Steve Morton – författare

In Ten Commitments: Reshaping the Lucky Country’s Environment, leading environmental thinkers in Australia have written provocative chapters on environmental issues facing the nation. Each chapter includes 10 key issues that must be urgently addressed to improve Australia’s environment.

The book is organised by ecosystem, by sector and by cross-cutting themes. Topics include: deserts, rangelands, woodlands, tropical savannas, urban settlements, forestry, tropical and temperate marine ecosystems, tropical rainforest, alpine and aquatic ecosystems, coasts, fisheries, agriculture, mining, grazing, tourism, climate change, earth systems, water, biodiversity, policy and institutional reforms, the private sector, human population, health, fire, emergency management, Indigenous land management and energy.

With over 40 experts weighing in on Australia’s most pressing issues, this is a must-read for anyone interested in the environment.

Desert Lake is a book combining artistic, scientific and Indigenous views of a striking region of north-western Australia. Paruku is the place that white people call Lake Gregory. It is Walmajarri land, and its people live on their Country in the communities of Mulan and Billiluna.

This is a story of water. When Sturt Creek flows from the north, it creates a massive inland Lake among the sandy deserts. Not only is Paruku of national significance for waterbirds, but it has also helped uncover the past climatic and human history of Australia. Paruku''s cultural and environmental values inspire Indigenous and other artists, they define the place as an enduring home, and have led to its declaration as an Indigenous Protected Area.

The Walmajarri people of Paruku understand themselves in relation to Country, a coherent whole linking the environment, the people and the Law that governs their lives. These understandings are encompassed by the Waljirri or Dreaming and expressed through the songs, imagery and narratives of enduring traditions. Desert Lake is embedded in this broader vision of Country and provides a rich visual and cross-cultural portrait of an extraordinary part of Australia.

What are the 10 key issues that must be addressed urgently to improve Australia''s environment? In this follow up to the highly successful book Ten Commitments: Reshaping the Lucky Country''s Environment, Australia’s leading environmental thinkers have written provocative chapters on what must be done to tackle Australia''s environmental problems – in terms of policies, on-ground actions and research. Each chapter begins with a brief overview of the 10 key tasks that need to be addressed in a given field, and then each issue is discussed in more detail.

Chapters are grouped into ecosystems, sectors and cross-cutting themes. Topics include: deserts, rangelands, temperate eucalypt woodlands, tropical savanna landscapes, urban settlements, forestry management , tropical and temperate marine ecosystems, tropical rainforests, alpine ecosystems, freshwater ecosystems, coasts, islands, soils, fisheries, agriculture, mining, grazing, tourism, industry and manufacturing, protected areas, Indigenous land and sea management, climate change, water, biodiversity, population, human health, fire, energy and more.

Ten Commitments Revisited is a must read for politicians, policy makers, decision makers, practitioners and others with an interest in Australia’s environment.

Australian Deserts: Ecology and Landscapes is about the vast sweep of the Outback, a land of expanses making up three-quarters of the continent – the heart of Australia. Steve Morton brings his extensive first-hand knowledge and experience of arid Australia to this book, explaining how Australian deserts work ecologically.

This book outlines why unpredictable rainfall and paucity of soil nutrients underpin the nature of desert ecosystems, while also describing how plants and animals came to be desert dwellers through evolutionary time. It shows how plants use uncertain rainfall to provide for persistence of their populations, alongside outlines of the dominant animals of the deserts and explanations of the features that help them succeed in the face of aridity and uncertainty.

Richly illustrated with the photographs of Mike Gillam, this fascinating and accessible book will enhance your understanding of the nature of arid Australia.

Winner, The Royal Zoological Society of NSW 2022 Whitley Medal