Quarterly Essay 77: Cry Me a River cover art

Quarterly Essay 77: Cry Me a River

The Tragedy of the Murray-Darling Basin

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Quarterly Essay 77: Cry Me a River

By: Margaret Simons
Narrated by: Margaret Simons
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About this listen

The Murray–Darling Basin is the food bowl of Australia, and it’s in trouble. What does this mean for the future - for water and crops, and for the people and towns that depend on it?

In Cry Me a River, acclaimed journalist Margaret Simons takes a trip through the Basin, all the way from Queensland to South Australia. She shows that its plight is environmental but also economic, and enmeshed in ideology and identity.

Her essay is both a portrait of the Murray–Darling Basin and an explanation of its woes. It looks at rural Australia and the failure of politics over decades to meet the needs of communities forced to bear the heaviest burden of change. Whether it is fish kills or state rivalries, drought or climate change, in the Basin our ability to plan for the future is being put to the test.

“The story of the Murray–Darling Basin...is a story of our nation, the things that join and divide us. It asks whether our current systems - our society and its communities - can possibly meet the needs of the nation and the certainty of change. Is the Plan an honest compact, and is it fair? Can it work? Are our politics up to the task?”

©2020 Margaret Simons (P)2020 Audible Australia Pty Ltd. Economics Environmental Economics Politics & Government Rural Sociology China Village
All stars
Most relevant  
Well written, fair and balanced. Lays out the problems, the lies and potential shady dealings in a complicated system.

The most important thing you'll listen to.

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This subject matter is something we city dwelling environmentally interested people need to understand. It also highlights the impact of political interests over that of the country’s wellbeing.

Essential reading for city dwellers

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This is a Quarterly Essay I listened to twice. The Murray-Darling Basin has always been important for environmental stability for our country but many never knew how close it is to dying until the fish did. This is a complex topic, that will give you a basic overview of what's been happening to lead upto the current state of the basin. It's disheartening how much we've failed to protect the basin because of greed and plan misunderstandings of our own eco-system and how little we understand what can be done to save the Murray-Darling. The conclusion (which has always been the best parts of any Quarterly, in my opinion) just wasn't able to fully grasp the topic but since nobody has managed it, its not Margaret Simons fault. You will need to listen to this Quarterly a few times to fully understand all thats been outlined in this essay and you'll likely need to do further research or find other books to get a broader understanding of this topic.

Listen a few times if you want to fully grasp this

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Great essay 👍🏼. How can greed and corporation’s control the people’s water shame on previous generations ☹️

What have baby boomers ! Done!!

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Important but complex topic, well worth a listen
To fully understand it i probably need another listen to this important Australian topic

Clear narrative about complex topic

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An excellent review and assessment of the Murray Darling basin plan and the cost of greed and neglect to all those who are affected by it, especially the environment in which we all live.

Should be read by all Australians

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Margaret Simons gives a concise history and clear explanation of the issues affecting the successful implementation of the Murray Darling Basin Plan. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to better understand the complex issues and difficulties of implementing the MDBP; the challenges of navigating the vested interests & political machinations impacting it and why it has failed to be properly implemented to date

Excellent, clearly articulated history & issues of MDBP

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a revelation into the mismanagement of the murray darling and her tributaries, informative and difficult to put down.
get rid of the politics

murray mismanagement

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can't DL most of my books Audible being used to hack my phone - useless annoying

can't download it!!!! Audible is frozen

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.