Australia

Scientists believe that Australia is a piece of continental crust that broke away from Antarctica about 50 million years ago. The result is that many reminders of Australia's Antarctic heritage remain, and have over the centuries provided challenges to those who immigrated and sought to remake Australia in the image of their native lands. In the 1800's attempts were made to make the country look more like Europe. Salmon, sparrows, and trout were among the species introduced. All of them competed with native animals and forced their counterparts into extinction. Too much of the land was cleared; erosion took place, and sources of drinking water became contaminated by salt run off. Since the 1980's there has been a massive team effort by environmentalists and farmers to reverse the extensive damage and to restore the land to its original beauty. Their efforts have paid off. Instead of trying to mould Australia to fit modern European farming methods, agriculturists have learned to work in concert with the naturally occurring dust storms and floods. The earliest known settlers, the Aboriginal people known as the Kooris, adapted to the ebb and flow of Australia's seasons over 60,000 years ago, and continue to do so today.

In the early 17th century European expeditions mapped parts of the coast, but passed on by to settle in other areas of the world. In 1770 the British sailed up the eastern coast, named it New South Wales, and claimed ownership of Australia in the name of King George III. In 1778 about 800 British convicts were set ashore in what is now Sydney. This penal colony became the first European settlement on Australian soil.