Glen Klatovsky Sydney Campaign Manager The Wilderness Society

We have a problem For decades now we have been campaigning to protect Australia. However, as we know from the State of Environment reports, Australia’s environment is in decline. We have been searching for a new way of doing things based on two fundamental insights: We no longer have an effective constituency for nature We need to look beyond a place-by-place, development-by-development approach

The Campaign So, to address the first of these issues we have started the Movement for Life community organising program. For the second issue we have developed the “new laws, new institutions” campaign. We all agree on the first approach, but why have we come to the second?

Why new laws? Koalas: who is responsible?

Why new laws? Example 2: Port Melville A gorgeous spot on the Tiwi Islands with a small port and lots of environmental values – species, pristine ocean, etc Proposal to rebuild port, $130m – NT Government decided no need for environmental assessment as there was no NT Minister responsible for ports. 30ML diesel storage in cyclone zone with no assessment, no risk plan, no federal assessment.

Why new laws? Example 3: marine debris Under the State of Environment report 2016 stated: “Impacts on the marine environment associated with marine debris are high, with a deteriorating trend.” Do we have enough information? What is the simplest way Australia could deal with this problem?

New Laws & New Institutions There are 4 elements of the new laws: Federal Government takes control of major environmental issues through a new federal Environment Act A new federal Environment Commission works with states and local government to plan to ensure environmental indicators improve transparency and public involvement are central elements With new national plan and bioregional plans every development is assessed as part of a whole A new National EPA is the independent policing agency

Does this solve the problems? With koalas: The federal Environment Minister is solely responsible and accountable The Commission establishes bioregional plans to ensure all development and activities lead to improvement in koala numbers Transparency – any Australian is able to be involved in the planning, in decisions which affect koalas and can hold the government to account Policing – independent auditing, strong prosecuting powers of the EPA

Does this solve the problems? With Port Melville: The developer must go through the federal government to gain approval for the development The development must fit within the bioregional and national plans which are designed to improve environmental indicators The public is able to be involved in the planning, can keep an eye on the development and will have stronger legal rights The EPA can ensure the development meets all conditions.

Does this solve the problems? With marine debris the federal Minister will be responsible for the major environmental issues in Australia. With marine debris, if this is an environmental indicator under federal control, this would mean the federal Minister would have to take action to fix the problem – from waste prevention (eg plastic bags) to waste control to stormwater management to clean up work. We need a single government responsible, enough data to make decisions and a mandate to fix the problem.

Where is the campaign at? We are well progressed in planning – please note the summaries of the “what it looks like” and the “strategy” you all have. Also note the role you play – from the February meeting, tonight and ongoing. Organising is central to the success of this campaign. Inside TWS the process is that we will finalise our campaign and organising plan and decisions will be made regarding organisational commitment (before end of FY). Externally, we have expert analysis (apeel.org.au), we have made real progress politically and there is a mood for change at many levels of government.

Strategy Summary This is a huge campaign which will run over 2-5 years. It requires coordinated community organising, communications and advocacy work. The next federal election is the key focus of the strategy. But we also ensure the strategy extends beyond the election to ensure the new laws deliver the environmental outcomes we need. And this is a community campaign – we need thousands of nature- loving Australians to become active and to remain active.

Strategy Create pressure around problem and solution (May 2017 - end 2019) Develop credible solution, and prepare simple, compelling materials explaining it. Build community power through community organising to build a constituency of people who can demand our solution; and pressure Federal Labor, LNP and cross benchers to implement simple ask. Create narrative around need for reform via regular media and comms pieces targeted at broad public awareness of the problem/solution. Lobby political parties and key stakeholders to support reform of system.

Strategy Secure political impetus for reform (Jan - Dec 2018) Through lobbying and developing a credible solution, engage with political leaders and key stakeholders on the need for national law reform. Using community organising, secure political commitments to our ask via community advocacy. Via media, community organising in key seats and key stakeholder advocacy, make opposing the reforms more difficult.

Strategy Implement solution (end 2019 - end 2020) Via community organising and lobbying pre election and public accountability meetings post election, secure implementation of reform in first 12 months. Via proposal of credible solution and visible leadership of eNGO campaign, secure seat at the table in policy development process. Back in reforms (2020-2022) Engage deeply with business sector and unions around implementation of new structure. Engage and inform our supporters around reforms, and support community members in continued relationship with MPs backing in reforms.

Central role of community organising As you can see from the strategy, community organising is an essential component of the campaign plan. We have a lot of the technical elements, we have significant political impetus, and there is a growing agreement of the urgent need for reform. We are looking for target electorates, identifying key stakeholders. We now need kick-arse community organising – we need a powerful and enduring constituency for nature. And we need your input.

What does a win look like? All major political parties and key cross-benchers make strong policy commitments for the type of reform we advocate. We have a huge community push for reform with many key stakeholders also advocating for us. In 2019 the victorious federal government commits to implement the extraordinary reforms they promised during the election. The community, now central to environmental decision making, holds the government to account and our environment improves year-on-year.

What we need from you Firstly, we need this campaign concept thoroughly tested – we started with this team in February, but it needs to be put through the mill. Second, how do we implement this? How do you see your team delivering on this campaign? Third, what does it look like in the context of your existing campaigns? Finally, what do we call it?

OurEnvironment.gov.au