On Thursday 17 November 2016 at 6:00–6:30pm, Communication Mixdown – a new show on 3CR Community Radio – went on air with half an hour about how climate change and climate science is being communicated. Press play to listen here:
The program featured interviews with:
• Simon Torok, science communicator, director of Scientell
• Mik Aidt, independent journalist and climate activist, director of Centre for Climate Safety
• Presenter: John Langer
Simon Torok has worked in communication for more than 20 years. This included almost 13 years as a CSIRO Communication Manager in Melbourne, where he developed strategies and formed teams to deliver communication campaigns that – using new, social and traditional media – raised awareness of the impact of CSIRO’s research into understanding our oceans, coasts, climate and atmosphere.
Scientell is a science communication and marketing business specialising in planning and implementing communication strategies for scientific, environmental and technical agencies
» www.scientell.com.au
Mik Aidt is a Danish journalist who moved to Australia in 2013, founder and co-host of The Sustainable Hour on 94.7 The Pulse which has been podcasting close to 150 hours of radio about energy, climate change and the environment, all available in iTunes and on www.climatesafety.info/thesustainablehour. Together with radio co-host Anthony Gleeson, he launched a petition calling on ABC and SBS to break the silence on the climate emergency.
Communication Mixdown is a new show on 3CR Community Radio which casts a critical eye on the myriad ways in which we communicate with each other in our increasingly interconnected, multi-media platform world. “Each week we mix down the who, the what, the where, and the how of particular communication events, messages, trends and technologies, and then consider: what impacts and what consequences?”
» www.3cr.org.au/communicationmixdown
3CR is “Melbourne’s voice of dissent”, broadcasting on 855AM, Digital Radio, On Demand, and Live Streaming
» www.3cr.org.au
#SpeakUpOnClimate #NoMoreBadInvestments #NoMoreExcuses #ClimateEmergency #ClimateEmergencyDeclaration #ClimateSolutions #PetitionToProtectEverything
In the city of Melbourne: It’s Divestment Day. Market Forces and 
In the sandbelt and Forest Hill: Environment Victoria and GetUp! are having a huge day of action with door-knocking, street stalls and bike billboards across the electorates of Frankston, Mordialloc and Carrum. They will be asking voters to sign pledge cards. 
In the ALP/Greens marginal seat of Northcote: join Darebin Climate Action Now at the Fairfield Farmers Market all morning, then come door-knocking to help with the 100 house signs challenge. DCAN are door-knocking priority areas for house signs, including main roads, and houses near schools, railway stations and polling booths. This is a very satisfying form of door-knocking with around one third of those who answer the door being willing to take a Vote Climate house sign. Then on Sunday, it’s house sign delivery day. And Monday will be data entry night! Altogether, grassroots groups aim to find fences for 300 Vote Climate signs. Inner city groups need help from climate groups in non-marginal seats.
In the Macedon Ranges: join the Ride for Renewables from Black Forest Timbers, 988 Black Forest Drive, Woodend. The ride offers options for the semi-serious mountain-biker as well as those that are interested in a leisurely 13km ride through the pine forest. Starting at 10.00am (staggered start), riding to the site of the proposed community owned wind turbine and through surrounding forest.
In Warnambool, on Global Frackdown day, 50 people and a life-like drill rig paraded though town and posted a message on Denis Napthine’s electorate office. Gas exploration is heating up as a hot topic in the Glenelg Shire communities, particularly in Portland and Casterton. Unfrackabool are putting pressure on Warrnambool City Council take a stance against fracking.
Geelong: Several Frack Free groups in the region have been campaigning hard with film evenings, information nights, photo shoots, social media and radio shows, letterboxing, a survey in four communities, a petition, and endless streams of letters, media releases and newsletters in about a year, culminating with a submission process in Council, which received 447 submissions against fracking and only one in defence of it. On 14 October 2014 the city council made a formal decision to reject fracking and call for a permanent ban on onshore gas extraction in the region. On 28 October the council is expected to launch its new Environment Management Strategy which is based on the One Planet Living principles, one of which is the Zero Carbon principle.
After months of preparation and planning, 30 Pacific Climate Warriors just launched their traditional canoes into the water in Newcastle. They are paddling into the oncoming path of coal ships in an attempt to shut down the world’s largest coal port for a day.
Yes 2 Renewables have been working with Macedon Ranges Sustainability Group to get renewables on the agenda in the state election. They asked local candidates, Jo Morabito (Independent), Donna Petrovich (Liberal), Mary Ann Thomas (ALP) and Neil Barker (Greens) their views on wind farm restrictions and a a Victorian Renewable Energy Target of at least 33% by 2020 and 
The Napthine Government has been trying to introduce legislation to scrap the Victorian Energy Efficiency Target (VEET), which is undermining the profits of big coal generators by reducing energy demand. Environment Victoria ran a short, sharp campaign including more than 3000 messages to Denis Napthine, Daniel Andrews and key Frankston Independent Geoff Shaw. Hundreds of Frankston locals called Mr Shaw’s office. They garnered media interest in the issue with stories in the Age, the Frankston Leader, on ABC radio and elsewhere. And they worked to get commitments from the ALP to move amendments to defeat the government’s legislation and retain the VEET target. Knowing that they didn’t have the numbers, the Napthine Government buckled and withdrew their legislation from Parliament. This means that the existing VEET target of 5.4 million tonnes of emissions reduction will stand for 2015.However if the Napthine government is re-elected it has said it will again attempt in the next Parliament to pass legislation to scrap the scheme.
At the Forest Hill candidates forum, run by Eastern Climate Action Melbourne and supported by Environment Victoria, about 140 people heard Liberal incumbent, Neil Angus, Labor’s Pauline Richards and Greens candidate Brewis Atkinson lay out their party’s environmental credentials and take questions on climate change, renewable energy and brown coal exports. Pauline Richards and Brewis Atkinson both unequivocally supported the scientific consensus on climate change, while Neil Angus avoided answering direct questions about his personal beliefs, instead referring to his government’s policies. On all climate change related questions, Neil Angus referred to the government’s 
Monday 20 October 2014 at 6:30pm. Breakthrough – the new era of climate activism. Already nearly 400 people have registered for this important rare opportunity to hear Paul Gilding, inspiring speaker and author of The Great Disruption, in Melbourne. Don’t miss out. Explore a new era of climate activism that is changing everything about the way we campaign on climate change. Hear from David Spratt on climate disruption and Mark Wakeham on ways for environmental NGOs to respond to the rapid economic transition required to restore a safe climate. Organised by Environment Victoria and the Sustainable Living Foundation. RMIT University Building 80, Level 1, 80/445 Swanston St, Melbourne. »Register at 
Wednesday 22 October from 6:30 PM. Pacific Warriors talk at RMIT Cinema (Level 1, Room 002, 445 Swanston St). The event will be part story-telling, part performance and a call to action.
Saturday 15 November Rally4PT. A large coalition of community groups are organising a joint rally and further public transport campaign moves for the state election. Stay tuned.
However, Tony Abbott failed to join over 120 world leaders this week at the UN Climate Summit – despite 350.org’s dare. Julie Bishop tried to put a positive spin on the Liberal’s Emissions Reduction Fund.
Explore a new era of climate activism that is changing everything about the way we campaign on climate change. Here’s your chance to hear David Spratt presenting his important paper, Dangerous climate change: Myths & reality, together with Paul Gilding talking about the role of the market, activism and policy in making an emergency speed transition away from fossil fuels. This event is presented by Environment Victoria and the Sustainable Living Festival and Mark Wakeham will be the third speaker, exploring ways for environmental NGOs to respond to the extent of the climate crisis and the rapid economic transition required to restore a safe climate.
There were Rally for Renewables protestsat the offices of several prominent federal politicians including around 200 people at the office of Andrew Robb. 
Billions of taxpayer dollars are being spent on fossil fuels. But exactly how much it all adds up to has been the subject of a heated public debate between The Australia Institute and the Minerals Council. In June 2014, The Australia Institute released 
Public Transport not Traffic have continued their powerful campaign against the East-West Link. For coming campaigning opportunities, check their 
The Vote Climate campaign in inner city marginal Labor/Greens seats is gathering momentum. Next step is the distribution of hundreds of Vote Climate house signs.
Already more than 1,300,000 people worldwide have signed up via Avaaz. » Watch the movie ‘Disruption’ to be inspired by the vast scale of the preparations in New York: 
Friends of the Earth are getting some traction around the need to re-write the anti wind laws (called VC82), with the state government recently agreeing to the first amendment of the current law. 
The Public Transport Not Traffic team have been busy out street stalling and door knocking across Melbourne, and particularly Frankston, where – with a little encourage from this campaign – the local member Geoff Shaw has come out opposed to the East West Link!
Darebin Climate Action Now, Climate Action Moreland, Yarra Climate Action Now, Lighter Footprints and a number of other climate groups have together distributed nearly all of an initial print run of 30,000 climate science postcards. Initial reaction has been very positive, with volunteers keen to use the cards for door-knocking and street stalls as well as letter-boxing nearly the whole of Northcote electorate. There are only 250 left.
GetUp’s four new organisers are working across three electorate clusters – Albert Park/Prahran, Sandbelt and Geelong – and they have a fourth organiser based in universities. EV and GetUp! are working closely together in the sandbelt, and more broadly collaborating across election campaign – they both chipped in for two billboards and some newspaper advertising around the ‘Four out of five Victorians’ theme and both are using similar pledge cards. Community contact is going well. EV are halfway to their community conversations goal in both Frankston and Carrum, a bit further behind in Forest Hill and Mordialloc. The process is going well, “a real mix between engaging brand new people who would never have cared about the environment before, and a few people who still don’t care!”.
The Enviro Hub in Frankston continues to be a hive of activity. 
Lots happening in and around Geelong with many groups cooperating and collaborating with each other – such as Sustainability Geelong, Frack Free Geelong, Gasfield Free Torquay, Transition East Geelong, Transition South Barwon, Surf Coast Energy Group, Surf Coast Air Action, Centre for Climate Safety, Yes2Renewables/Friends of the Earth, Lock the Gate and GetUp. Focus is on the marginal electorates of South Barwon (Coalition), Ballerine (Labor) and the not so marginal Geelong (Labor).
Sing for the Climate is a great song. It was sung in large crowds in Belgium. Very uplifting! 
On 14 September the communities of Moriac, Mount Moriac, Paraparap and Freshwater Creek – just to the west of Geelong – declared themselves gasfield free. The local community was joined by state and federal politicians from all the major parties for taking this important stand. Check out the intensive coverage on 
The ongoing enquiries into the Hazelwood fire continue to make this coal-fired dinosaur an election issue.
The future of the multi-billion dollar rooftop solar industry in Australia is looking more secure after Labor leader Bill Shorten pledged support for the small-scale component of the renewable energy target to stay as is. Shorten’s pledge on the rooftop solar scheme comes as he prepares to join the Save Solar campaign, which moves this week to the marginal Sydney seat of Barton this week, and reflects the growing traction that solar is having as an emerging political issue. The Australian Solar Council is to move its campaign to the Melbourne seat of Deakin in October and will also target the state elections in Victoria, Queensland, and NSW.
For the first time outside the USA, one of the world’s largest banks will be pressured to disclose the risks to its lending and investment portfolios from climate change. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has tabled a resolution at its forthcoming AGM filed by the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility and a group of CBA shareholders supported by the Asset Owners Disclosure Project (AODP) and 
Thursday 18 September, 7:00–9:00pm in Geelong. Gas rush information night – a public meeting about onshore gas extraction in City of Greater Geelong. Free admission. At Manifold Heights Baptist Church. Corner Shannon Ave and Volum St. Manifold Heights. Come and ask questions to a panel of independent authorities about onshore gas. Panel members are Dr Merryn Redenbach, Dr Rye Senjen and Ben Courtice. Includes a short film which focuses on why communities in Gippsland are opposing gas.
Sunday 21 September. People’s Climate March in Melbourne. And lots of other locations around Australia and around the world. These marches are in support the People’s Climate Mobilisation at the United Nations Global Climate Summit in New York. The aim is to be the world’s largest climate march.
Tuesday 23 September, 6.00pm to 7.30pm. Election environment forum – Labor.
Tuesday 30 September. Eastern Climate Action Melbourne State Election Environment Forum, Waratah Room, Whitehorse Centre, 397 Whitehorse Rd, Nunawading, 7:00–9:00pm. Moderator: Rob Gell. Candidates: Neil Angus MP, Liberal Party, Pauline Richards, Australian Labor Party, Brewis Atkinson, Australian Greens
Saturday 18 October. Divestment Day. Market Forces and 
Friday October 24 to Monday 27 October. BEYOND COAL & GAS: Protecting our Heritage, Embracing the Future at Ivory’s Rock, near Ipswich Queensland. It has been a huge year for the campaign to move Australia beyond coal and gas, with the movement growing from strength to strength across the country. The national gathering is a chance to bring people together from all over Australia, to reflect, to share stories and experiences, to learn from one another and to plan how to take the movement to the next level. Speakers include US based solar entrepreneur Danny Kennedy, the founder of Sungevity, and Dr Anne Poelina, a Nyikina Traditional Owner from the Mardoowarra, Lower Fitzroy River.The