2002 it has been recognised internationally in media, awards and exhibitions for its unique body of highly crafted built work and socio-politically-based concepts. All of AMA’s designs are concept rich, left of center and sustainability conscious: styles and singular themes are avoided. AMA specializes in ideas rather than building type, whether the project be a house in Fitzroy, a library in Japan, a protest shelter in Tasmania, a plywood bicycle or a suburb eating robot. AMA’s conceptual and built work has been exhibited in New York, Budapest, Melbourne, Sydney, Osaka, Milan, Sao Paulo, Toyko and more.

Mary Crooks
Executive Director of the Victorian Women’s Trust and Project Director of Watermark Australia. Mary believes in the power of engaging the broader community in the big issues of our times. Mary was a founder of Watermark Australia and was principal writer of Our Water Mark. Watermark Australia provides information and resources to assist people to move towards using and managing water efficiently.

David Holmgren
David Holmgren is one of Australia’s most experienced permaculture site designers. He has been providing consultancy advice and design for 20 years. Resident at Hepburn Springs in central Victoria for 15 years, David has developed an intimate knowledge of regional landscapes and resources, which he combines with a wealth of experience of temperate climate permaculture systems.

Ian Porter
Ian Porter is the CEO at Alternative Technology Association (ATA), Australia’s leading not-for-profit organisation working to support Australian households to live more sustainably, and a Director of GreenFleet. Prior to joining the ATA, Ian Porter was the Executive Director of Sustainability Policy with the Victorian Government, and responsible for the landmark policy documents Victorian Greenhouse Strategy (2002) and the Greenhouse Challenge for Energy (2004). In 2007, he moved to the Nous Group where he led the climate change department, working with the public and private sector to develop policy and respond to major challenges in the fields of climate change and energy.