Running from the Storm: The Development of Climate Change Policy in Australia

by Clive Hamilton

Climate change on a global scale has been described as 'the mother of all environmental issues', with many scientists warning of the dire consequences already facing us, even if remedial action is undertaken immediately. It is almost certainly the largest, most difficult environmental challenge the world now faces. And it has also provided the Australian federal government with one of its most awkward political issues - with the nation being transformed in the eyes of many from a world environmental leader into an international pariah. Running from the Storm is a timely book from one of Australia's most prominent commentator on the issue. It provides a lively, comprehensive and provocative account of the key issues that affect climate change policy in Australia. It details the many policy failures, the murky politics of climate change, the corruption of the policy process, the influence of the fossil-fuel industries on our politicians and policy makers, and the ethical issues that underpin the public debate. All of these are discussed in the context of the momentous international developments before and after the landmark Kyoto Protocol in December 1997.

192 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2001

About the author

Clive Hamilton AM FRSA is an Australian public intellectual and Professor of Public Ethics at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics and the Vice-Chancellor's Chair in Public Ethics at Charles Sturt University. He is a member of the Board of the Climate Change Authority of the Australian Government, and is the Founder and former Executive Director of The Australia Institute. He regularly appears in the Australian media and contributes to public policy debates. Hamilton was granted the award of Member of the Order of Australia on 8 June 2009 for "service to public debate and policy development, particularly in the fields of climate change, sustainability and societal trends".


(From Wikipedia.)