The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has announced plans to declare 23 species of flora and fauna extinct. 

The list includes 1 bat, 2 fish, 1 plant, 8 types of mussel, and 11 birds, including the Ivory billed Woodpecker, which was last sighted in 1944.

US Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland cited climate change and area loss as the main reasons for these extinctions, saying now is the time to lift up proactive, collaborative, and innovative efforts to save America's wildlife.

The Daintree rainforest in far north Queensland has been returned to its traditional custodians during a handback ceremony today.

The Eastern Kuku Yalanji people now have formal ownership of over 160,000 hectares of the rainforest, and will jointly manage the land with the Queensland Government.

State Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon said the agreement will help “right the wrongs of the past”.

A lawyer representing almost 50 Queensland Police Service employees has described the service’s vaccine mandate as discriminatory, and criticises it for breaching their workplace award.

Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll has demanded that all civilian staff and police must have received at least one vaccination dose before the 4th of October, and their second dose by the 24th of January 2022. 

Eight members of the Argentinian rugby squad have been denied re-entry into Queensland after taking a day trip in the New South Wales border bubble.

They attended a health retreat in Byron Bay ahead of their game against the Wallabies on the Gold Coast, however due to not being residents they were not permitted to travel within the bubble. 

The team is now talking with Queensland Health to resolve the issue.

Japan’s former foreign minister Fumio Kishida has won a leadership race for the country’s Liberal Democratic Party, which effectively guarantees he will be the next prime minister within days.

Kishida beat out numerous contenders, including outspoken defence and foreign minister Taro Kano, and female candidate Sanae Takaichi.

Despite lukewarm public support for Kishida, his replacement of the current unpopular Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga will greatly affect the general election in the coming weeks.

New Zealand will no longer be placing ‘at risk’ children into state care, as the process has been found to disproportionately affect the Maori Community.

60% of children in state care are Maori, despite making up only 16.5% of the total population. 

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern condemns this ‘dark chapter’ in the country’s history, and is committed to removing the practices the Maori community have named ‘New Zealand’s stolen generation’.

North-Queensland music festival Savannah in the Round is teaming up with the Cairns and Hinterland hospital to offer festival-goers a Pfizer vaccine before entering the grounds.

Festival director James Dien says the music industry has been a strong supporter of vaccination, and believes this Australian first initiative is a worthy addition to the cause.

Festival-goers must bring their Medicare card to be eligible for the jab.

Member for Traeger Robbie Katter will address the media today to announce game-changing technology in an effort to rid Queensland of the Prickly Acacia plant. 

23 million hectares of grazing country are currently infested with acacia nationwide, which could cost the Australian cattle industry billions.

Katter believes the new technology could also help reduce international carbon emissions, as failing to free up grazing land will lead to a demand for increased beef imports.