Conferences and Forums

The PIA Social Planning Chapter Forum on the 23rd July was very sucessful, and we are now planning follow-up activities. It is a credit to the speakers, who shared their stories about undertaking social planning in disastery recovery contexts.

I also recently attended the IAP2 "Changing Climate, Changing Communities" Conference. This was another successful event, where a wide range of speakers talked about the issues around engaging with communities about climate change. One key thing I took away from the Conference was the need to make it real and personal. It's no good talking about scientific concepts which most people find quite abstract , like atmospheric carbon dioxide. Even talking about things like coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef doesn't necessarily bring it home. People need to hear the story about how climate change may affect them individually before they will really engage on the issue.