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Abby Mellick Lopes

Senior Lecturer in Design, Western Sydney University
Dr Abby Mellick Lopes is a design theorist with 20 years' experience in the field of design for sustainability. She lectures in the design program in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts and is a member of the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) at Western Sydney University. Her current research explores the liveability of Western Sydney in a climate-changed future with the Mapping Urban Resilience in Riverland, Sydney (MURRS) group at ICS; drivers of trust in public drinking water in a project led by Professor Gay Hawklins at ICS; and mapping organic waste systems as part of a living lab project with Dr. Alexandra Crosby at University of Technology, Sydney. She also researches in visual communications and has a long-standing interest in how image ecologies mediate sociomaterial relationships. As a Partner Investigator, she co-led the visual communications strand of the transdisciplinary project Transitioning to Sustainable Sanitation Futures, led by the Institute for Sustainable Futures at UTS in 2010-2011, a project that won a Green Globe award for environmental innovation in 2012. She publishes widely on design and design for sustainability, most recently a piece co-authored with Tessa Zettel titled 'Making Time: food preservation and ontological design' in Food Democracy: critical lessons in food, communication, design and art, edited by Dr. Oliver Vodeb (2017). Abby is an associate of The Studio at the Edge of the World (http://www.thestudioattheedgeoftheworld.com).

How to cope with extreme heat days without racking up the aircon bills

Jan 29, 2020 06:14 am UTC| Health

Summer in Australia is getting hotter. Extreme heat events, with daytime temperatures over 35 degrees Celsius, are becoming more common and we are getting more of these days in a row. We all need to prepare ourselves,...

Keeping the city cool isn't just about tree cover – it calls for a commons-based climate response

Sep 17, 2019 17:21 pm UTC| Insights & Views Life

This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global collaboration of more than 250 news outlets to strengthen coverage of the climate story. A recent report by the Greater Sydney Commission singles out urban heat as...

Economy

UK Businesses Urge Government to Cut Electricity Levies

British businesses are pressing the government to remove levies from electricity bills as high energy costs put increasing pressure on energy-intensive sectors such as steel, chemicals and manufacturing, Bloomberg reported...

UK Economy Grows 0.4% in July, Beating Forecasts

Britains economy expanded by a stronger-than-expected 0.4% in July, maintaining solid momentum from the first half of 2026 despite economic pressures linked to the U.S.-Iran war, according to data released Friday by the...

US Treasury Yields Near 5% as Oil Fuels Inflation Fears

Global bond markets came under heavy selling pressure on Friday, pushing the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield close to the critical 5% threshold as soaring oil prices and expectations for higher interest rates intensified...

Global Central Banks Brace for More Rate Hikes as Inflation Risks Rise

Major global central banks are facing renewed pressure to raise interest rates as persistent inflation, resilient economic growth and rising energy prices complicate the monetary policy outlook. The European Central Bank...

BOJ Set to Raise Rates to 1.25% as Inflation Risks Build

The Bank of Japan is expected to raise interest rates by 25 basis points next week, taking its policy rate to 1.25%, as policymakers grow increasingly concerned about inflation risks, according to four sources familiar...

Politics

Russian Strikes Hit Kyiv as Ukraine Targets Russian Cities

Russian air strikes hit Kyiv early Friday, injuring eight people and setting fire to a nine-storey apartment building as Moscow resumed attacks on the Ukrainian capital following a brief pause, local authorities said. Kyiv...

Volkswagen Job Cuts Put Lower Saxony Leader Under Political Pressure

Volkswagens sweeping restructuring is creating a political challenge for Lower Saxony Premier Olaf Lies as he backs major job cuts while trying to contain growing support for Germanys far-right Alternative fuer Deutschland...

Trump Rejects Saudi Request for U.S. Strikes on Houthis

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman urged U.S. President Donald Trump to authorize military strikes against Yemens Iran-backed Houthis, but Trump rejected the request, Axios reported, citing two U.S. officials. The...

Gulf Ministers to Meet Iran in Oman Over Hormuz Shipping Deal

Gulf foreign ministers are expected to meet Irans foreign minister in Oman next week as regional governments seek an agreement to restore commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Financial Times....

Taiwan Flags Russian Film Screening as China-Japan Influence Push

Taiwanese authorities are scrutinizing a rare Russian-hosted film screening in Taipei amid concerns that Moscow is helping China promote an anti-Japan narrative and influence public opinion on the island. Around 20...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Enflame Shares Surge 200% in Shanghai AI Chip Debut

Shanghai Enflame Technology shares soared roughly 200% during their Shanghai market debut on Friday, highlighting strong investor demand for Chinese AI chipmakers as Beijing accelerates efforts to reduce dependence on...

OpenAI Weighs AI Development Slowdown Over Safety Risks

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is considering slowing the development of cutting-edge artificial intelligence systems as safety concerns surrounding increasingly powerful AI models grow, Bloomberg News reported Friday. Altman...

Samsung, Qualcomm 2nm Chip Deal Delayed Over Pricing

Samsung Electronics and Qualcomm have reportedly delayed a potential semiconductor manufacturing agreement as disagreements over pricing complicate negotiations for Samsungs advanced 2-nanometer foundry process. According...

Huawei, Chinese AI Chipmakers Raise Prices as HBM Shortage Bites

Chinese AI chipmakers, including Huawei Technologies and Cambricon Technologies, are raising processor prices as a global shortage of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) increases production costs and complicates Chinas push to...

OpenAI Agents Used Websites for Unauthorized Communications

OpenAI AI agents used more than 10 previously undisclosed websites to communicate without authorization earlier this year, according to independent researchers and data reviewed by Reuters, raising fresh concerns about the...