Both sides of federal politics are ignoring public interest in the environment and climate change at their own peril in the lead up to the election, the ACT's new environment commission Kate Auty says.
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Professor Auty will take up the post as Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment in May two years after she quit the post in Victoria.
"We're in a state of flux … [in the lead up to the election] but there are many environmentalists who are deeply distressed about what we're not doing at federal level," she said.
"If I was a politician I would be thinking 'what does my community think about the environment and the economy and the co-benefits that flow from doing something now that positions us well for the real difficulties of the future'.
"People will say 'Australia doesn't make too much in greenhouse terms according to the world', but it's a per capita question and when leaders say that the debate changes."
She was attracted to the position as the territory's environmental watchdog after hearing about the "cutting edge" approach of the ACT government and ACT Climate Change Council to tackling climate change and greenhouse emissions during the Paris climate talks last December.
"It was fascinating to see where Australia was in terms of its subnational and city capacity compared to what can be said about our federal interest in these matters," she said.
But on other counts the ACT was a nation-leader for the wrong reason, with its large ecological footprint of 8.9 hectares per person identified as its biggest environmental challenge in the last State of the Environment Report, released by acting commissioner Ann Lyons Wright in February.
Professor Auty called for Canberrans to take greater personal responsibility and said there needed to be a "more intense" conversation around efficiency, waste disposal and transport choices to reduce the amount of land and water needed to support their lifestyles.
"It's worse than anywhere else in Australia and that's interesting because we have a very well-educated community who clearly cares about these things," she said.
"It's not sexy, so it's hard to sell, but once you get a bit of a champion in an office it really can change the game."
Making individuals and organisations more aware of the "co-benefits" of environmental management on other areas like the economy and health was part of the solution along with community consultation which Professor Auty said had been a hallmark of her previous positions.
It was something she hoped to continue in Canberra.
"You don't just talk to environmentalists about the environment, we took real pride in talking to business [and] the agricultural sector," she said.
"Those things give you a sense of the temperature; they tell you what's actually happening.
"It means you're not reliant upon what might be described as the poll-driven articulation of issues and ... while a lot of people were talking about the dead hand of denialism gripping everybody it wasn't what was happening."
Professor Auty said she expected the "grand themes" of her new position to be similar to those she encountered in Victoria, but acknowledged there would be different challenges as she uncovered local issues.
She was yet to form a view on Canberra's light rail but was "aware of the controversy".
Professor Auty quit her Victorian post three months before her five-year term was due to end after calling out the Napthine government's use of the term "climate variability" rather than climate change.
She said she was pleased with the ACT government's approach to climate change and stood by her decision to depart the Victorian role early to become the University of Melbourne's vice-chancellor's fellow.
"We all know there's a thing called climate variability … but to refer to climate change as climate variability is just scientifically and intellectually dishonest," she said.
"I didn't resign in a fit of pique it was something I'd thought about for some time, I felt there probably wasn't much more opportunity to do more in the final months of that role."
