Civil Liberties Abstract

Civil liberties are a vital part of any functioning democracy. The Australian public know very little of their rights as citizens. The Australian government is able to get away with silencing any dissent and manipulating any information made available to the general public. Australia is showing declining participation by citizens in democratic processes. This disengagement is further exacerbated by restrictions on the flow of information to the public.

The dissenting opinions being stifled include that of charitable organisations by using threats of funding withdrawal. The Australian government have also tried to suppress dissenting voices in universities, research sectors and the media through the use of bullying tactics including public, personal attacks and even vicious rumour spreading. This has a direct impact on the average Australian citizens capacity to be informed and therefore participate.

Australian law as it currently stands does not protect even the most fundamental rights that Australians assume they have. For example to law does not fully protect freedom of speech or freedom of religion. Civil Liberties Australia (CLA) is attempting to rectify these occurrences, bring them to public attention and also educate the public about their civil liberties. They achieve this through publicising issues on their website, sending out newsletters to members, keeping a good relationship with the state ombudsman as well as producing submissions for government bodies. One such submission is a proposal for/design of a bill, or charter of rights. They are hoping this charter will firmly cement civil rights in the law and also help to bring them to the attention of the general public.

Graphic design could be the key to getting the information out in the public arena. The priority of all graphic design is to get attention. The public needs to feel intrigued, astounded or provoked in order to illicit a response and this can all be achieved through the use of texture, colour, imagery and text. A design campaign using print matter, online or even television campaigns utilising the power of graphic design could help to get the message out to the public and ensure our rights and our future as a free and democratic society.

- Irene Rayment

Civil Liberties

-Irene Rayment

What choice do we have?

Once we begin to investigate these questions of global warming, we enter a labyrinth of fact and theory that could involve years of study. The question is, how? Is it possible for the non-specialist to form judgments about issues involving a high degree of specialized knowledge? The more specialized our culture and its problems, the more critical this question becomes.
Global warming, or global climate change, has been one of the most urgent and controversial environmental issues in the last decade. Scientists have determined that the maximum amount of global warming the planet can tolerate is two degrees Celsius. If we continue on our current path, we'll achieve that rise by about 2050, and we'd reach a rise of three degrees Celsius by 2070. With a temperature rise that high, the consequences are catastrophic-the polar ice caps would melt, warmer ocean temperatures would result in severe weather patterns, and we could lose 25 percent of the species on the planet.

This issue of global warming is slowly being recognized by the millions of people around the globe but unfortunately is going in the right direction slower then we need it. Designers around the world are beginning to cater for this diaster we have brought upon ourselves by creating systems like green star ratings and using further Environmental Sustainable Design.

One of the keys to slowing global warming on our little blue planet may be educating architects and other building professionals about designing and building more efficient buildings. We can achieve a better environment by making sure siting and orientation of buildings work with the environment and take advantage of passive heating/cooling and natural lighting.

The architectural community has the unique opportunity to lead the way in reversing the destructive trend of human induced climate change. They hold the key to the lock on the global warming situation. If they open the lock, and if the automobile industry also accepts its responsibility to decrease the fuel consumption of its assembly and if more countries use a percentage of their energy to come from non-polluting renewable resources then the world will have a possible strategy in place to combat global warming and restore its international good will and credibility.

The promotion of sustainable development

The promotion of sustainable development in different social, political and economic contexts.

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Sustainable development in design is about ‘the long-term transformation of basic aspects of the present industrial economic system’ (Baker, 2006, p.47). It encourages debate of our relationship with the natural world, social progress and the character of future design.

The core issues of sustainable development include the ‘the consequences of economic development and issues of global equity’. (Baker, 2006, p.81). It has led to a complex and highly environmental management regime, which include the cross-cutting of polices, with relations to the environment, and access sectors (Baker, 2006, Muschett 1997, Hon 2002, Reijnders,1996).

Critical global environmental factors include; climate change, the build up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, post-war modernization, mass-consummation, the promotion of ‘individual growth and self-advancement’ (Baker, 2006, p.2) Contributing factors to the climate change include clearing forests for agricultural production, taming wilderness into natural parks, harnessing wild rivers, the use natural recourses, such as coal, oil and gas for the production of energy. Promoting sustainable development is about steering social change at the interface between; the ‘social’ aspect that relates the human morals and values, relationships and institutions. The ‘economic’ aspect of the concerns of allocation and distribution of scarce resources and the ‘ecological’ aspect involving the contribution of both the economic and the social and their effect on the environment and its recourse (Baker, 2006, p.7). This calls for global reorganisation of governments to take responsibility, as this promotion guards the common fate of humanity.

The call of fair distribution of the responsibilities and tasks world wide (including third world, high consumption and industrial counties) of environmental laws and agreements. Such as demonstrated sustainable development of multi-dimensional actions; environmental management, international diplomacy and governance regimes, engagement of multi-levels of government, participation of civil society and economic actors, use of new policy instruments, and behavioural and value changes. (Baker, 2006, p.214). This responsibility to change is a shared responsibility, involving social and economic actors to acknowledge the environmental consequences modernization behaviour, with social links and dimensions to environmental citizenship (clean air, health and safety), however currently these actions remain limited, especially when judged by high-consumption societies.



Promoting sustainable development cannot rest on the weight and input of the traditional political authority alone. It needs engagement from state and non-state actors, the public and private sectors as they agree on priorities and devise action to commit to a sustainable practice therefore sustaining a future of the generation to come.

Reference List

1. Susan Baker, (2006). Sustainable Development. 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxan: Routledge
2. F. Douglas Muschett, (1997). Principles of Sustainable Development. Delay Beach: St. Lucie Press
3. Bernard Hon, (2002). Design and manufacture for Sustainable Development, Bury St Edmunds and London, UK: Professional Engineering Publishing Limited
4. Lusas Reijnders, (1996). Environmentally Improved Production Processes and products: An Introduction, Dordrecht/Boston/London: Kluwer Academic Publishers

Melissa Stewart

Drought Management Solutions

Global warming is a reality. Australia is becoming hotter and drier as it experiences accelerated climate change. Studies have estimated that Australian temperatures will rise up to 6 degrees in the next 50 years, increasing the frequency and extremity of droughts. Australia’s current drought is the worst on record.

The majority of Australian capital cities are facing a major water crisis with less than 50% of water storages remaining. (Drought in Australia) Currently the state governments are attempting to ‘drought-proof’ (Can we Drought-Proof Australia?) their states by implementing a number of design strategies.

Regulation of Rainwater Tank Installations in NSW has been assisted by a new State Environment Planning Policy allowing the installation of systems up to 10,000 litres. (Rainwater Storage Systems) With limited rainfall, it is essential to recycle water within the house. The Grey-water recycling scheme is the re-use of wastewater produced from domestic means such as washing dishes, laundry and bathing. The water is collected and distributed to the garden. These effective water recycling systems result in greater amounts of water able to be used overall, as well as significant reductions in cost.

These strategies are being implemented in small numbers; however it is crucial to enforce water saving technologies in all newly developed homes in order for the water management plan to start taking effect on a greater level.

Although cities do suffer from the effects of drought, it is the people that live on the land that are most closely impacted. Agriculture suffers most severely, with declining productivity affecting rural Australia as well as the national economy. Farmers are unable to change the weather; however they can adopt their farming practices to suit the dry Australian landscape.

Good tree management practices may be implemented on farms, as droughts favour some vegetation over others. The strategic placement of farm trees improves agricultural production as well as protecting soils, water and wildlife.

Education about sustainability and how local actions connect to global trends is vital in achieving widespread community agreement on the goal of a sustainable community.

Now Australia is even considering drinking recycled sewage, to reclaim precious water from the waste. (Drought-stricken Australia considers drinking recycled sewage)

‘Drought proofing’ Australia will never be achievable, due to the fact that drought is a permanent characteristic of Australian life, however, we can learn to manage and adapt to it through the use of sustainable technologies and practices, rather than trying to change it.

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Kate
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Reference List

1. Drought in Australia. Retrieved 19/3/07. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drought_in_Australia. Wikipedia
2. Can we ‘drought-proof’ Australia? Retrieved 18/3/07.
http://www.nma.gov.au/libraries/attachments/schools/resources/drought_proof_australia/drought_proof_australia_full_document/files/630/nma_drought_pdf.pdf. National Museum of Australia Canberra
3. Rainwater storage systems. Retrieved 18/3/07.
http://www.ecologicalhomes.com.au/rainwater_storage.htm. Ecological Homes: Helping Australia become sustainable.
4. Drought-stricken Australia considers drinking recycled sewage. Jul 24 08:37 PM US/Eastern. Retrieved 19/3/07. http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=060725013330.kmmra0ek&show_article=1. AFP

Banksy

Banksy is a London based artist/designer, who uses stencil art as a way to publicly highlight contemporary issues. He started in the 90's and has become a well known activist in London, where his images can be found on many streets, including buildings, pavements, etc.
Banksy as he is known does his stencil work illegally as it is a form of graffiti, but his work is really clever, and it certainly draws peoples attention to it. He deals with subjects such as anti-war, anti-capitalist, and also anti establishment, as well as many other issues.
Banksys work is really effective, because not only does he create great graphic imagery, but he then stencils his images in places that help give his work more impact.
Here are some images that Banksy has created

If you want to find out more about Banksy or just take a look at some of his work take a look at the websites below. One is the offical Banksy website and the others are websites containing some of his work.
http:www.banksy.co.uk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8e0IJSOq0xg
http://www.artofthestate.co.uk/Banksy/banksy.htm
-Kristy

Drought Reality
"A drought is a prolonged, abnormally dry period when there is not enough water for users' normal needs."
(http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/drought/livedrought.shtml)

This report faces issues of why the designed environment of a city is a critical factor in the use of water, and ultimately why living in a city habitat decreases the chance of an Australian citizen conserving water in a time of drought.

The report looks at why the average Australian citizen living in an urban environment is inclined to waste water as it is so conveniently at their disposal, and looks at those citizens in remote areas who really understand the full effects of the drought.
The paper includes research into why city residents are opposed to the introduction of recycled drinking water with a case study of the failed referendum of Toowomba in July 2006, where almost 62 percent of the voters declined the introduction of treated sewerage water for drinking, even after the government spent over $500,000 on encouraging campaigns. And also why residents in Sydney demonstrated against the proposed construction of Kurnell Desalination plant.

The paper includes discussion of the current actions taken by designers, with examples of t-shirt design competitions, advertisements in the forms of pamphlets, press advertisements, and television commercials from leading water providers and also why designers worked with Toowomba residents to create the "No vote" campaign which included letterbox drops, meetings, and also television commercials urging residents to vote no to the referendum. However one design field that has already implementing many water saving techniques is the landscape design industry, who has looked at alternative gardening styles such as Xeriscape gardening, meaning dry landscape in Greek, which involves using native plant species, minimizing the conventional lawns and planting in species groups to minimize water waste.

The report concludes that the effects of the drought could be lessened dramatically with help of designers. Suggestions include the design of a campaign to highlight the need for residents to choose recycled water for drinking or a desalination plant as an alternative. Research shows that these methods are completely safe, it is just up to the designer to encourage the change of public perception, and in doing so could dramatically increase the levels of awareness of the drought that residents in urban areas have, and in turn the amount of water being conserved.


References:
-Skatsson, Judy, ABC Science Online,
http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1416663.htm
-Water vote bigger than Toowoomba's woes, Friday, 28 July 2006,
http://www.abc.net.au/water/stories/s1699774.htm
-http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/drought/livedrought.shtml
-http://www.actew.com.au/conservation/
-Knox, Gary W.2, Landscape Design for Water Conservation 1,
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/MG027