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Coal has been back in the news this week in major ways.
First, a senior UN official urged Australia and other OECD members to quit coal by 2030, or see climate change wreak havoc on our economy and, inevitably, life as we know it.
Next, UK scientists today say Australia must leave 95% of coal in the ground to have any hope of stopping the planet warming beyond 1.5℃.
And yet, quietly in the background, the coal market reached a record high. If you’re anything like me, you may have seen this news and wanted to pull your hair out.
But in today’s lead story John Quiggin, an economist from the University of Queensland, reassures us that placing too much weight on the fluctuations of the coal market would be a mistake.
He explains Australia is perfectly capable of phasing out coal-fired electricity by 2030 and replacing it with a combination of solar and wind, backed by storage.
It’d be easy and relatively cheap to do, too. All we need is “a modest amount of political will”.
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Anthea Batsakis
Deputy Editor: Environment + Energy
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Albert Hyseni/Unsplash
John Quiggin, The University of Queensland
Major research found Australia must keep 95% of coal in the ground to limit global warming. With a little political will, this would be easy to do.
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Stringer/EPA/AAP
Donald Rothwell, Australian National University
There are many reasons to be wary of the returned Taliban, but given our investment in the region the Australian government will have to find a way to deal with it.
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Shawn Baldwin/AP/AAP Image
Erin Smith, Edith Cowan University; Brigid Larkin, Edith Cowan University; Lisa Holmes, Edith Cowan University
More 9/11 responders died from physical and mental health issues after the terrorist attacks than on the day itself. And survivors are still suffering 20 years later.
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David Mariuz/AAP
Rebecca Ananian-Welsh, The University of Queensland; Keiran Hardy, Griffith University
Australia is a long way from New York and Washington DC, but 9/11 was a seismic event for our country. For one thing, it has reshaped our ideas about criminal responsibility
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Roberto Robanne/AP
David Oswald, RMIT University; Erica Kuligowski, RMIT University; Kate Nguyen, RMIT University
The World Trade Center buildings were built to withstand wind loads more than 30 times the aircrafts’ weight.
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Naron Sangnak/EPA/AAP
Nathan Bartlett, University of Newcastle
‘Breakthrough’ infections can happen because of waning immunity or high viral doses. But our vaccines are still excellent at preventing severe disease and death.
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Shutterstock
Steven Greenland, Charles Darwin University; Bhanu Bhatia, Charles Darwin University; Muhammad Abid Saleem, Charles Darwin University; Roopali Misra, Charles Darwin University
Universities must move swiftly to attend to students’ needs when borders reopen if Australia is to regain market share in the face of fierce global competition.
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EPA
Leigh Carriage, Southern Cross University
Released on September 9, 1971, the power of Imagine has not diluted. It is the song many turn to at times of crisis: from Neil Young after 9/11 to a pianist on the streets of Paris in 2015.
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Prime Minister's Office
Graeme Dunk, Australian National University
The collapse of the US operation in Afghanistan means the day might come when Australia needs access to the design of the weapons it uses.
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Politics + Society
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
Michelle Grattan discusses the Respect@Work report, and National Summit on Women's Safety with Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins
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Ben Mathews, Queensland University of Technology
We have laudable goals on eradicating violence against women and children, but we are nowhere near achieving them. Here’s what needs to happen.
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Sue Williamson, UNSW
The Morrison government says existing laws already provide a positive duty to prevent sexual harassment, but these don’t go far enough.
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David Rolph, University of Sydney
Today’s ruling may inspire many social media account managers to more tightly restrict comments — or, where possible, switch them off completely.
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
Documents show Pfizer reached out in June 2020 for a personal meeting with federal Health Minister Greg Hunt, but instead the contact was left to a senior health department official.
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Hanlie Booysen, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
In the wake of the Christchurch and Auckland attacks, should official definitions of terrorism conflate the actions of a white supremacy extremist and a radical Islamist extremist?
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Science + Technology
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Katharine Balolia, Australian National University
Differences between male and female skulls in some species of gibbon may shed light on how our extinct ancestors lived.
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Health + Medicine
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Siouxsie Wiles, University of Auckland
Penicillin originally came from a fungus, and with thousands of fungi to explore, Aotearoa New Zealand has a potential treasure trove of bacteria-killing compounds.
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Environment + Energy
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Andreas Chai, Griffith University
Last month’s dire report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change may have left you feeling overwhelmed. But small changes at the household level really can make a world of difference.
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Arts + Culture
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Andrea Fenton, Swinburne University of Technology
Any advertisement asking us to get vaccinated must answer one crucial question: what’s in it for me?
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Business + Economy
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Miriam Moeller, The University of Queensland; Dana L. Ott; Emily Russo, The University of Queensland
Despite progress in promoting workplace diversity, prejudices keep the employment prospects for neurodiverse individuals shockingly low.
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Featured jobs
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— Batchelor NT, Australia
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— Ballarat VIC, Australia
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— Newcastle NSW, Australia
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Featured Events & Courses
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Online, Melbourne, Victoria, 3800, Australia — Monash University
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The University Club of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, 6009, Australia — The University of Western Australia
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Kingsbury Drive, Bundoora, Victoria, 3086, Australia — La Trobe University
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19 Ancora Imparo Way, Clayton, Victoria, 3800, Australia — Monash University
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