Environment

Showing 1 - 12 of 24 results
Collection guide
York Collection

About 600 books and 66 serials mainly relating to entomology and the natural sciences. The strength is works on British entomology but also includes Europe, North and South America. About one-third were published in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Collection guide
Watercolour of a bay with a sailboat in the foreground and a large white building in the background overlooking the bay

William Westall, Drawings, 1801, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-138873713

Westall Collection

139 pencil drawings and watercolour paintings produced by Westall, all but 2 from the voyage of HMS Investigator (1801-03).  Capturing landscapes, coastal profiles, and Indigenous peoples, these works offer a vivid, accurate record of early Australian encounters. As one of the first professional artists to visit Australia, Westall’s collection is a significant historical and cultural treasure.

Collection guide
A silver polished kettle with ornate cutouts and inscription and printed crest. It has a tealight underneath.

Charlotte & Edward Barnard, Rebecca Emes, Silver kettle and spirit lamp given by Queen Charlotte to Sir Joseph Banks, 1813, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-138405433

Joseph Banks Collection

Sir Joseph Banks was a pioneering botanist and explorer whose travels with Captain Cook helped shape our understanding of the natural world and influenced scientific exploration in Australia.

Collection guide
An illustrated book cover with 3 kangaroos and 3 emus in the foreground surrounded by native flora, with a lake and trees in the background

 Joseph Lycett, Views in Australia, or, New South Wales & Van Diemen's Land delineated, in fifty views with descriptive letter press, dedicated by permission to the Right Honble. Earl Bathurst, 1824, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1022559244

Lycett Collection

An album with 20 watercolours and 22 individual watercolours by Joseph Lycett. Most of the pieces focus on studies of Aboriginal people and drawings of native plants.

Collection guide
First Australians
Two people at the bottom of Mount Townsend with flowers on the ground and rocks up the mountain

Frank Hurley, Mt Townshend with flowers in foreground [Kosciuszko, New South Wales], 1910, nla.obj-159969111

Researching 'Townsend of the Ranges'

Hear from Peter Crowley about his research for his debut book about surveyor Thomas Scott Townsend.

Blog
Two demonstrators stand on a structure at Parliament House, Canberra, raising their arms in the air beside an Australian Coat of Arms sculpture. A large peace flag is draped over the emblem. The black-and-white image captures the scene from below, with a cloudy sky in the background.

Sean Davey, Demonstrators drape a peace flag over the Coat of Arms, Iraq War protest, Great Verandah, Parliament House, Canberra, 2003, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-147381669

Protest and dissent

Use this guide to help find and access resources about the movements that have shaped social and cultural change in Australia.

Research guide
Protester holding a placard that reads, Our Future is in Your Hands

Leigh Henningham, Protester holding a placard that reads, Our Future is in Your Hands, during the School Strike 4 Climate rally, Melbourne, 21 May 2021, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2956718607

Environmental protests

Use this guide to help find and access resources in our collection about Australia's climate action protests, anti-mining protests and the Franklin Dam blockade. 

Research guide
Hot air balloon flying over a huge lake and desert area that stretches out towards the horizon at dawn

Andrew Chapman, Hot air ballooning over Lake Eyre when the lake is in flood, South Australia, 30 June 2010, nla.obj-138042325

Natural wonders around Australia

Explore natural landmarks including lakes, caves, beaches and forests around Australia with the Library's collection.

Blog
A watercolour image from 1827 of an echidna. This depiction is not accurate with what we know echidnas to look like in real life.
An early picture of an echidna

An 1827 illustration of an echidna has recently been added to our collection.

News article
John Carnemolla - Lord Howe Island Aerial The Most Southerly Coral

John Carnemolla, Lord Howe Island Aerial: The Most Southerly Coral Reef in the World

Introducing the World Heritage Sites of Australia (2nd edition)

Hear from author Peter Valentine about some of Australia's most stunning sites.

Blog
A sweeping landscape of a mountain range. The mountains are craggy and rocky. They are covered in mist.

Dombrovskis, Peter, 1945-1996. (1995). Frankland Range, Southwest National Park, Tasmania, 1995 [transparency] / Peter Dombrovskis. nla.gov.au/nla.obj-150007802

Understanding the living world

Module

This resource aligns to the Australian Curriculum for Year 4 Science – Science Understanding and Science as a Human Endeavour.

Digital Classroom
2023 NLA Fellow Dr Adam Sundberg, 26 May 2023
Below the surface: Marine bio invaders

Dr Adam Sundberg talks about his experience studying the environmental effects of marine bioinvasions through the study of ballast water.

Blog

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