Andrew Carr Journalist Profile

Articles

Free DFAT from “national interests” so that it can solve problems

Jun 5, 2024 | lowyinstitute.org | Andrew Carr

With the 2023 Defence Strategic Review and 2024 National Defence Strategy, Australian defence policy has begun moving away from thinking about the ADF as a means to achieve “interests” and towards using the ADF as a tool for solving “problems”. DFAT should explore the same conceptual shift. Most discussion of policy begins by identifying “interests”, the things we want to achieve in the world.
National Defence Strategy: tackling problems, not just declaring principles

May 1, 2024 | aspistrategist.org.au | Andrew Carr

The release of the 2024 National Defence Strategy (NDS) in April revealed a dividing line within Australia’s strategic and defence community. The line is between Defence and the ADF, which have a new way of thinking about strategy, and those who remain attached to an old way of thinking from the early post–Cold War years. Good strategy has shifted away from trying to align ends and means; now it’s about problem solving.
Book Review: Australian Foreign Policy: Relationships, Issues, and Strategic Culture - Australian Institute of International Affairs

Mar 27, 2024 | internationalaffairs.org.au | Andrew Carr

O’Keefe’s book on Australian foreign policymaking provides an extensive overview, especially of Australia’s major diplomatic relationships. This work goes far in canvasing the field of strategic culture as it exists in Australia. In late 2020, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that the Australian national anthem was going to change.
Australian strategic planning would benefit from net assessments

Oct 31, 2023 | aspistrategist.org.au | Andrew Carr

At ASPI’s recent conference, ‘Disruption and Deterrence’, Australia’s Director-General of National Intelligence Andrew Shearer praised the use of net assessments ‘because of their ability to take a wider aperture … It goes to the different dimensions of power, not only military, but economic, diplomatic and soft power.’To some observers, that may not seem so unusual.
Australia’s new defence era: archipelagic deterrence

Aug 28, 2023 | aspistrategist.org.au | Andrew Carr

During the Cold War, Australian defence strategy was known as ‘forward defence’. Then came the ‘defence of Australia’ period, followed by the post–Cold War ‘war on terror’. Today, Australia is in a new era of ‘archipelagic deterrence’. Archipelagic deterrence rests on three fundamental choices that governments, both Labor and Liberal, have made since around 2016.
Drawing in the sand at the beach? Our ancestors did the same 140,000 years ago

Jul 27, 2023 | news.yahoo.com | Charles Helm |Nelson Mandela |Andrew Carr

This ammoglyph consists of a circular groove, a central depression and two possible knee impressions. Charles HelmThe urge to draw images in sand, or create sand sculptures, seems to be irresistible, as a walk on many a modern beach or dune surface will show. Sand is a vast canvas – and may have been used as one for far longer than people realise.
Drawing in the sand at the beach? Our ancestors did the same 140,000 years ago

Jul 20, 2023 | phys.org | Charles Helm |Andrew Carr

The urge to draw images in sand, or create sand sculptures, seems to be irresistible, as a walk on many a modern beach or dune surface will show. Sand is a vast canvas—and may have been used as one for far longer than people realize.
Drawing in the sand at the beach? Our ancestors did the same 140,000 years ago

Jul 19, 2023 | theconversation.com | Charles Helm |Andrew Carr

The urge to draw images in sand, or create sand sculptures, seems to be irresistible, as a walk on many a modern beach or dune surface will show. Sand is a vast canvas – and may have been used as one for far longer than people realise. When people think of ancient palaeoart, cave paintings (pictographs), rock engravings (petroglyphs), images on trees (dendroglyphs) or arrangements of rocks in patterns (geoglyphs) might come to mind.
World's Oldest Known Human Footprint Identified in South Africa

Jun 14, 2023 | sciencealert.com | Andrew Carr |Charles Helm

Humans14 June 2023By Charles Helm & Andrew Carr, The ConversationJust over two decades ago, as the new millennium began, it seemed that tracks left by our ancient human ancestors dating back more than about 50,000 years were excessively rare. Only four sites had been reported in the whole of Africa at that time. Two were from East Africa: Laetoli in Tanzania and Koobi Fora in Kenya; two were from South Africa (Nahoon and Langebaan).
Oldest ever Homo sapiens footprint is found, pushing the record back by 30,000 years

Jun 13, 2023 | phys.org | Charles Helm |Andrew Carr

Just over two decades ago, as the new millennium began, it seemed that tracks left by our ancient human ancestors dating back more than about 50,000 years were excessively rare. Only four sites had been reported in the whole of Africa at that time.