Jennifer Marohasy

a forum for the discussion of issues concerning the natural environment

Archives for May 4, 2005

John Quiggin’s Publications

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Following my blog post of 26th April (Australia’s Highest Paid Blogger) John Quiggin has written to me asking that the following information be provided by way of clarification with respect to the paragraph in that blog post starting “Quiggin’s University home page gives a list of his submissions, newspaper articles, conference and …”.

“The project will develop tools for the modelling of uncertainty in the absence of probabilities and with imperfect knowledge about possible events. It will also formalise and assess the precautionary principle for the sustainable management of complex systems. Finally, the project will apply these tools to analyse and improve policies for the reform of property rights, institutions and land and water management in the Murray-Darling system. The project will assist in the formulation of sustainable responses to problems of drought and irrigation-related salinity in the Murray-Darling system.

As reported on the RSMG website, http://www.uq.edu.au/economics/rsmg/index.htm,
the project has so far produced more than 50 publications, in the Murray-Darling Basin Program and the Risk and Uncertainty Program. (The Public Policy Program relates to a separate grant). Restricting attention to the Murray-Darling, and to papers written by me, I have published 2 journal articles, 4 conference papers and 7 working papers.”

Ends.

The Hunter’s Legacy

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Greenpeace co-founder and its first President Bob Hunter died yesterday aged 63 following a battle with prostate cancer.

Hunter was a journalist by training. He wanted to stop whaling and nuclear testing and in many ways succeeded with his brand new environment group Greenpeace where others had failed.

He wanted to “affect the attitude of millions”. He approached the issues from the perspective of a media war and unashamedly used propaganda.

In an insightful review of Greenpeace’s early years, Fred Pearce has written “Greenpeace was far from being the first green group to oppose whaling. But it was the first green group to ignore the scientific arguments about whale reproduction rates, population dynamics, and how large a sustainable cull might be, in favour of an undiluted ethical argument: save the whale.”

The media war was effectively reduced to the simple issue of whether or not “whales are good”.

On the issue of nuclear testing Hunter admitted “we painted a rather extravagant picture .. tidal waves, earthquakes, radioactive death clouds, decimated fisheries, deformed babies. We never said that’s what would happen, only that it could happen”.

I have previously written about attending People for Nuclear Disarmament rallies in the early 1980s. It is for relentlessly pursuing the French and their nuclear testing program in the Pacific that I would like to thank Bob Hunter.

Messages of condolence are being posted at an online BBC site.