Dr Brad Petitt - Sustainability expert
The quest for a sustainable society
Climate change, peak oil and rapid economic growth in China and India are putting enormous pressure on our world.
And according to Murdoch University’s Head of the School of Sustainability Dr Brad Pettitt, these pressures are fundamentally challenging how development is done in Australia and around the globe.
“The great challenge of the 21st century will be to discover ways to create economic growth that is not at the expense of the environment or social wellbeing,” Dr Pettitt said.
Sustainable development
Central to sustainable development is tackling climate change. Dr Pettitt is leading Murdoch University’s charge to become the national leader in the development of sustainable policies that address climate change – possibly the single biggest issue facing the world economically, socially and environmentally.
“We will need to discover new ways to develop and grow in a carbon constrained world,” Dr Pettitt said.
“There is a global consensus that we need to find ways within the developed world to reduce carbon emissions by at least 60 per cent by 2050.”
Under his leadership, the School of Sustainability will develop sophisticated policy responses that can achieve this goal in a realistic manner that is economically and socially beneficial.
A carbon neutral world
Dr Pettitt says sustainability needs to be tackled both globally and locally.
Globally, Dr Pettitt works with environment and development organisations in South Asia to help find ways to reduce poverty whilst still protecting their threatened forests and fisheries.
On a local level, in his role as a Fremantle City Councillor, Dr Pettitt is working towards the Port City becoming the first carbon neutral City in Australia. He believes Murdoch’s School of Sustainability can make a valuable contribution towards the development of better urban design – homes that are solar passive and create their own energy and connected to good public transport.
“We must rethink how we have been designing our suburbs for the last 50 years,” Dr Pettitt said.
“The stand-alone four bedroom, two bathroom homes on 400m2 blocks in a car-dependent suburb cannot sustainably survive in future with less oil and a changing climate, so we must provide more sustainable alternatives.
“Being more sustainable does not have to mean sacrifices, it simply means making changes that will result in a better future for us all.”
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