Why light pollution is bad for us and the night skies: Fred Watson (Rebroadcast)
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Fred Watson is a professor of astronomy, a popular author, musician, and beloved TV and radio personality and has an asteroid named after him (5691 Fredwatson). He is also Australia’s first Astronomer-at-large which is not only a pretty impressive work title but more so a testament to all of his accomplishments over the years in the field of astronomy. It also means Fred knows better than most of us what’s at stake when talking about the issue of light pollution. In some urban areas our night sky environment has shrunk to just a “hand full of stars” due to the amount of bad light that is radiating into the atmosphere. But light pollution also has negative effects on wild life and our own health.
On this episode Fred is talking about his involvement with dark sky tourism and the efforts for urban dark sky parks to show people the beauty of an untouched night sky environment. He also shares what can be done to stop light pollution.
Here you can find out more about Fred:
http://www.fredwatson.com.au
This is a link to the Australian Dark Sky Alliance:
https://www.australasiandarkskyalliance.org
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Angela Heathcote (Digital Producer at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
A deep diving legend: Ron Allum (Part 1) Rebroadcast
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Ron Allum is a pioneering cave diver and inventor who originally started out as a broadcasting technician for the ABC. Not only has he broken records as a cave diver but also discovered his talent for inventing state of the art underwater equipment used in film. His abilities brought him together with legendary film-maker and deep-sea enthusiast James Cameron. The mission was nothing less than to build a submarine that could take James to the deepest-known point in the Earth’s seabed – the Mariana Trench, with a depth of almost 11,000m.
Despite all of these accomplishments, Ron is as quiet and humble man who seems most happy enjoying his myriad achievements in relative silence.
This is the first part of the conversation with Ron in which he talks about his early life and how he discovered his passion for the dangerous sport of cave diving. He also shares how he led an expedition to Cocklebiddy Cave in the 1980s, pushing 6.24km into the cave system, which resulted in a world-record. He also talks about how his invention of a specialised communication system saved him and the rest of the team when they got trapped underground in the Pannikin Plains expedition in 1988.
This man is truly in a league of his own.
You can find out more about Ron here:
www.ronallum.com
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Chrissie Goldrick (Editor-in-chief at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
A deep diving legend: Ron Allum (Part 2) Rebroadcast
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Ron Allum is a pioneering cave diver and inventor who originally started out as a broadcasting technician for the ABC. Not only has he broken records as a cave diver but also discovered his talent for inventing state of the art underwater equipment used in film. His abilities brought him together with legendary film-maker and deep-sea enthusiast James Cameron. The mission was nothing less than to build a submarine that could take James to the deepest-known point in the Earth’s seabed – the Mariana Trench, with a depth of almost 11,000m.
Despite all of these accomplishments, Ron is as quiet and humble man who seems most happy enjoying his myriad achievements in relative silence.
In the second part of our conversation, Ron talks about how he became involved in the world of epic film-making and how he ended up meeting legendary director James Cameron and ultimately becoming the man that took James to the deepest-known point in the Earth’s seabed. He shares his path from technical trouble shooter to successful inventor for highly specialised underwater equipment, and starting his own company.
You can find out more about Ron here:
www.ronallum.com
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Chrissie Goldrick (Editor-in-chief at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
Conservation work starts in our own backyard: Andrew Gregory
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Andrew Gregory is well known to readers of Australian Geographic as a remote area photographer. He is also an awarded adventurer, but on this episode Andrew talks about powerful owls and especially the ones in his backyard on the northern beaches of Sydney. Over the past few years he has become a passionate conservationist and shares his love for the wildlife in our backyards and how we can protect it and help it thrive.
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Chrissie Goldrick (Editor-in-chief at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com)
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
Why museums are a keystone in fighting future pandemics: Kristofer Helgen
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The new Chief Scientist and Director of the Australian Museum Research Institute, Professor Kristofer Helgen talks about the future of the nation’s first museum. After a massive redevelopment the museum unlocked more than 3000sq.m of new public space and recently reopened its gates to the public. Helgen has an outstanding global research track-record and a deep understanding of museums after working for almost 10 years at the legendary Smithsonian´s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.
On this episode Kristofer talks about his new role and the future of the Australian Museum. He also explains his recent comments about the crucial role of museums in fighting future pandemics and draws hope for fighting climate change from prior global issues that we seem to have overcome.
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Angela Heathcote (Digital Producer at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
How a blind adventurer has seen more than most of us: Nick Gleeson (Rebroadcast)
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Nick Gleeson has achieved more in his life than most people could dream of. He climbed to the summit Mount Kilimanjaro, climbed beyond Mount Everest’s base camp, ran the New York marathon three times, made it onto the state cricket team of Victoria, carried the Olympic torch, and represented Australia in athletics. He also crossed the Simpson Desert and a part of Lake Eyre National Park – all while being blind since age 7.
On this episode Nick shares his amazing life story, and chats about how he managed to turn tragic events in his life into a positive attitude that has helped him fulfil dreams that most people with the gift of sight might never be able to cross off their bucket lists. The athlete and author is a truly remarkable soul and listening to him talk about his adventures and other passions, such as art, fills you with joy and happiness.
Here you can find out more about Nick´s adventures:
http://nicholasgleeson.com.au/
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Chrissie Goldrick (Editor-in-chief at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
A life dedicated to fighting climate change: Anna Rose
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Anna Rose became passionate about fighting climate change as a teenager. The author, public speaker, community organiser and campaigner truly knows what it means to try to be part of the solution. She’s dedicated to keep pushing and trying to raise awareness and come up with better ways for people to get involved. This led to her starting Australia’s first climate advocacy-focused giving circle, Groundswell, together with other dedicated friends.
On this episode Anna shares her journey to becoming one of Australia’s most respected voices on climate change action and what effect the current COVID-19 pandemic has had on climate advocates efforts. She also offers great ideas and advice on how to easily be part of the change.
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Angela Heathcote (Digital Producer at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
The plight of the wedge-tailed eagle: Simon Cherriman
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Simon Cherriman has a passion for the wedge-tailed eagle, which began after finding a nest when he was 15. To this day, he continues to find and map nests and study, photograph and film eagles in the wild. In this episode of Talking Australia, we chat to Simon about the ongoing conservation issues facing wedgies, what he’s learnt getting up close and personal with these enormous birds and what he hopes to find by tracking their long journeys around Australia.
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Angela Heathcote (Digital Producer at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
Michael Smith - Circling the earth in a flying “bathtub” Pt. 1 (Rebroadcast)
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Michael Smith is a passionate pilot and movie enthusiast who runs a number of cinemas and owns a tiny flying boat. Both helped him to fulfil his lifelong dream to fly the old Rose Bay to London route operated by Qantas in the 1930s and ’40s. He embarked on a several-month-long journey in his “flying bathtub” and extended his trip to eventually take him around the world. Michael did all this without any sponsors and out of pure passion for adventure, which ultimately won him the Australian Geographic 2016 “Adventurer of the Year” award for the first-ever solo circumnavigation in a plane. The trip almost took his life, and in this episode we share his harrowing story and travel into parts of the world that are well and truly off the grid.
Here you can find out more about Michael´s adventure & work:
http://www.southernsun.voyage/
https://www.screenswithoutborders.org/
This Episode of Talking Australia is hosted by Liz Ginis (Managing Editor Digital at Australian Geographic) and produced by Ben Kanthak (www.beachshackpodcasts.com).
You can also follow us on Instagram @australiangeographic
