Real Australians, aware of their water footprints, won't walk on the grass

In daily life, it would greatly help if every tap had a small digital meter on it, just as a reminder of the amount of water we're using at any given moment. You wouldn't buy a car without a petrol gauge - so why buy a tap without a meter?

Things like droplet ratings and tap meters may seem trivial - but they provide a way for all Australians to take part in the dialogue about how we use our water - and how we can improve our habits.

One of the most valuable outcomes of the present drought has been the enormous amount of interest, willingness, goodwill and enthusiasm for water saving among Australians. We need to capitalise on that with a nationwide discussion about ways we can radically change how we use water - to maximise the benefits and minimise the waste.

Now is the golden opportunity. We must not let it slip. If Australia can achieve a true dialogue on water, it will make swifter progress towards sustainability than any country on Earth.

If we can learn, then we will be able to teach, to lead and to share our knowledge. Whatever else may happen, the 21st century will be the century of the global water crisis, afflicting billions of humans in frightful ways.

It is Australia’s destiny, I believe, to help resolve that crisis. To share with the world not only our technical knowledge of how to care for, manage and re-use water, but also our understanding of how to engage society in this task.

To do that, we first have to create true Australians, people who think and behave in harmony with the landscape itself.