Wild Australia: After the Fires (ATOM Study Guide)

Australia’s fauna has a long, impressive history of surviving on the driest inhabited continent on Earth. Fire is a force that has shaped the nature of Australia. However, as the last bushfire season has made brutally clear, climate change is shifting everything. After the worst bushfires in recorded history, the toll on Australia’s unique wildlife has been nothing short of calamitous. Three billion animals were killed or displaced as 12 million hectares, an area the size of England, went up in flames. The bushfires of Australia’s Black Summer are now recognised as the worst wildlife disaster in modern history. But the tragedy has also set the nation on the path to put meaningful protections in place to conserve its rare and irreplaceable creatures.

Following hard-working carers, dedicated scientists and passionate volunteers, Wild Australia: After the Fires charts the ecological recovery of Australia, through stories of hope, human intervention and resilience. In the year that follows the fires, life slowly returns to the scorched bushlands of Australia. The film provides an urgent message to safeguard our environment and bring about the necessary intervention required to maintain biodiversity on our hotter, more fiery planet, before it is too late.

Curriculum Links:

Wild Australia: After the Fires can be linked to the following subject areas within the Australian Curriculum:

• Year 7-10 English
• Year 7-10 Geography
• Year 7-10 Science

Wild Australia: After the Fires may also be used as a supplementary text for relevant Senior School subject areas.