I was trying to get people to see that you can't just grow for ever and hope that the environment will take care of itself.
Tim Flannery - Hope - Environment

I felt Australians needed to come to terms with the fact that they inhabit a continent in the southern oceans whose nearest neighbours are Asia and it has a very distinctive history and a very unique biological history, and that we need to come to terms with that to live sustainably.
Tim Flannery - Australian - Environment - Change

The world is actually in many key ways improving at the moment. There are still enormous challenges.
Tim Flannery - World - Improvement

I remain optimistic that we can turn things around, but I think we've got much less time than I thought to ensure our survival.
Tim Flannery - Change - Environment - Action

We could go over the cliff. You would hope not. You would hope that people see what needs to be done. It's not rocket science. It's not difficult. It's not even all that costly. It's actually about the way you think about the world.
Tim Flannery - Change - Environment - Action - Science - Hope

The pursuit of money is in some ways a very shallow thing and it won't bring happiness unless your mind is prepared to use that money in ways that expand it and satisfy it. So, to me an interest in science and literature and the arts, is all part of just being a full human being, and of course you've got to make some money as well, but our education system it seems to me, should be producing fully rounded human beings who can say, 'I've lead a really satisfying life. I've had all the tools I need to be able to lead a great life,' rather than just, 'I made some money.'
Tim Flannery - Life - Happiness - Money

I was born in Australia as a European and we are still coming to terms with our environment in Australia. It's taken people a long time to realise they're no longer living in Europe and they can no longer live according to the European way of living because to do that is to destroy the environment of Australia. There's a mismatch between the people and their culture, and the land that they live in.
Tim Flannery - Australian - Environment

Well, to me science is nothing mysterious. It's the world that we live in and it's trying to understand the world we live in, and we can comprehend it in relatively simple terms and pass on that wonder and interest in this fantastic world we all live in very easily I think.
Tim Flannery - World - Science - Myster

See also Tim Flannery Biography