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Does fairness really matter?
15 April 2026
“Does fairness really matter?” Watertrust Australia’s CEO, Karen Hutchinson asks in the Leith Boullly AM Oration.
The Leith Boully AM Oration held in Brisbane on March 10 honoured the work of the late much loved Leith Boully AM. In addition to Karen’s oration, the theme of fairness was a provocation for the other speakers on the day.
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Community Empowerment
15 April 2026
A few weeks ago, I joined a One Basin CRC panel that focused on empowering local communities, as part of a broader conversation around the review of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
What encouraged me about the panel was the clear and genuine appetite for approaches where locals and local knowledge have a stronger place in shaping the outcomes that affect them.
What encouraged me about the panel was the clear and genuine appetite for approaches where locals and local knowledge have a stronger place in shaping the outcomes that affect them.
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AWA Policy Forum
14 April 2026
Bringing together people who work across water together from around the country, the AWA’s National Policy Forum provided an opportunity to interrogate some of the thorny problems of water reform, while providing a springboard for future progress.
For Watertrust Australia Principal Kane Aldridge it was an invaluable opportunity to be in the same room as water policy professionals from across the country.
For Watertrust Australia Principal Kane Aldridge it was an invaluable opportunity to be in the same room as water policy professionals from across the country.
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Connectivity and consultation
09 February 2026
Political theatrics and point-scoring can crowd out the big policy issues that impact communities. In this video, CEO Karen Hutchinson reflects on new research that identifies that tension and explains why it matters right now, with the Basin Plan Review consultation underway. Karen also flags what’s ahead in this edition, including engaging earlier, connectivity, welcoming new Board member Kinjia Munkara-Murray.
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Making room for decisions that actually solve problems
09 February 2026
A new piece of research released by Amplify really made me pause.
Their House Monitor looked at hundreds of hours of parliamentary debate and asked a simple question. In the middle of cost-of-living pressure, housing stress and growing frustration, how much time is being spent on the policy issues people are actually living with?
Their House Monitor looked at hundreds of hours of parliamentary debate and asked a simple question. In the middle of cost-of-living pressure, housing stress and growing frustration, how much time is being spent on the policy issues people are actually living with?
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Welcome to the Watertrust Board, Kinjia
09 February 2026
Watertrust is pleased to welcome
Kinjia Munkara-Murray to the Board.
In speaking with Kinjia, what comes through quickly is a grounded mix of science, field experience and a strong sense of what decisions need to look like in the real world. She is a proud Tiwi and Rembarrnga woman, and she sees that cultural perspective as something she carries into her work and into the boardroom in a practical way, with a clear focus on responsibility and genuine outcomes.
Kinjia Munkara-Murray to the Board.
In speaking with Kinjia, what comes through quickly is a grounded mix of science, field experience and a strong sense of what decisions need to look like in the real world. She is a proud Tiwi and Rembarrnga woman, and she sees that cultural perspective as something she carries into her work and into the boardroom in a practical way, with a clear focus on responsibility and genuine outcomes.
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Putting the Lower Balonne in perspective
04 February 2026
The Lower Balonne is one of those places where the map can mislead you. It only really makes sense when you see it in its entirety and notice how quickly the system changes as you move through it.
Nothing really prepares you for its scale. Until you’re there, it’s hard to picture a system that stretches across such a vast area and still behaves as one connected whole.
Nothing really prepares you for its scale. Until you’re there, it’s hard to picture a system that stretches across such a vast area and still behaves as one connected whole.