Acting Director's Note

Dear SEI community,

With so much going on amongst our members and in the world, it’s difficult to choose what to include in my note to you. It seems that mourning is a theme for us at the moment, following on from Sophie Chao’s brilliant McCalman lecture ‘‘Multispecies mourning: grief and resistance in an age of ecological undoing’’.

As this newsletter is coming out today though, I wanted to let you know about our upcoming panel (this Thursday, 11 Apr) entitled "The radical work of mourning: the power of grief in a time of extinction”. In this context, SEI theme leads Prof Thom van Dooren and Dr Blanche Verlie will explore the transformative power of shared grief in the face of ecological challenges with artist Zoë Sadokierski. The event is part of the Living on the Edge project, a partnership with the National Museum of Australia, and will be chaired by ABC’s Natasha Mitchell.

I am also absolutely thrilled to let our community know that long time SEI member and Climate, Disaster, and Adaption theme lead Prof Rosemary Lyster has been appointed to the Academic Circle, established by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to development, Prof Surya Deva.

This appointment recognises Rosemary’s many years of leadership in this space and her work on the need to completely transform practices of development in the context of climate change and ecological realities.

Wishing everyone well with work and life.

Danielle Celermajer
Acting Director, Sydney Environment Institute

The Radical Work of Mourning

When we lose a loved one, we share rituals to honour their life and process their death. But when a plant or animal species is lost forever, how are we to mourn? 

Journalist and radio presenter Natasha Mitchell (ABC Radio National) will discuss these ideas with SEI theme leads Prof Thom van Dooren and Dr Blanche Verlie, and scholar and practitioner of design Zoë Sadokierski.

This event is part of the Living on the Edge: Caring for Australia’s Threatened Places.

Thursday 11 Apr 6.00 - 7.30pm | Register here

Iain McCalman longform article: Multispecies mourning

How can we understand the challenges faced by Indigenous communities, asks anthropologist Dr Sophie Chao, as they navigate issues stemming from mass deforestation, monocrop oil palm expansion, and the erosion of ancestral connections to the land?

In this essay, adapted from the sixth annual Iain McCalman Lecture, Sophie Chao explores the Indigenous Marind People’s practice of ‘multispecies mourning’ in West Papua.

More events and opportunities

Prof Ollie Jay, Prof Jaime Miranda, A/Prof Ying Zhang, and Dr Aditya Vyas are keynote speakers at the Launch of the MJA-Lancet Countdown 2023 Report on health and climate change | 9 Apr, RSVP here

Dr Jennifer Kent will be presenting at 'Raising the Bar' on “Riding in dogs with cars, exploring Sydney’s pet ban on public transport | 9 Apr, register here

Sydney ID's Distinguished Lecture Series, will feature a presentation by Prof Jonathan Patz, titled "Impacts of climate change and habitat disruption on infectious diseases" | 11 Apr, RSVP here

SEI members are invited to our Lunchtime Seminar to hear Prof Chris Wright's 'Protest as spectacle: Performativity in the climate era' | 18 Apr, 12.00pm, register here (this is an internal, members only event)

Natural Hazards Research Australia is calling for applications to support the career development of late-stage PhD students, early career researchers and industry researchers | Closing 30 Apr, learn more

The Natural Hazards Research Forum 2024 will be held at the National Wine Centre in Adelaide | 14-16 May, learn more

Join Australia’s largest global summit for climate and nature

Rapid transformation will be needed by 2030 if we are to deliver on the Paris Agreement for net zero emissions and achieve the global goals for nature agreed at the Kunming-Montreal biodiversity COP15.

The third Impact X Summit Sydney (22-23 Apr) will address this urgent need for short-term action and call on all stakeholders to raise ambition. A collaborative two-day agenda will explore the accelerated implementation of net zero, nature positive plans and present pathways to achieve 2030 goals for Australia and the Pacific region.

Presenters from industry, academia, research institutes and government will share innovative solutions and opportunities in Scope 3 emissions reduction, circular economy, EV transition, indigenous knowledge systems, oceans, and forests.

Participants in the Impact X working groups will be asked to roll up their sleeves and propose solutions for ensuring a just and green transition and explore accelerated decarbonisation in energy, transport, built environment, industry, resources, and agriculture.

Building a net zero, nature positive economy will require unprecedented change and collaboration across society, at a level never seen before.

The below discount codes are for the University of Sydney community.

• UNIVERSITYSTUDENT ($480)
• DiscountcodeUSYD20 (20% off all passes)

22-23 Apr, ICC Sydney | Learn more

Please note, discount codes are for University of Sydney staff and students only.

In case you missed it

The Solutionists Podcast with Prof Mark Scott has returned for Season Two - listen as entomologist A/Prof Tanya Latty explores the world of pollinators | Listen now

ARMS is currently calling for abstract submissions to be delivered during the 2024 Conference in Darwin | Poster presentations closing 12 Apr,  learn more

Entries for the University of Sydney Eureka Prize for Sustainability Research are now open | Closing 12 Apr, read more

The James Martin Institute Policy Challenge Grant supports applied public policy research to tackle the greatest public policy challenges facing New South Wales for the public good | Closing 14 Apr, learn more

Become a member

Interested in joining our global network? Submit an expression of interest. SEI members receive opportunities to work with environmental scholars and practitioners from across disciplines to tackle the greatest challenges of our time.