Not UWAs idea after all.

Today the Climate Change Authority said Australia should aim to slash its greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2025, compared with 2000 levels, in order to catch up to other countries’ efforts and prove it is a “good global citizen'. 

We are also being warned about the damage being done to the Great Barrier Reef by global warming. 

( Refer to the Guardian for an excellent story debunking the climate change denial nonsense reported by the Murdoch newspapers: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/planet-oz/2015/apr/16/ask-the-real-experts-about-ocean-acidification-not-climate-science-deniers )

Now we're told that Minister Pyne not the University of WA wants climate change deniers receiving government funding and a prominent position in the UWA. below is a story from ABC online:

It was the Abbott government's original idea for the University of Western Australia to host a think tank created by the "sceptical environmentalist" Bjorn Lomborg, according to leaked talking points.

The government will provide $4 million over four years to bring Dr Lomborg's Copenhagen Consensus Centre methodology to Australia at a new centre within the University of Western Australia (UWA) business school.

In the talking points, UWA says it does not plan to spend any money on the centre and that it believes government funding will largely cover its cost. The government has previously stated that UWA would also contribute to the centre and that the government is contributing only a third of its estimated cost.

While Dr Lomborg accepts the science of human-induced climate change, he is a controversial figure because he has argued that the risks of climate change have been overstated and it is more important to tackle problems such as malaria. 

He has campaigned against the Kyoto Protocol and the use of carbon pricing as a solution to cut carbon emissions, instead favouring investments in research and development.

Since the centre was announced, there has been speculation, including among university staff members, about how the centre was conceived and how it came to be funded. 

Last week a spokesman for Education Minister Christopher Pyne said: "The government is contributing around a third of the total cost of the centre based on a proposal put forward by the University of Western Australia and Dr Lomborg's organisation."

But in talking points circulated to UWA staff members, David Harrison, UWA' s head of corporate and government affairs, provides a suggested answer to any students or colleagues to the question: "How did the Australia Consensus Centre come to UWA?"

"UWA was approached by the federal government," the talking points state.

"We saw it as a good opportunity, not only for the university's reputation as a global leader in higher education, but also as a way we could make a positive difference in addressing some of the biggest challenges facing the world today."

Dr Lomborg has links to some of the government's most senior figures including Ministers Hunt, Bishop and Robb.

The establishment of the centre comes as the UWA has moved to axe other research facilities and academic staff in the sciences.

The university has axed its world-renowned Centre for Water Research, led by scientist Jorg Imberger, winner of the most prestigious award in his field, the Stockholm Water Prize.

"Mr Lomborg's views have no credibility in the scientific community," Professor Flannery wrote.

"His message hasn't varied at all in the last decade and he still believes we shouldn't take any steps to mitigate climate change. When someone is unwilling to adapt their view on the basis of new science or information, it's usually a sign those views are politically motivated."