Advertise on podcast: Life Matters - Separate stories podcast

Last week NSW became the first state in Australia to make terramation legal.Also known as human composting, it's an eco-friendly burial process where your body is turned into soil, and later used to grow a living memorial such as a favourite tree or flower garden.  Alternative death ceremonies are increasing in popularity around the world as environmental spirituality becomes more of a priority for people. Could this be the next big thing?

Throughout human history, we've always gathered by the water.  From the mighty Swan in the west, to the Brown Snake in the east, rivers have been the lifeblood of our communities — they supply our drinking water, transit hubs, and for a long time, the place we would come together and cool off.  But after years of industrialisation, the idea of going for a dip in your city river is probably a distant memory. Well, Melbourne's bringing it back, working on a plan to make the Yarra River swimmable by 2050.

We're coming up on a year of Australia's world-first social media ban for teenagers, but we know that once they're online it's still kind of a jungle out there. And it's a jungle that requires more than just a proof-of-age card to navigate. The Australian Digital Readiness Index surveyed 9-14 year olds about their preparedness for the online world, and found that age did not determine how ready a child was to apply skills like critical thinking and self-regulation online. So when it comes to your kids being ready to explore the digital world, how are you building the tools to navigate safely?

Australian men are more likely to be more socially disconnected than Australian women, and are less likely to form strong connections with people beyond their partners. And while a majority of men think of their female partners as their best friend, less than half of their spouses feel the same way. So let's get into why the male friendship recession exists — and may actually be deepening — and how you can turn it around.

We've all had that one friend who likes to embellish their stories and fancies themselves a bit of a yarn-spinner.  Lenny's friend Marcus has been like this since primary school, but now they've reached middle age, is it time to leave the white lies in the past and call his friend out?

A survey report released this week says 76 per cent of Australians would have to make sacrifices to their budget if their rent or mortgage rose by $20 a week.  For some, that would mean going without food and medication.  Housing advocacy group Everybody's Home surveyed 1,150 people between July and September and found one in four were worried they would become homeless if rents continued to rise. Experts agree there's no quick or easy fix. So what would help? From a cap on rental increases to stronger build-to-rent initiatives, we explore the practical measures being put forward to help people find a secure, affordable place to call home.

There have been repeated calls from across the political divide this week to turn down the heat of our political discourse. After the alleged attack on MP Helen Haines, the way we converse and debate with each other has been called into question. So how has philosophy considered the art of debate and how to engage in respectful discussion?

When you visit a new town, where do you go to find out the must-see sights, the best coffee, and the comfiest bed in town?  Social media? A tourism website?  Or do you make a beeline for the visitor information centre to get the inside info that only a local could know?  With so much tourist information now available online, some visitor centres are scaling back face-to-face services, or closing their doors altogether. But do those friendly, helpful faces and real-life conversations offer something a digital experience never will?

Have you heard the term the "glass child"? It's used to describe the sibling of someone with a disability or chronic illness. They're called a glass child because they can become less visible than their sibling, who requires extra time and attention. They become the easy kid — not adding to their parents' stress, never needing too much. It's estimated more than 5 million Australians have grown up in that situation. So how can we provide better support to the siblings who the system forgets?

Hitchhikers used to be a common sight across Australian roads. For a few good decades, thumbing a lift to the beach, home from school or further afield on an adventure was common practice. So was picking up strangers, passing time with idle conversation. Today most of us wouldn't dream of hitching a ride — the backpackers murders of the late 80s and early 90s all but brought this pastime to a screeching halt. But there are people who are willing to take the risks, so knowing the risks we do now, is it still worth it?

If you stumble across a bunch of people looking up at the sky and then frantically typing something into their phones this week, there's a chance you've found a group of citizen scientists. The Aussie Bird Count runs from October 19 to 25, and in its 13th year as the largest citizen science project in the country.  It's been a tough year for our feathered friends, but this is one way to do your part to protect our birds.

Last night, independent MP Helen Haines was the victim of an attack that has left her hospitalised in a critical condition, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the incident as "a deliberate act".  Although we don't yet know the motivation of the attack, the Prime Minister has called for every Australian to turn down the heat of our political discourse.He spoke of how there had been a "significant increase" in the number of people charged with threatening parliamentarians over the last few years and discourse has gone in the wrong direction. Today, politicians from across the aisle have echoed the same sentiment. But is it possible to put this genie back in the bottle?

Stress can be like a cold, if one person brings it home everyone can catch it. With students starting their year 12 exams it can be a stressful time for families as they navigate this difficult period.So how do you navigate stress in the household as a family unit?

When you get the itch for an adventure, what scratches it? Is it a trip to the Himalayas? Trekking the Kokoda Trail? Or are you just bravely charting your own course through your suburb without GPS? Adventurer Beau Miles has spent years turning the outdoors into his workplace, and his adventures into his work — which has now been inducted into the National Film and Sound Archive. But Beau Miles wants to challenge the way we view adventure, not as a huge, risky undertaking months in the making, but something you can squeeze into regular life. So what advice does he have for bringing a little more adventure to your everyday life?

According to new research, 46 per cent of people who would fit the definition of a "carer", don't think of themselves that way.  Because maybe caring for your aging family while juggling the younger ones is something you don't think about in depth — it's just what you do.  Care is complex, it doesn't look the same from one family to the next, and the way we define the word "carer" could be excluding a whole range of people from crucial support services.