Posted in Government

The Business of Sustainability – The Conference 2012

The Association for Business Sustainability conference ‘Taking Care of Business: Sustainable Transformation” will be held on the 21st and 22nd May 2012 at the Radisson Resort, Gold Coast.

The conference will include case studies, keynote presentations, concurrent sessions and workshops.   You will Learn about governments’ sustainability plans and the relevant grants available, and find business opportunities and trends in the sector.

Topics include;

• Sustainable Natural Resource/Water Management
• Sustainable and Renewable Energy
• Sustainable Waste Management
• Sustainable Cities and Building Design
• Sustainable Food Production/Security
• Sustainable Investment and Finance
• Sustainable Leadership – Government and Business
• Sustainable Transport
• Carbon Price Management
• Business Case Studies
• Government Case Studies
• Education and Training
• Accreditation
• Green Procurement
• Personal Sustainability
• CSR

The conference will update delegates on a range of effective sustainable business practises from energy saving to carbon pricing and provide great opportunities to network and learn from other organisations.

There will be a B2B exhibition for organisations to promote their ideas, products and solutions to assist businesses and government departments achieve profitable sustainability. It will provide an avenue for emerging technologies and services that enable sustainability within business to be reviewed, discussed and promoted. It will be a Sustainable Education Forum to benefit businesses, individuals and government and provide viable sustainable business options to business.

What the papers say about carbon tax

Source AAP

THE government’s clean energy plan contains some costly compromises, but retains its integrity by respecting fiscal discipline, acknowledging that adjustment must be gradual and recognising that the market should eventually set the carbon price, The Australian says in its editorial today.

The bottom line is that targets can only be met through innovation. We must find cheaper ways to produce energy, and more efficient ways of consuming it.

Providing the incentive to invest in research and development will allow Australia to determine its own destiny in a carbon-constrained world. And the built-in incentives that a price on carbon will deliver will encourage businesses to find smarter ways of doing more with less.

Despite the package’s redeeming qualities, Prime Minister Julia Gillard faces the fight of her political life to convince voters of its benefits. Breaking an election promise to embark on this course has put her political capital into deficit, and seeking parliamentary endorsement before securing a popular mandate is an error of judgment voters will find hard to forgive.

Read more

Present at the Sustainability Business Conference in September 2011

The “Taking Care of Business: Sustainable Transformation” conference wil be held on the 15th & 16th September 2011 at the Radisson Resort, Gold Coast, Australia.

If you would like to speak at the conference you have until the 15th of June 2011 to submit an abstract of your presentation here.

Confirmed speakers include:

  • Hon Kate Jones MP, Minister for Environment and Resource Management, Queensland Government, to open conference.
  • Murray Hogarth, Director, The 3rd Degree, is a business environmentalist.  He advises corporate, government and community clients on climate and sustainability strategy and communications.
  • Gary Horsfield, Vice President of Operations and Supply Chain for PepsiCo, Australia & New Zealand.
  • Susanne Cooper B.A.(Hons); D.Ed; M.Sc, Associate; Sustainability Practice Leader, Sinclair Knight Merz
  • Karlson ‘Charlie’ Hargroves B.E, Co-Founder and Director, The Natural Edge Project
  • Professor John Cole, Director, Australian Centre for Sustainable Business and Development, USQ
  • Monique Chelin – Director of MJC Sustainability
  • Tim Eldridge – Founder, Eldridge Marketing. Former Senior Partner, Executive Marketing Director, IBM Brand Services for Ogilvy& Mather N.Y. Former Executive Vice-President, World-wide Account Director for Saatchi and Saatchi N.Y.
  • Associate Professor Retha Wiesner -Australian Centre for Sustainable Business and Development U.S.Q.
  • Bruce Mitchell – Founder, The Mitchell Enviro Industrial Estate; Finalist for the 2011 QLD Senior of the Year Award and Winner for the 2010 Premier’s Climate Smart Award.
  • Paula Drayton, Director, Resource Advisory
  • Rob  Cawethorne,  Managing Director  Carbon Reduction Institute
  • Kirsty  Chessher,  EnviroDevelopment National Manager,  Urban Development Institute of Australia (QLD)
  • Kristine Dewar,  Business Sustainability Analyst,  Carbon House
  • Egle  Garrick,  General Manager,  Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority
  • Hugh  Grant,  Director,  Net Balance
  • Tony  Hall,  CEO,  GreenBizCheck
  • Simon McCabe, Business Relations Manager, Intelligent Pathways
  • Susan  Harris,  National Science Leader,  CPG New Zealand Limited
  • Robert  Hassett,  Senior Natural Resource Officer,  Department of Environment and Resource Management
  • Mark  Leckenby,  CEO,  Auzion Solar Power
  • La Vergne  Lehmann,  Researcher,  University of Ballarat
  • Dr  Gayle  Mayes,  Lecturer & Researcher,  Sustainability Research Centre
  • Rebecca  Miller  Senior Consultant  ARUP
  • Robert  Mrozowski, Senior Environmental Health Officer – Waste Management  Queensland Health
  • Ralph  Plarre,  Co-Owner,  Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses
  • Dr  Stephen  Skull,  Manager Environment Policy,  Sunshine Coast Council
  • Bernhard  Voll,  Managing Director,  Blue Diamond Energy Solutions
  • Kayt  Watts,  Chief Executive Officer,  Australian Forestry Standard Limited
  • Stella Whittaker – Senior Executive, Sustainability and Climate Change – Manidis Roberts

The full conference website is available here

The Delbessie Agreement – A Framework For Sustainable Land Management

The Delbessie Agreement – a framework for sustainable land management Robert Hassett*, Prue Peart*, Greg Coonan* *Department of Environment and Resource Management, Brisbane, Qld 4001.

 The Delbessie Agreement (or State Rural Leasehold Land Strategy) is a framework for the sustainable management of state rural leasehold land. Developed and implemented by Queensland’s Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM), the Agreement represents a groundbreaking partnership between the Queensland Government, AgForce, and the Australian Rainforest Conservation Society.

It is a contemporary plan for sustainable use, protection and rehabilitation of rural leasehold land that takes aspirations of leaseholders, conservation and Indigenous groups, government agencies and rural industry into account. The Agreement uses a mix of incentives and regulatory approaches to support profitable and productive primary industry, while meeting natural resource management challenges. It applies to approximately 1800 rural leasehold land leases issued for grazing and agricultural purposes covering about 86.6M ha (or about 50% of Queensland’s land area). The Agreement links the maintenance of land condition; the protection of conservation values (such as through the establishment of nature refuges) and Indigenous access; to extended lease terms.

A suite of practical measures and guidelines have been developed to support the implementation of the Delbessie Agreement. These include the Guidelines for determining lease land condition – designed around the eight elements of the Land Act 1994 ‘duty of care’ and defined elements of land degradation; and a Land Management Agreement – negotiated between the leaseholder and DERM that clearly outlines leaseholders’ natural resource management obligations for the ongoing sustainable management of lease land. The framework is further supported by practical policies, leading remote sensing and modelling tools, and purpose-built IT applications. Developing partnerships, capacity building and enhancing the knowledge of the stewards of rural leasehold land condition is critical to meeting the Agreements’ social, environmental and economic objectives – improving the profitability, productivity and sustainability of rural leasehold land to assure the ongoing economic viability of rural communities.

Mr Robert Hassett – Department of Environment and Resource Management

Mr Prue Peart Principal Advisor (Resource Condition) Department of Environment and Resource Management

Mr Greg Coonan Director, State Land Asset Management Department of Environment and Resource Management

“Taking Care of Business: Sustainable Transformation” The Conference  15th & 16th September  – Radisson Resort, Gold Coast, Australia