A release from our archives from 2008, about the fight against logging in Tasmania.

Logging Tasmania -  HVEC - SWST - W Jordan - Poor Sound - 2008 BTL

A release from our archives from 2011, about the fight against logging in NSW. 
We went out to the site of recent logging in the Badja State Forest with a "green policing" crew from South East Forest Rescue, to see how well the department of logging and the loggers had followed the law.

Logging NSW - Green Policing Tour Of Comp. 2084 Badja State Forest With SEFR 2011 - 04 - 23 BTL

Cid Riley has been worm farming at a decent scale for many years. Brook Clinton is a microbiologist who has begun a community composting scheme - Capital Scraps.
Together, they unpack the world of urban and suburban food waste cycling.

Worm Farming And Community Composting - Cid Riley And Brook Clinton - 2020 - 06 - 26 BTL

A recording from our archives from 2006. Christine Jones is a renowned soil scientist, she is still focused today on the importance of soil carbon, which has so many benefits in so many ways.

Christine Jones - Carbon Coalition Conf 22 - 11 - 2006 BTL

We are privileged to have live in studio with us this morning, Federal GREENS candidates Tim Hollo and Dr. Tjanara Goreng Goreng. 
Tim is the executive director of the Green Institute and the founder of Greens Music Australia, who will once again run in the seat of Canberra, alongside Wakka Wakka woman Dr. Tjnara Goreng Goreng,
academic at ACU and secretary of the Australian Greens First Nations Network, who will seek to secure Canberra’s second Senate seat. 
Tim and Tjanara, who bring a wealth of experience from the NGO, university, public and community sectors, as well as a lifetime of community and environmental activism, will be introducing us to their platforms and vision of what two extra Greens seats in parliament could accomplish towards a sustainable Green recovery and brighter future.

Federal Elections - Canberra Greens Candidates Tim Hollo - Tjanara Goreng Goreng 2021 - 02 - 26 BTL

Please note this interview is from July 2020.

Young people have suffered the largest increases in unemployment, and the biggest falls in jobs, since the start of the pandemic. 
COVID has the potential to leave a whole generation of people behind, creating an entire generation who will be battling to rise above poverty.
Throughout this pandemic unions have been fighting to protect worker’s rights and safety at work. Worker solidarity is essential to sustainable post COVID economic recovery. Joining us in conversation this morning to discuss how the pandemic has severely impacted young workers and the importance of unions in their future, we would like to welcome to the show, Bella Himmelreich, and Rachel Burgess from the Young Workers Centre with Unions ACT

Bella Himmelreich is an organiser and Administration Officer at the Young Workers Centre in Canberra, and a student at the ANU. She is passionate about getting young people active in their local communities and fighting collectively for a better future.

Rachel Burgess is the Outreach Coordinator and organiser at the Young Workers Centre in Canberra, and is also a student at the ANU. She is studying economics and policy studies and is interested in working alongside others to organise better outcomes for young people.

Unions And Young Workers - B Himmelreich - R Burgess - UACT Young Workers Cntr - 2020 - 07 - 31 BTL

we welcome playwright, producer and activist Michael Gray Griffith from Cafe Locked Out along with former veteran QUANTAS airline pilot and Captain, Graham Hood. 
Michael has to leave the interview early due to a police raid on the camp.`
Graham gives us some history and connects that to what's been happening with the Convoy to Canberra and the Freedom Protest currently taking place on Patrick White Terrace near the National Library in Canberra.

Convoy To Canberra - Michael Gray Griffith a bit and Graham Hood 2022 - 02 - 04 BTL

Bob Phelps has been working in the GMO watchdog scene for many years. He founded Gene Ethics in 1988 to work for a GM-free future. 

Bob is an educator and campaigner in peace and environment movements, with forty years experience. In 2003 he was awarded a Federation Medal for his services to the Australian community.

Gene Ethics is a non-profit educational network of citizens and kindred groups. We want the precautionary principle, scientific evidence and the law rigorously applied to all proposed uses of genetic manipulation (GM) technologies and their products.

Gene Ethics generates and distributes accurate information and analysis on the ethical, environmental, social and economic impacts of GM. Our education programs critically assess GM for the public, policy-makers and interest groups.

Mitochondrial DNA Transfer Laws - GMOs In Humans - Bob Phelps Genethics 2022 - 02 - 04 BTL

This week, we are excited to welcome back Mycologist, Natural Historian and Photographer, Alison Pouliot, to chat about her new book Underground Lovers, a gorgeous journey that reaches down to earth, and deeper, to dwell with fungal allies and aliens, discover how fungi hold forests together, and why humans are deeply entwined with these unruly renegades of the subterrain. Told through first-hand stories from the Australian desert to Iceland’s glaciers to America’s Cascade Mountains Alison shares encounters with glowing ghost fungi and unearths the enigma of the lobster mushroom. Melding science and personal reflection, she explores the fungi that appear after fire, how fungi and climate change interact, the role of fungi in our ecosystems. 
Joining Alison via phone, we also welcome back Peter Wenzel, Mushroom Designer and Grower, and co-Founder of Fungi Co, who has been fascinated by the form and function of funky fungi since the last millennium, exploring science, art, food, myco-design, education and novel growing techniques.

Fungi - The Mycelial Dimension - Alison Pouliot And Peter Wenzel FungiCo 28 - 04 - 23 BTL

School Without Walls (SWOW) was a fully democratic school that ran from 1974 to 1997, when it was forced to shut down by Kate Carnell’s Liberal Party local government.
Many of those (including myself) who had the opportunity to learn at SWOW remain embittered that something quite that good - many would say life-changing – no longer exists.
There are scant records available from SWOW, and this series of oral histories aims to fill that gap as fully as possible. 

In the first interview, we talk with Lizanne Emery, a founder and early student at the school.

SWOW Oral History - 1 - Lizanne Emery - Student Founder 1973 - 74 - 2023 - 01 - 06

At the August 2022 CoCanberra / NENA Canberra Regional Hub meetup we welcomed our very own Scotty Foster and Keith Colls, to explain our project the Soil City Co-operative Farms.

CoCanberra is building the new economy on the ground, using the concept of “[Climate Co-operatives]” to provide for our needs in ways which are compatible with a thriving community and natural world. As a key part of the design, communities obtain ownership and control of the organisations which meet their needs.

This Co-operative is CoCanberra's project to set up a regenerative food system for Canberra and its surrounding area.

Soil City Co - Operative Farms  - An Introduction - Scotty Foster - CoCanberra 2022 - 08 - 01 CoCan

School Without Walls (SWOW) was a fully democratic school that ran from 1974 to 1997, when it was forced to shut down by Kate Carnell’s Liberal Party local government.
Many of those (including myself) who had the opportunity to learn at SWOW remain embittered that something quite that good - many would say life-changing – no longer exists.
There are scant records available from SWOW, and this series of oral histories aims to fill that gap as fully as possible.

In this interview, we talk with Clive Mackillop, long time teacher from the latter half of SWOW.

SWOW oral history 5 - Clive Mackillop - teacher - 2024-11-01 final edit

In late march 2025 the Co-operatives Federation of Australia held their assembly, or conference.
Align in the Sound was there to have a short yarn with many of the very diverse Co-ops who were present.
Here is one now!


8 Housing Co-ops - Jannen Klaus CF25

4 Candelo Bulk Wholefoods Co-op - Dan and Caitlin CF25

3 This Co-operative Life - Rafaelle CF25

2 Hopsters Co-operative Brewery - Mitch Hobbs CF25

1 Co-operatives Federation - Molly Kendall CF25

An interview with Steve Phillips from the first Newcastle Rising Tide crew way back in 2010
Rising Tide is commited to ending coal exports from Newcastle, the worlds biggest coal port.

Rising tide newcastle - Steve Phillips - 2010-05-07 BTL

An interview with John Wurcker from the current Newcastle Rising Tide crew in 2023
Rising Tide is commited to ending coal exports from Newcastle, the worlds biggest coal port.
They are holding "protestivals" to shut down the shipping lane into the port every year which are growing in size and effect, in 2024 turning around a massive coal ship with their kayaks.

Rising Tide Newcastle - John Wurcker - 2023-09-01 BTL

An interview with Jess Fordyce and John Wurcker from the current Newcastle Rising Tide crew in 2024
Rising Tide is comitted to ending coal exports from Newcastle, the worlds biggest coal port.
They are holding "protestivals" to shut down the shipping lane into the port every year which are growing in size and effect, in 2024 turning around a massive coal ship with their kayaks.
https://www.risingtide.org.au/pb2025

Rising tide - John Wurcker n Jess Fordyce 2024-04-05 BTL

An interview with John Wurcker and Paul Magarey from the current Newcastle Rising Tide crew in 2024
Rising Tide is comitted to ending coal exports from Newcastle, the worlds biggest coal port.
They are holding "protestivals" to shut down the shipping lane into the port every year which are growing in size and effect, in 2024 turning around a massive coal ship with their kayaks.
www.risingtide.org.au/pb2025

Rising Tide - John Wurcker - Paul Magarey 2024-06-14 BTL

An interview with Paul Magarey and Richard Webb from the Newcastle Rising Tide crew in 2024
Rising Tide is comitted to ending coal exports from Newcastle, the worlds biggest coal port.
They are holding "protestivals" to shut down the shipping lane into the port every year which are growing in size and effect, in 2024 turning around a massive coal ship with their kayaks.
www.risingtide.org.au/pb2025

Rising tide - Paul Magarey n Richard Webb 2024-10-25 BTL

An interview with John Wurcker from the Newcastle Rising Tide crew in 2025, a week before the blockade.
Rising Tide is committed to ending coal exports from Newcastle, the worlds biggest coal port.
They are holding "protestivals" to shut down the shipping lane into the port every year which are growing in size and effect, in 2024 turning around a massive coal ship with their kayaks.
www.risingtide.org.au/pb2025

Rising Tide Protestival 2025 - John Wurcker - 2025-11-21 BTL

Recorded by Jeff Nugent in Stanley, Tasmania in 1983, these recordings caught Bill Mollison in full flight. 
Sadly now feeding the trees, Bill left a legacy which will linger long.
The audio on this site concentrates only on the lesser known  organisational thoughts within permaculture. 
To experience the full 47 hours of the original recording, go to http://www.permacultureplants.net/ and purchase the set. Other Bill Mollison recordings are available too.
Many thanks to Jeff for letting Behind the Lines broadcast these parts of the recordings.
Also check out Formidable Vegetable Sound Systems tribute to Bill at 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MN_Texj9CD4 - its great.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Bill Mollison 1983 Commonwork 1 - Jeff Nugent

The arrival of the climate crisis, sharply deepening inequality, the rise of the extreme right, and massively accelerating technological development make the next 25 years among the most pivotal in human history to date.

If we don’t change direction dramatically, we face a future that is nasty, brutish and short.

We have a very brief window to turn this around and create a society that can not only survive but thrive.

Ecology teaches us that everything is connected, and that everything and everyone is better when we have connected diversity.

A truly ecological politics will connect us to each other, to and within nature, and to democracy – to our own agency.

It will see us all as the protagonists in our own lives, but within supportive, enabling, diverse and connected communities.

Find out more at www.greeninstitute.org.au/

Edited by Behind the Lines.
Some questions were not audible, and have been skipped. As a result the QnA sections may appear a bit disjointed.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License.
To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
To give attribution for this work, include this URL: www.greeninstitute.org.au/

Intro To Green Institutes Everything is Connected Conference 2017 - Tim Hollo GI17-1

Indigenous Conceptions Of Governance - Mary Graham - GI17-2

Getting good things done needs collaboration, collaboration needs communication and communication needs connectivity. 
That’s why connectivity is the theme of this year’s Australasian Permaculture Convergence. 
Between 15 – 19 April 2018 we met in southern NSW to improve our connectivity. 

Community Radio 2XX 98.3FM's Behind the Lines was there and recorded what it could of the talks and workshops for your listening pleasure!

These works are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
To give attribution for this work, include the URL of this page, and https://permacultureaustralia.org.au/

Charles Massey - Call Of The Reed Warbler -APC14-2018

Getting good things done needs collaboration, collaboration needs communication and communication needs connectivity.
That’s why connectivity is the theme of this year’s Australasian Permaculture Convergence.
Between 15 – 19 April 2018 we met in southern NSW to improve our connectivity.

Community Radio 2XX 98.3FM's Behind the Lines was there and recorded what it could of the talks and workshops for your listening pleasure!

These works are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
To give attribution for this work, include the URL of this page, and permacultureaustralia.org.au/

Mariam Issa - Resilient Aspiring Women - APC14-2018

The Builders Laborers Federation was a union in Australia, representing those workers without a trade who did all the hard yards on the building site.
Through their strong community links, they heard lots about the effects of inappropriate development on normal folks, and came up with the "Green Ban" as a response.
They simply refused to work on projects that were socially or environmentally damaging. The effects of the Green Bans are still around today - the historic district of the rocks in Sydney is only there due to BLF action.
The BLF was deregistered by the government of the day, and smashed.
One of the things to come out of the rubble was the Earthworker Co-operative, which is designed to transef the ownership and control of work itself into the hands of the workers.
We hope you enjoy this interview.

Field recording

Dave Kerin - from BLF to Earthworker - 2018-10-19 BTL

These recordings were made by Radio Behind the Lines, at the Green Institutes 2019 conference.

The Green Institute is an Australian non-profit organisation, their mission being to “support green politics through education, action, research and debate“.  Green politics means broad community-wide change grounded in the principles of ecology, social justice, democracy, non-violence, sustainability and respect for diversity.

With ecological breakdown underway, inequality spiralling, colonialism and patriarchy still not dismantled, and the hate-fuelled far right on the rise, we desperately need democracies which are able to both reverse these trends and create hope-filled resilience in the face of difficult times to come.

Meanwhile, around the world, people and communities are experimenting with exciting and innovative democratic practices, recasting the relationship between citizens and government, drawing on ancient wisdom, involving deep engagement and participation.

The Green Institute’s 2019 conference challenged us to think deeply about democracy, and inspires us to act fast, and with great determination, to cultivate democracy at every level.

Democracy And Ecology - N.Ison M.Blakers N.Osborne S.Hanon - Young GI19 BTL

Deepening Democracy - S.Niemeyer A.Cahill T.Dunlop N.Paris L.Waters - GI19 BTL

After the Arab Spring, Kurdish forces took control of North-East Syria, known as Rojava – or western Kurdistan in the Kurdish language.

They began implementing a radically democratic system of governance.
Each locality is independent, while under a regional constitution guaranteeing wide ranging freedoms.

Each sub community in a locality – women, ethnic groups, youth, etc – are asked to organise themselves, and are given an equal voice in the local organising meetings. If the decision is about a technical matter, experts are brought in for consultation by the community. These meetings are similar to the Peoples Assembly model used worldwide in many democratic movements.

Local meetings then federate to form municipal and regional bodies to do larger tasks. Power is maintained at the level of the locality.

The economy is being transformed into a Co-operative dominated system.
We are joined in this interview by Ismet Tastan, who tells us much about how the system works and how the various elements fit together.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (yes, the armed forces are democratically run) have been closely allied with the USA for years, and have been the only effective on the ground force opposing – and defeating – ISIS in the region.

Unfortunately in late 2019, USA president Donald Trump pulled out the last USA troops, knowingly allowing Turkish president Raccip Erdogan, who has been at war with the Kurdish people for many years, to invade northern Syria. Syrian dictator Bashar Al-Assad and aly Vladimir Putin have regained control of the rest of north-east Syria.

The fate of the people and the democratic system looks grim.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
To give attribution for this work, include the URL of this page. Any work based on this work must also be released under this license.

2019 - 11 - 08 Democratic Confederalism - N Syria - Ismet Tastan BTL

Welcome to our Science Week special on multifunctional fungi. Today we will be chatting with Alison Pouliot - Mycologist, natural historian, educator and photographer; Guy Webb - Agronomist, CoFounder & Managing Director of SoilCQuest; and Peter Wenzel from Fungico, about all things fungi, including revolutionary new uses as 'mushroom leather' for the fashion industry, and the essential role fungi plays in maintaining our earth's soil carbon sponge in 
both agriculture and ecological recovery after disasters.

https://www.soilcquest.org.au/
https://alisonpouliot.com/
https://www.fungico.com.au/

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
To give attribution for this work, include the URL of this page. Any work based on this work must also be released under this license.

Multifunctional Fungi - A Pouliot G Webb P Wenzel 2020 - 08 - 21 BTL

Since its formation at 2016's Building the New Economy conference, put on by AELA and the UNSW law school, the New Economy Network Australia (NENA) has been building itself.
The second NENA conference was held in 2018 in Melbourne.

Behind the Lines Radio, broadcasting through Community Radio 2XXFM in Canberra, frantically ran around for 3 days trying to capture as much of it as possible.
If you like hearing about the positive side of life, please support us at www.2xxfm.org.au/ - donate, subscribe, volunteer!

Find out more about NENA at neweconomy.org.au/

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
To give attribution for this work, include the URL of this page.

Implementing A New Human Settlement Theory - S Liaros N DeSilva M Foth NENA18 22.3.2 181021 - 112826

Mary Graham is Kombu-merri - Wakka Wakka person from South East Queensland. She is very well versed in both white and black law and culture. Mary has been addressing NENA conferences since 2017, and never fails to give an informative, thought provoking talk.

Aimee Meehan is gomerai - Irish, with a background in business innovation, governance and participation, among others.

The New Economy Network Australia (NENA) is a network of individuals and organisations working to transform Australia’s economic system so that achieving ecological health and social justice are the foundational principles and primary objectives of the economic system.

The theme of NENA’s 2020 Conference is “New Economy—Work in Progress” and the intention is to share the amazing work being done by individuals and organisations across Australia, to build a new economy, focused on ecological health & social and economic justice.

NENA’s Annual Conferences offer a space for NENA members and the wider community to meet up, share experiences, ideas, research and project updates, spark connections and collaborations and work together to progress our network and shared vision for a new economy.

Ancient Economic Foundations - Mary Graham Aimee Meehan NENA20 2

The Pre Power Co-operative system is being developed in Canberra, Australia.
Once proven, the pre-payments funding model and community development funds will give communities the power to own and control their own energy future.

"At Pre Power we see a world in which all local communities own and control enough infrastructure to meet all of their needs in a way which has positive results for people and planet.

We envision the Pre Power Co-operative System as our means to provide community owned and operated renewable energy equipment to provide for any communities electrical and energy needs."

We were joined by Tom Nockolds and BTL's own Scotty Foster to find out more about this ground breaking project.

Pre Power Renewable Energy Co - Ops - Tom Nockolds And Scotty Foster 2020 - 12 - 16 BTL

Soil City Co-operative Farms is being developed in Canberra, Australia by Co-ops, Commons and Communities Canberra, or CoCanberra. In this interview it is referred to by its interim working name, the "COFE" (Community Owned Farming Enterprise) Coop.

They aim to:

Provide a stable, secure and attractive living for farmers, using the tools of:
     Community ownership of land
     Regenerative culture
     Healing the earth / Care for the land / Regenerative farming
     Localism - Local food production and ownership
     Education of our members

Providing a stable, secure and attractive food production system for people, using the tools of:
     Connecting people with the sources of their food 
     Sharing risk with the farmers through the co-operative
     Food sovereignty (ownership and control of our food production system)
     Education of the broader community

Our own Scotty Foster joined us with his CoCanberra hat on, to have a yarn about Soil City.

Community Owned Farming Enterprise (COFE - Now Soil City) Co - Op - Scotty Foster 2020 - 04 - 17 BTL

Align in the Sound is a podcast combining audio from three sources:
 - Radio Behind the Lines
 - The New Economy Network of Australia
 - Co-ops Commons and Communities Canberra.

Radio Behind the Lines (BTL) has been going to air every week on Community Radio 2XX 98.3FM in Canberra, Australia for over 30 years. We talk with anyone who is trying to make the world a better place. 
The New Economy Network of Australia (NENA) was conceived in 2016. NENA is an Australian Co-operative which aims to bring together people around the continent who are creating and thinking about a new economy which serves people and planet, and amplify the fantastic work already being done. BTL has recorded 3 of their national conferences, which can be found here.
Co-operatives, Commons and Communities Canberra (CoCanberra) is building the new economy in Canberra, Australia, through the creation of “Climate Co-ops”.
This means you will continue to hear the eclectic mix of interviews and field recordings from Behind the Lines, mixed up with snapshots of what NENA’s various hubs and people are up to, various conferences, and recordings from the regular meetups of CoCanberra.
Use the playlists to browse through our archive to discover interviews, rallies, lectures and more from all sorts of people who are trying to make the world a better place, and many recordings from the NENA conferences.

Thanks to Jacopo Werther [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)] for the Romanesco Broccoli natural fractal photo. Find the original at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Romanesco_Broccoli_detail_-_(1).jpg
Enjoy!
The Align in the Sound team.

Align in the Sound

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