Australia - a Great Example: Conservation Foundation

Australian Conservation Foundation:

        

        The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) is a non-profit, Australia-wide environmental organization supported by its members and volunteers. It is funded mainly from membership fees and donations. Its members contribute by writing to politicians and councils and donating their time and skills.

  

        The ACF promotes the need for a healthy environment for all Australians. It promotes the protection of all aspects of the environment, for fair treatment of indigenous people, and protection of endangered species.
  

        The ACF has influenced a number of laws and policies. In 1981, the Great Barrier Reef was declared a marine park and protected from oil exploration. In 2004, the Western Australian government passed laws against radioactive waste dumping. The ACF has acted against Uranium mining, radioactive waste dumps in South Australia, and tried to influence the government to save the environment.

  

        In 2000, the ACF launched “ACF’s Natural Advantage: A Blueprint for a Sustainable Australia” which was inspirational and contained many ideas to help save the environment. Conservation of water, reduction of greenhouse gas production, environmental tax reform, and reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians were amongst the many ideas.

  

        The Climate Project – Australia (TCP-Australia) is a program which began in 2006 and is supported by ACF.  This program and the United States’ counterpart, The Climate Project (TCP), are based on Al Gore’s presentation, “An Inconvenient Truth”.  TCP-Australia is aimed specifically at Australia’s Climate change issues and is involved with educating the public via presentations.

 

        The Australian Conservation Foundation is actively finding ways to protect endangered species and the natural environment. In the past, it has successfully influenced government decisions and now lobbies the government to consider environmental conservation and sustainability issues when doing urban planning.

 

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Sources:

 

AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATION FOUNDATION. Accessed 1 Mar 2008. <http://www.actonline.com.au/Default.asp?c=28394>.

 

"The Climate Project." Australian Conservation Foundation. Accessed 1 Mar 2008. <http://www.acfonline.org.au/default.asp?section_id=193>

 

Photograph: 

richard ling. “Blue Starfish”.Flickr.com. 28 March 2007. Accessed 1 March 2008. <http://flickr.com/photos/rling/438035923/>
Used under the Creative Commons License. <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en>