Australia's farmers are both innovative and conservative

John Cook.

Australia’s farmers are among the most innovative in the world, but within that they are among Australia’s most conservative thinkers.

John Cook and Timothy Scanlon wrote about that recently on the ABC’s “The Drum” in a story headed: “How will farmers confront climatechange?”

Timothy Scanlon.

According to Cook and Scanlon, “Only 31 per cent thought climate change represented a major threat to the future of their farm businesses. Results also showed that only 33 per cent of all respondents found climate change information easy to understand”.

John Cook is Climate Communication Fellow for the Global Change Institute at the University of Queensland, and Tim Scanlon is an extension specialist working with the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia.