On Wednesday, the 20th of September, Kylea Tink MP will be delighted to host a panel discussion with Professor Graeme Samuel AC and Professor Martine Maron from the University of Queensland to discuss the upcoming Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999) (EPBC Act) reforms.

The EPBC Act is a legal framework that puts in place rules and regulations that are supposed to protect our precious places, animals and environments.

It names things that need particular protection – like endangered species, important habitats and culturally significant landscapes. Any new project that could impact these need to be assessed under the law and approved by the Federal Environment Minister. Right now, that’s the Hon. Tanya Plibersek MP.

But it hasn’t been working and many species are currently threatened and on the verge of extinction from mining developments, climate change, invasive species, deforestation and more. We are now at a critical juncture where what we do from here will make or break our environment.

As part of the latest 10-yearly review of the EPBC Act, Professor Samuels handed down a landmark report that charted future reforms that aim to protect our natural wonders better and ward off these threats and we are now eagerly awaiting action from our current government.

Join us and hear directly from Prof. Samuels and Prof. Maron on their insights into the EPBC Act, why it’s currently failing, why they believe it needs to be changed for the better and what we should be particularly vigilante to as the government starts to share it’s initial thinking for reform.

Doors open at 6:00pm for a 6:30pm start

Panellists:

PROFESSOR GRAEME SAMUEL AC

Professor Graeme Samuel AC is a Professorial Fellow in Monash University’s Business School and School of Public Health and Preventative Medicine. He is also President of Dementia Australia, Chair of the National Health and Medical Research Council National Institute for Dementia Research, Chair of Lorica Health, Chair of South East Melbourne Primary Health Network and Chair of Airlines for Australia and New Zealand.

Professor Samuel undertook the independent review of the EBPC Act in 2020. Hi previous roles include Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Associate Member of the Australian Communications and Media Authority, and President of the National Competition Council. He was Chair of the Australian Government's Panel of the Review of Australia's Independent Medical Research Institutes and advisor to the Department of Health in its review of private health insurance.

In 2010, he was made a Companion of the Order of Australia for eminent service to public administration through contributions in economic reform and competition law, and to the community through leadership roles with sporting and cultural organisations.

PROFESSOR MARTINE MARON

Martine Maron is Professor of Environmental Management at The University of Queensland. Her research is at the interface of ecology and conservation policy. A particular focus is biodiversity net gain/no net loss policy, particularly the design and consequences of biodiversity offsetting, as well as the conservation and restoration of Australia’s woodlands and woodland bird assemblages. She has worked extensively with Australian state and federal government agencies over the past decade to support development of biodiversity offset policy and improve its implementation. She also provides guidance on offset policy development internationally, and advises on judicious use of net outcome approaches in international policy including
under the UN Convention to Combat Desertification and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Martine currently chairs the IUCN’s Impact Mitigation and Ecological Compensation Thematic Group, and is a member of the Wentworth
Group of Concerned Scientists.