Dive deep without the time sink at the Fenner School of Environment & Society’s enlightening series of flash talks. In just 10 minutes, our researchers will open your eyes to the complexities and curiosities of environmental science!

First up, Michael Vardon presents “Accounting for better or worse: it's not all about money.” Discover how environmental accounting goes beyond the balance sheets to really count what counts!

Followed by Richard Greene exploring “Aeolian dust: its role in wine quality.” Sip through the science of how tiny dust particles can define the destiny of your favorite wines.

Sarah Kirkpatrick delves into “Musings on meaningful future changes in heatwaves.” Get ready to unpack how heatwaves could transform with net zero emissions and what this means for human health.

Finally, Steve Lade caps off with “Advancing resilience theory and practice for water resource management.” Dive into the depths of how resilience can be a game changer in sustaining our precious water resources.

Get ready for a dose of rapid-fire research with lasting impacts! Join us for the talks and stay for the discussions. See you there!

About the Speakers

Michael Vardon is an expert in natural capital accounting, researching and teaching at the Fenner School since 2014. His career began counting crocodiles and bats in the Northern Territory. He has since worked for the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the United Nations, and the World Bank and assisted more than 30 countries in the development, implementation, and use of natural capital accounts. He was a member of the United Nations’ Editorial Board for the System of Environmental-Economic Accounts (SEEA) and the World Bank’s Technical Committee on Wealth Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Service (WAVES).

Richard Greene has over 50 years of experience in soil and land management, focusing on agricultural production systems and land rehabilitation. He joined ANU as a lecturer in 1993 and retired in 2015, now serving as an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Fenner School of Environment and Society. Previously, he was a Senior Research Scientist at CSIRO and a Soils Research Officer with the Victorian Department of Agriculture. Richard holds a PhD in Soil Science and a BSc (Hons.) in Chemistry from the University of Western Australia. He has published around 120 refereed journal papers, book chapters, and conference papers. In retirement, he continues to research soil-related topics, including the relationship between soils and wine.

Prof Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick completed her PhD at the University of New South Wales in 2010. She has held an ARC DECRA and Future Fellowship and is currently a deputy director at the ARC Centre of Excellence for 21st Century Weather and a chief investigator at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes. Her research focuses on global and Australian heatwave trends, the role of human activity in these changes, and methods for attributing heatwaves and their health impacts to climate change. She also studies future projections of heat and humidity and heatwaves in a net-zero world. Sarah has received several awards, including the 2013 Young Tall Poppy Award, the 2016 AMOS Early Career Researcher Award, the 2021 Dorothy Hill Medal, and the AMOS Communications and Outreach Award. She has been a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher from 2021 to 2023.

Dr Steve Lade is an ARC Future Fellow at the Fenner School and an associated researcher at the Institute for Water Futures.