For those who like to read, and for those who like to listen, this post has both. 

First, Valuing country: Let me count three ways. by Jane Gleeson-White, is an essay presented by the Griffith Review.  We find out that …

It was reading Alexis Wright’s novel Carpentaria (Giramondo, 2006) in 2007 that introduced me to the idea of ‘country’: land as a living being with meaning, personality, will, a temper and ancient reciprocal relationships with its people governed by law. This made sense to me. I’ve felt the living presence of this land and I care deeply about how we treat it. I’m especially interested in how our thinking about land shapes our behaviour towards it. And I’ve been preoccupied by ideas of country and two new ways of conceiving it – ‘natural capital’ and ‘rights of nature’ – that seek to address the many ecological crises currently afflicting our planet.

To read the essay click on the link: Valuing Country: Let me count three ways

Second, What price nature? A radio podcast with Paul Barclay (Big Ideas, ABC RN recorded 21 March, 2019)

Can we better conserve our ecosystems and biodiversity by placing an economic value on them? Some scientists, environmentalists and economists believe we need to view the natural environment as ‘natural capital’. Paul Barclay speaks to a panel of authors who are practitioners in their fields.

Speakers: Charles Massy – farmer and author of The Call of the Reed Warbler; Jane Gleeson-White – author of Six Capitals and Double Entry: How the Merchants of Venice Created Modern Finance; and Hugh Possingham – Chief Scientist, The Nature Conservancy and Professor, University of Queensland.

To listen click on the link: Big Ideas, Audio podcast