Reflections upon 2002 and looking ahead to 2003

Abstract

The Australian Life Cycle Assessment Society (ALCAS) is a professional organisation for people interested in practice, use, development and interpretation of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). It is a not-for-profit organisation with individual and corporate members from industry, government, academia and service organisation. The purpose of the society is to promote and foster the responsible development and application of LCA methodology in Australia and internationally with a view to making a positive contribution to Ecological Sustainable Development (ESD) "and to represent the Australian LCA community in the international arena. The specific objectives of ALCAS are: 1. To promote and foster the appropriate application of LCA in Australia. 2. To promote and foster the responsible development of LCA methodology in Australia with consideration of international initiatives and commensurate with local conditions. 3. To foster links with the international LCA community. 4. To organise a regular LCA Roundtable to facilitate information exchange and discussion on LCA amongst stakeholder groups. 5. To contribute to national policies, positions and approaches on LCA and its applications both nationally and internationally. 6. Increase education and awareness of LCA among stakeholders including industry, academia, government, non-government organisations, LCA practitioners, end users and the general public. 7. To develop a national competence in LCA to meet the environmental challenges both locally and internationally.