Sustainability and the Future explores the relevant contemporary issues of climate change, the limitation of resources and the resultant search for alternative energy methods.

The era of modern economic growth has been intimately linked to the rapid expansion of the use of fossil fuels. Concentrations greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide which now exceeds the natural range of the last two million years by 25%, hence the net effect of the human activities since 1750 has been one of warming. The majority of carbon that was present in the early atmosphere is now stored in sedimentary rocks and marine sediments.. The immediate challenge for humankind is to provide capacity solutions to safely absorb additional greenhouse gases, mitigate against dangerous climate change and to develop alternative energy options. Natural gas offers an opportunity for the transition to a lower emission global economy. In time, this will be complemented by gains made in renewable technologies. One method by which we can reduce our reliance on oil-based fuels is by substituting it with natural gas, such as in the ‘gas buses’ operated by Transperth, which use liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), a by-product of LNG processing. Suggested technological solutions to climate change include carbon capture and storage, soil sequestration, solar technologies, algal biosequestration and geothermal energy.

The ABC's interactive documentary, Crude - The Incredible Journey of Oil by Richard Smith will also be shown.