Explore every episode of the podcast Aquaholics
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The heavy metal bar where Aquaholics began | 23 sept. 2026 | 00:48:32 | |
What happens when three water specialists walk into a centuries-old heavy metal bar in Stockholm? A podcast is born. In the first episode of Aquaholics, Kylie Johnson brings together Sarah Ransom, Professor Bradley Moggridge and Dr Andrew O'Neill to share the unlikely origin story of the series and explore a much bigger question: who cares about water, and why should we? The conversation moves from Brad's childhood beside a polluted Western Sydney creek to Indigenous water knowledge, community-led research, global water bankruptcy and the challenge of turning decades of environmental data into decisions. The group also asks whether modern life has disconnected us from the systems that make clean water appear at the turn of a tap. Aquaholics is an initiative of the Australian Water Partnership, supported by the Australian Government through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Kylie Johnson is Senior Manager, Partnerships and Communication at the Australian Water Partnership. Her career spans climate, water and communication across journalism, government and the not-for-profit sector. Sarah Ransom is General Manager of the Australian Water Partnership. A former Australian diplomat and lawyer, she has worked across international development, governance, gender, community engagement and partnership brokering. Professor Bradley Moggridge is a proud Kamilaroi man, Professor of Science and Associate Dean, Indigenous Leadership and Engagement, at the University of Technology Sydney. His work brings Indigenous knowledge, hydrogeology and water science into research, policy and environmental management. Dr Andrew O'Neill is Chief Science and Sustainability Officer at Healthy Land & Water. He leads innovation and supports scientists and engineers working to improve South East Queensland's environment, connecting research, policy and practical action.
Send a question to the Aquaholics team: contact@waterpartnership.org.au Australian Water Partnership enquiries: Contact AWP Phone: +61 2 6206 8320 Address: UC Innovation Centre, Bruce ACT 2617, Australia Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. | |||
| AI and Water: Godzilla or climate solution? | 23 sept. 2026 | 01:01:56 | |
Can artificial intelligence help solve water challenges without creating new ones? In episode two of Aquaholics, Kylie Johnson, Sarah Ransom, Professor Bradley Moggridge and Dr Andrew O'Neill examine the tension at the heart of the AI boom: AI can improve water management, but the data centres and energy systems behind it also place pressure on water, land and communities. Featured guest Josh Weinberg, Senior Policy Advisor at the Alliance for Global Water Adaptation, shares early findings from research commissioned by the Australian Water Partnership on AI and water in the Indo-Pacific. The discussion explores data-centre planning, direct and indirect water demand, environmental justice, community benefit-sharing and the need to involve water utilities and governments before infrastructure decisions are locked in. The hosts also debate ethical AI, public access to environmental data and the role of human judgement. In the Water Cooler segment, Brad considers whether Western science is genuinely listening to Indigenous water knowledge or whether engagement remains tokenistic. Aquaholics is an initiative of the Australian Water Partnership, funded by the Australian Government through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Josh Weinberg is Senior Policy Advisor at the Alliance for Global Water Adaptation. He contributes to collaborations with governments, intergovernmental organisations, civil society and United Nations agencies to integrate water more centrally into the global climate agenda. Before joining AGWA, he spent 15 years at the Stockholm International Water Institute working across water, climate and sustainability programmes. · Alliance for Global Water Adaptation - Learn more about AGWA’s work on climate-resilient water management. Kylie Johnson is Senior Manager, Partnerships and Communication at the Australian Water Partnership. Her career spans climate, water and communication across journalism, government and the not-for-profit sector. Sarah Ransom is General Manager of the Australian Water Partnership. A former Australian diplomat and lawyer, she has worked across international development, governance, gender, community engagement and partnership brokering. Professor Bradley Moggridge is a proud Kamilaroi man, Professor of Science and Associate Dean, Indigenous Leadership and Engagement, at the University of Technology Sydney. His work brings Indigenous knowledge, hydrogeology and water science into research, policy and environmental management. Dr Andrew O'Neill is Chief Science and Sustainability Officer at Healthy Land & Water. He leads innovation and supports scientists and engineers working to improve South East Queensland's environment, connecting research, policy and practical action.
Send a question to Aquaholics: contact@waterpartnership.org.au Australian Water Partnership enquiries: Contact AWP Phone: +61 2 6206 8320 Address: UC Innovation Centre, Bruce ACT 2617, Australia Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. | |||
| Does Water Need a Glow Up? | 23 sept. 2026 | 00:35:53 | |
Water sustains life, business, communities and recreation. So why does it keep getting left out of the public conversation? In episode three of Aquaholics, Kylie Johnson, Sarah Ransom, Professor Bradley Moggridge and Dr Andrew O'Neill ask whether water has a public relations problem. They are joined by Ross Monaghan, a public relations specialist, communication lecturer at Deakin University and host of the HypeCloudAI podcast. Ross explains why water is easy to take for granted, especially in cities where it appears whenever a tap is turned. He shares a practical starting point for better communication: research what people think, define clear objectives, understand the audience, listen before speaking and tell memorable stories that connect water with everyday life. The episode also explores climate variability, drought preparedness, recycled water, stormwater and urban water resilience. In the Water Cooler segment, the hosts debate whether naming droughts could make slow-moving climate events more visible and memorable. Aquaholics is an initiative of the Australian Water Partnership, funded by the Australian Government through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Ross Monaghan is a Lecturer in Communication at Deakin University and a business communication and issues management specialist with more than 20 years of experience across public relations, general management and journalism. His areas of expertise include crisis and emergency communication, risk communication and new technology. He also co-hosts the HypeCloudAI podcast, which examines technology, business and practical AI use through a communications lens.
Kylie Johnson is Senior Manager, Partnerships and Communication at the Australian Water Partnership. Her career spans climate, water and communication across journalism, government and the not-for-profit sector. Sarah Ransom is General Manager of the Australian Water Partnership. A former Australian diplomat and lawyer, she has worked across international development, governance, gender, community engagement and partnership brokering. Professor Bradley Moggridge is a proud Kamilaroi man, Professor of Science and Associate Dean, Indigenous Leadership and Engagement, at the University of Technology Sydney. His work brings Indigenous knowledge, hydrogeology and water science into research, policy and environmental management. Dr Andrew O'Neill is Chief Science and Sustainability Officer at Healthy Land & Water. He leads innovation and supports scientists and engineers working to improve South East Queensland's environment, connecting research, policy and practical action.
Send a question to Aquaholics: contact@waterpartnership.org.au Australian Water Partnership enquiries: Contact AWP Phone: +61 2 6206 8320 Address: UC Innovation Centre, Bruce ACT 2617, Australia Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. | |||
| Who owns the rain? | 23 sept. 2026 | 00:29:05 | |
Water does not respect borders. When rivers, aquifers and even rainfall connect countries and communities, who gets to decide where the water goes? In episode four of Aquaholics, Kylie Johnson, Sarah Ransom, Professor Bradley Moggridge and Dr Andrew O'Neill explore the geopolitics of shared water. The discussion moves from transboundary river basins and water infrastructure in conflict to the agreements, institutions and trust needed when decisions made upstream affect people downstream. The hosts examine the Murray-Darling Basin, water markets, local government cooperation and the emerging idea that countries may also depend on one another for atmospheric or 'green' water. They ask whether water should be treated primarily as a commodity, a public resource or an entity with a voice and rights of its own. In the Water Cooler segment, the team considers whether future wars will be fought over water, and why cooperation, long-term planning and fair access may be more important than ownership. Aquaholics is an initiative of the Australian Water Partnership, funded by the Australian Government through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Kylie Johnson is Senior Manager, Partnerships and Communication at the Australian Water Partnership. Her career spans climate, water and communication across journalism, government and the not-for-profit sector. Sarah Ransom is General Manager of the Australian Water Partnership. A former Australian diplomat and lawyer, she has worked across international development, governance, gender, community engagement and partnership brokering. Professor Bradley Moggridge is a proud Kamilaroi man, Professor of Science and Associate Dean, Indigenous Leadership and Engagement, at the University of Technology Sydney. His work brings Indigenous knowledge, hydrogeology and water science into research, policy and environmental management. Dr Andrew O'Neill is Chief Science and Sustainability Officer at Healthy Land & Water. He leads innovation and supports scientists and engineers working to improve South East Queensland's environment, connecting research, policy and practical action.
Send a question or topic idea to Aquaholics: contact@waterpartnership.org.au Australian Water Partnership enquiries: Contact AWP Phone: +61 2 6206 8320 Address: UC Innovation Centre, Bruce ACT 2617, Australia Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. | |||