Celebrities unite!: other worthy causes that need the Hollywood touch

There's nothing sadder than a celebrity without a cause. That's what was so heartening about seeing Cate Blanchett throw her considerable fame behind the anti-Gunns campaign organised this week by Geoff Cousins. But in case the Gunns pulp mill isn't enough for our Cate, here is a list of other worthy causes upon which she might choose to shine her star power.

Crikey

Aug 29, 2007

While Cate Blanchett was busy pledging her support for an anti-Gunns campaign being run in Malcolm Turnbull’s electorate of Wentworth, news arrived that Angelina Jolie was travelling through Iraq appealing for more international support for the millions of people uprooted by war and violence. Does she ever stop bringing good into the world?

Iraq is just one of over 20 countries Jolie has crusaded in in the past six years. Blanchett has been trumped – stopping a Tasmanian pulp mill is an admirable first step, but …

Not wanting Our Cate to be relegated to the B-list of celebrity do-gooders, Crikey has compiled a list of environmental campaigns that could do with some Blanchett glamourising.

Land clearing: Land clearing poses the single largest threat to biodiversity in Australia and contributes to salinity and green house gas emission.

Invasive weeds: Grab your gardening gloves Cate. The spread of weeds is costing Australian farmers $4 billion a year, and poses the second largest threat to Australian biodiversity.

Freshwater management: Given Australia’s severe water shortage, campaigning for effective freshwater management has never been so important.

Stop the ANZ Bank financing illegal logging in PNG: The ANZ Bank is financing the PNG operations of multinational logger Rimbunan Hijau (RH). According to oganisations like the ACF, RH has been found responsible for human rights abuses and illegal environmental destruction.

Ecologically unsound fishing practices: Commercial fish stocks are under severe threat from irresponsible-fishing practices. Go Cate!

Stop the NT nuclear waste dump: There is staunch opposition to a proposed national nuclear waste dump in Muckaty Station in the Northern Territory, due to serious concerns about the effects it would have on the local environment and community.

Save the Pygmy Possums: Here’s a glamour issue if ever there was one. Scientists anticipate our native Pygmy Possum will be extinct within a decade due to the devastating effects of climate change.