Keeping Democracy Alive with Burt Cohen

Keeping Democracy Alive with Burt Cohen


Australia’s Fires: Both Victim and Perpetrator

February 06, 2020

Putting out wildfires is one thing but how about paying attention to the causes? Our guest today is Daniel Judt who wrote a cover story for The Nation: “Australia’s Devastating Wildfires Were Not Inevitable.” Australia is among the highest emitters of greenhouse gases. Yet Prime Minister Scott Morrison insists Australia has already taken robust climate action and that “the business-as-usual model gets us there” quickly. But Judt says they are actually hiding emissions growth and that the coal lobby is the most powerful of all. Many Aussies fear this could be the new normal. Meanwhile Australia’s indigenous people have done “cultural burning” for thousands of years, controlling and effectively benefiting the ecosystem. There is wisdom the white government has yet to tap. And what a price they pay.