Eric Rolls Memorial Lecture

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National Library Theatre, Canberra, Tuesday 17 July, 6pm
Presented by the Watermark Literary Society in association with the National Library of Australia

A Meander Down a River or Two – How Water Defines Our Continent and Its Future

Acclaimed environmental scientist, Professor Richard Kingsford, explores the challenges of managing our rivers in the second lecture in honour of author Eric Rolls.

Rivers convey water into some of the most spectacular places on earth or provide nutrients for estuarine and marine systems but we have destroyed much of this, particularly in the Murray-Darling Basin. The challenge is to learn from what we have done and not make the same mistakes but also rehabilitate our rivers. There is a headlong pursuit for increased populations in Australia and a drive to make the north “the food bowl of Asia”. The implications for rivers are considerable. This lecture will cover some of these challenges by meandering down some rivers in the Lake Eyre and Murray-Darling Basins.

Professor Richard Kingsford is Director of the Australian Wetlands and Rivers Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences of the University of NSW. For over 20 years, he has researched the waterbirds, wetlands and rivers of arid Australia, which cover about 70% of the continent. He has identified the significant impacts of water resource development on the rivers and wetlands of the Murray-Darling Basin and other parts of the world and he has contributed to policy development and environmental flow management. He is a member of the Australian Government’s Environmental Flows Scientific Committee. He received a Eureka Award in 2001 for his research demonstrating the ecological values of many rivers and impacts of water resource in arid Australia. In 2007, he received the Hoffman Medal for his contribution to global wetland science and the Eureka Award for Promoting Understanding of Science in 2008.

Tuesday 17 July, 6pm
National Library Theatre, free (includes refreshments)
Register with the National Library to attend or phone 02 6262 1271