Issue 271 – October
October’s edition explores how a group of leading electricity system operators are partnering with researchers to expedite the transition to a power system that is low emission, low cost, secure and reliable. We also report on how CSIRO research has underpinned a recent UN Summit on biodiversity conservation. And with the onset of Spring, a timely story on genomes sequencing of Australian plants including the stunning Queen of Sheba.
![](https://i0.wp.com/ecos.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/QueenofShebaOrchid_DavidBlumer.jpg?resize=385%2C256&ssl=1)
Sequencing the genomes of Australian plants
As part of the Genomics for Australian Plants consortium, we are sequencing the genomes of the Queen of Sheba orchid and Hoary Sunray daisy.
![seagrass](https://i0.wp.com/ecos.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Peter-Southwood-photo-1280px-Seagrass_at_Rapid_Bay_Jetty_P1262907.jpg?resize=385%2C256&ssl=1)
Prawn fishery counts its natural capital
Natural capital accounting can help fisheries businesses assess the risks and opportunities associated with the ecosystem assets they rely on.
![Heliostat mirrors](https://i0.wp.com/ecos.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/heliostat.jpg?resize=385%2C256&ssl=1)
How we’re accelerating the clean energy transition through a new global consortium
Six of the world's leading electricity system operators will work with international researchers—including CSIRO—to dramatically accelerate the transition to clean energy.
![A satellite image of the sea - a hue of green and blues.](https://i0.wp.com/ecos.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/1200px-Phytoplankton_Bloom_in_the_Barents_Sea_Detail_4971318856.jpg?resize=385%2C256&ssl=1)
Geoengineering the ocean could help slow climate change
A new project led out of Germany is investigating how novel ocean negative emission technologies (NETs) might work to slow down the rate of climate change.
![](https://i0.wp.com/ecos.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/SequestCarbonCaseStudy.jpg?resize=385%2C256&ssl=1)
Why we need biodiversity for life on our planet
In his latest documentary, David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet, the famed naturalist maps how steeply the planet’s biodiversity has diminished over his lifetime. Its release coincides with a United Nations Summit on Biodiversity which has called for urgent action on biodiversity for sustainable development.