"Beautiful to see the brolgas, they are here to welcome us because they know that we're here to help them, cause they're our people. . ." Uncle Badger Bates The imperative to incorporate Aboriginal knowledge into Australian freshwater management has never been clearer. The 2024 Menindee fish kill highlight failures in current management and monitoring. Federal and select State Governments have recognised Aboriginal cultural water practices as a component of regional water sharing plans and as an ingredient in sustainable freshwater catchment management. Drawing on stories, experiences and conversations gathered during an 'on Country' knowledge-sharing day at Toorale Station near Bourke, New South Wales, this paper explores the interplay between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal scientist knowledge. Four major themes emerged from the day regarding the current state and future management of the Warriku (Warrego River) and Baaka (Darling River): 1) the experience of welcome and being on Country; 2) the holism associated with a Country perspective; 3) the threats posed to the Baaka and the Warriku and their peoples by settler-colonial land and water management policies and practices; and 4) future directions. This case study aims to help non-Aboriginal scientists bring Aboriginal peoples and their knowledge into environmental monitoring and management of Australian freshwater environments.

Agriculture is an essential human activity, but many agricultural practices can adversely affect people or the planet. While sustainable approaches to agriculture are a potential solution, there is currently no agreed definition of sustainable agriculture nor a universally accepted framework to evaluate it. The aim of this study was to design and test a streamlined and harmonised framework to characterise and evaluate sustainable agriculture, and from that, develop a definition of sustainable agriculture.

First, the framework was constructed by merging and rationalising nine leading global frameworks to create a harmonised agricultural sustainability assessment framework. The nine frameworks were deconstructed into their 514 component indicators and reassembled into the most frequently used indicator groupings using constant comparative analysis. This resulted in a comprehensive yet parsimonious framework of 26 indicators, which are broadly defined as objectives. Together, these indicators also generate a multi-attribute definition of sustainable agriculture.

Second, the framework was tested with 15 local farmers. The findings were reported in three separate Chapters: 3, 4 and 5. In Chapter 3, qualitative data collected through semistructured interviews increased understanding of farmers’ attitudes towards the indicators of agricultural sustainability. A thematic analysis of farmers’ responses showed remarkable agreement on some indicators, such as enjoying their work and a good quality of life. Some inherent assumptions of the framework were challenged, such as farmers’ roles as both producer and environmental steward. Farmers pointed out that mental health is an important issue, and assuming human health is adequately described by focusing on work health and safety issues is insufficient.

In Chapter 4, a mixed methods approach was used to increase understanding of soil as a key component of sustainable agriculture. The aim was to describe the findings, and their possible implications, for soil management and for refining the framework or interview questions. Farmers’ attitudes reflected a range of different aims, strategies, and areas of focus when managing and monitoring soils. The qualitative data collection could be streamlined and refined by asking two interrelated questions regarding soil quality—to encompass the various aspects (biophysical, chemical, and biological) of the soil, as well as accommodating different farmers’ aims. The data on farmers’ attitudes could help researchers and policymakers gain insight of context-specific challenges in managing soils sustainably—and what supports would benefit farmers the most.

In Chapter 5, the focus was on farms as social-ecological systems that are nested within, and influenced by, larger social-ecological systems. A thematic analysis revealed a range of external factors over which farmers have no control but that nevertheless affect them, their farms, and their farm businesses. These external factors arise from two systems—biophysical and social. Apart from one category (feral animals) in the biophysical system, farmers reported that all external factors impacted all dimensions—ecological, social, and economic—of farm sustainability. These findings support the view that sustainability assessment frameworks should be able to capture external factors that impact farms, especially if these factors impede sustainable agriculture. Including one open-ended question enabled the capture of this data, demonstrating that the framework can support data collection across various levels and scales, appropriate for the study of social-ecological systems. The findings also highlight that societal settings must be conducive to sustainable agriculture to support farmers to manage their farms as sustainably as possible.

The thesis findings demonstrate that assessments of sustainable agriculture need to be context-specific, as the results underscore that farmers decide and act within complex and changing social, environmental, and economic settings , while not losing sight of the overall goals of agricultural sustainability. This warrants further exploration in relation to how farmers require wider societal support to practise sustainable agriculture.

This thesis examines the link between poor state service delivery and violent extremism in Pakistan. Using a mixed-methods approach, it investigates how effective service provision relates to extremist ideology, within state fragility and instability, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. Countering military-centric views, this research argues that while Pakistan has a strong military, persistent state service delivery failures, alongside development issues and political instability, create vulnerabilities exploited by extremists. Using theoretical framework of social constructivism, social identity, development and securitization, coupled with primary data through survey and analysis, the thesis identifies socio-political factors, including poor service delivery in health, education, and security, fuelling extremism in these provinces. It also analyses Pakistan's policies, revealing security prioritization over state-building, which has hurt service provision. Finally, it draws lessons for service delivery- focused counter-extremism strategies.

The research shows Pakistan’s ‘heterogeneous fragility,’ seen in long-term state service delivery problems – especially health and education – worsened by instability and security prioritization, creates an environment for extremism. While political and economic issues increase vulnerabilities, the ongoing failure to deliver fair state services most critically weakens legitimacy, reduces trust, and fuels grievances exploited by extremists filling institutional gaps. State responses, security-focused and reactive, have been largely ineffective and counterproductive, failing to fix service delivery problems, slowing human development and undermining trust.

Based on these lessons, this thesis argues for a shift to a development-led approach, placing effective service delivery at its centre. This framework involves government and society working together, focusing on five areas, especially improving state service delivery by prioritizing human development: better education, healthcare, social welfare, and fair justice. Other areas: governance, communities, communication, and tackling root causes through development. The thesis concludes Pakistan needs a long-term commitment to radically improve state service delivery, alongside good governance, human rights, community empowerment, and human development, moving beyond military solutions. This research offers a framework for this shift, emphasizing that only a united, sustained, inclusive, and fair effort, prioritizing social justice, fair and effective service delivery, and human development, can defeat extremism and secure a more peaceful future for Pakistan.

The effects of climatic change on flora and fauna are gaining increased attention. Predictions on future outcomes using various statistical modelling methods provide useful insights, but modelling relies heavily upon basic species data on the species’ biology being available. The fact that many species have little to no available data in the literature is of concern because their reported level of vulnerability is often based on data from similar species. Although this can produce reliable outcomes in some instances, the differences in the responses at Class, Genus, and species levels warrant careful consideration.

The Southern Angle-headed Dragon, Lophosaurus spinipes, is an agamid endemic to disjunct patches of warm-temperate to sub-tropical rainforests along Australia’s east coast. The over-arching aim of this research was an attempt to determine what likely impact the increasing temperatures predicted under climatic change will have on L. spinipes.

This thesis comprises three main research components: a systematic review and two experimental studies. The systematic literature review was conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. In the first experimental study, short-term pulses of heat (35°C for two hours each day over two consecutive days) were applied to eggs at different developmental stages (day 25 and/or day 75); the control group remained at 22.5°C. The second experimental study used flow-through respiratory to measure resting metabolic rates and evaporative water loss over a range of ramping temperatures between 20°C and 40°C.

The systematic review highlighted there is a dearth of literature available on L. spinipes, and no population data over time exists to determine trends and effects. The first experimental study showed that although short duration heatwaves of 35°C decrease the overall duration of egg incubation, they have little impact upon the success of hatching, or upon hatchling’s health and survival for the first 30 days. The second experimental study showed there was a notable increase in metabolic rate and in the rate of evaporative water loss between 20°C and 38°C (4.5–fold and 6.5–fold respectively).

My results suggest that higher ambient temperatures due to climate change will increase the food and water requirements of L. spinipes. Whilst increased temperatures of up to 35°C may not directly impact L. spinipes egg incubation or hatchling success, it is likely that increased temperatures may require either a shift in suitable daily activity times, or a reduction of overall activity times to avoid detrimental temperatures during the day. Added to the altered rainfall (water availability), this may result in a mismatch between food and water needs and their acquisition. Due to the effect on the metabolism and evaporative water loss, chronic heat (constant overall rise) may negatively impact the species in the future. Climate change-linked increases in metabolic rate and evaporative water loss will likely result in lizards needing more resources, taking time and energy from the normal daily routines.