Others are pleased to see the display space expanded so that existing galleries don't have to be reduced to allow for recent conflicts.

But what of the people the director referred to who visit the AWM to learn "what it is to be Australian"? He was, I believe, referring to those who gain a sense of "country" by reflecting on the sacrifices that have been made by so many during Australia's relatively recent history. This, of course, is an Anglo-Saxon/European view of history.

What of our Indigenous brothers and their history in defending "our" land?

When the Parliamentary Standing Committee, Public Works, asked about representation of the "Frontier Wars" members were advised that it was not the intention of the AWM to honour our Indigenous forebears in this way.

Is an appreciation of this aspect of our history, not a central part of understanding "what it is to be Australian"?

If so, how is it that the bravery of Indigenous warriors is not commemorated by the AWM?

Thanks to Mike Quirk (Letters, July 13) for making the distinction between social and welfare housing. Social housing should contain a mix of tenants - healthy/disabled, old/young, white collar/blue collar; not people all in need at the one time.

The welfare high-rise housing flats in Melbourne that have been in complete lockdown for a couple of weeks, however, brings to the fore another issue. Now known as "vertical cruise ships", these high-rise flats are nothing better than petri-dishes in a pandemic.

Where, then, are people to live? If populations continue to grow, will cities expand ever outwards, creating their own problems associated with urban sprawl? If people are to travel to work by car from outer suburbs, roads will be ever more congested.

If they travel by crowded public transport in a pandemic, they may well get sick.

Decentralisation has much to offer though jobs and services have to be there before people will go. Medium-density housing has much to offer since high-rise and urban sprawl are problematic. In the long term, however, stabilising population numbers is the only answer. There are, simply, limits to growth.

R S Baczynski (Letters, July 10) suggested the Black Lives Matter demonstration may have contributed to the increase in COVID-19 infections in Victoria.

The facts are that on July 1 (19 days after the demonstration) Australia's Deputy Chief Health Officer (Professor Paul Kelly) said there was "no evidence there has been any spread from the Black Lives Matter protest" and, on June 26, the RMIT fact-checked the claim and noted that "officials of the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services... continue to report that the current burst of cases does not stem from the rally".

Victoria's Chief Health Officer said the main cause of the spike of 120 cases in the week to June 22 was linked to family spread as a consequence of an increase in family gatherings.

Victoria's Premier has said on a number of occasions that it was impossible to stop the demonstration.

He has said that the only solution would have been to lock up 10,000 people. That's hardly practical.

Most of the "conspiracy theories" the letter writer raised in relation to individuals refusing testing were addressed by Victoria's Health Minister on July 3 when she said the bureaucrats were studying the reasons for refusal.

Commonwealth Department of Health figures show that between January 22 and July 9 Victoria had tested 1,030,462 individuals with resultant positive tests being 0.3 per cent. In NSW for the same period, 997,736 tests were conducted for the same rate of infection.

At the turn of last century there were perhaps five or six million koalas in Australia. The bushfires of last summer were acting on an already seriously diminished, fragmented, and compromised koala population numbering perhaps 200,000.

But it has only been the loss of the (perhaps) tens of thousands in the bushfires that has finally - and belatedly - caught the public's attention.

It is worth bearing in mind that this decline in the koala population (representative of a broader decline in species and habitat) has never stopped despite Liberal and Labor spruiking their environmental credentials for the past 30 years or so.

It is this steady decline, not the bushfires (although they are not helping!), that is pushing koalas and other species towards extinction.

The solution lies with putting an end to our governments' perpetual growth agenda. This ever-expanding human footprint will ensure more of the same.

We are fortunate that the outbreak of COVID-19 in Melbourne has put a brake on having larger numbers congregating in smaller venues and public areas across Canberra.

While ACT health directives continue to focus on returning travellers and those they mix with ("ACT government asks more Canberrans to self-isolate", canberratimes.com.au, July 10), strong public health messaging and reminders about being vigilant and behaving safely at all times should target all residents and the increasing number of visitors.

Prominent signage at all entry points, within all suburbs, on the sides of public transport vehicles and in public and commercial centres would drive this home and better prepare the public mindset for when more congestion in enclosed and open areas will be allowed.

Introducing other preventive measures, and issuing hefty fines to discourage what Victorian authorities are not afraid to label "stupid, selfish, reckless actions", would also create an environment where more Canberrans would be willing to contribute to the local economy.

While government and businesses are keen to improve their budget bottom-lines ignoring the current sense of complacency helps no-one.

I, like Greg Cornwall (Letters, July 9) am appalled by the cramming of huge populations into the extraordinarily ugly public housing ghettos in Melbourne. Unfortunately I fear that we are following suit with the number of multi-story apartment buildings being erected in Belconnen.

Belconnen has gone from an open sunny suburb by the lake to a cold wind tunnel area due to the shade created by these towers.

It appears we are providing COVID-19 incubators here in Canberra as well.

I was pleased to read (Private Capital, July 14, p10) that the CAT Awards may be revamped to meet needs in these changing times. Coralie Woods' CAT Awards have centred Canberra in a network of artists in music, theatre, song and dance. With their families, they are the heart of a huge arts family from Wollongong, Wagga, Orange, and to the coast.

The theatre awards process separated "Canberra Area" from politics and built so much positive affection for people, groups and places here. Coralie, with community support and skilled management boards over 25 magic years, has juggled the zillion bits and pieces to bring together teams of volunteers to foster artistic skills, communication and friendship. This seems a good time to refocus, change and build on the beautiful base that CATS has created.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee, Public Works, held a hearing into the proposed Australian War Memorial redevelopment project on July 14, 2020.

One of the witnesses was of the belief that the AWM should allocate commemorative space in its galleries on the basis of proportional representation, i.e. the exhibits related to World War I and World War II should be given much more space than more recent conflicts. One had to wonder about the importance of the AWM in terms of today's veterans, relative to descendants of those no longer with us.

Tthe AWM does have a historical function, but is this a lesser one in terms of veterans themselves? The AWM Director explained that honouring the service of current veterans in a timely manner was the AWM's top priority. I, for one, have to agree.

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