Intergenerational play is creating connection, changing lives and inspiring young and old in Blackheath. Hamish Dunlop visited a play session to experience the fun and joy that intergenerational play brings to all involved.
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Latest from around the region
Nelson Mandela once said “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”; and William Butler Yeats, the great poet, said “Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.” If you’re a teacher, educator or involved in education in some way in the Blue Mountains the staff of the Blue Mountains Planetary Health Initiative would love to meet you next Monday 20th May when we join the Blue Mountains Sustainable Schools Network to see how we can all join forces to urgently accelerate the change we need to restore the health of our planet. 3.30-5.30 at Faulconbridge Public School. RSVP Beth Healy DirtMum (details in poster)
#sustainableschoolsnetwork #collaboration #planetaryhealth #environmentaleducators #artteachers #englishteachers #musicteachers #allteachers
Hans and Tillie Coster have brought a Tolkien fantasy to life, building an underground Hobbit Hall at their property ‘Middle Earth’ in the Kanimbla Valley. They`ve come very close to self-sufficiency, storing their solar power in banks of nickel-iron batteries, and building underground has meant they`re more able to withstand extreme weather events. They`ve also reforested degraded country, planting over 3000 trees! Read more in Lithgow Area Local News (link in profile):
https://lithgowlocalnews.com/middle-earth-kanimbla-valley/
#middleearth #hobbiton #hobbithall #kanimblavalley #selfsufficient #offgrid #nickeliron #solarbatteries #nickelironbatteries #reforestation #undergroundhouse #compostingtoilet #disasterriskreduction #planetaryhealth
There are only about 750 Dwarf Mountain Pine plants left in the wild, according to the latest survey. The survivors are limited to waterfall spray and seepage zones in the southern escarpment between Katoomba and Wentworth Falls, but renewed efforts to save it in light of its potential upgrade to ‘critically endangered’ status are giving greater recognition to a rare and unusual prehistoric native in our midst. Read more in Katoomba Area Local News (link in profile)
https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/saving-the-dwarf-mountain-pine/
#dwarfmountainpine #criticallyendangeredspecies #prehistoricnative #biodiversity #collaboration #whatwecando #katoomba #wentworthfalls #bluemountains #planetaryhealth
Our Planetary Health newsletter is now out, sharing inspiring stories from the Lower Mountains to Lithgow: Read it here and subscribe via any of the Local News sites: https://bit.ly/3QKevs6 (link in profile)
Katoomba Area Local News: Living on the Ledge: Saving the Dwarf Mountain Pine
Lithgow Local News: How a Tolkien Fantasy Turned Into Off-grid Reality at Middle-Earth in the Kanimbla Valley
Blackheath Area Local News: Inspirational, Intergenerational Play in Blackheath
Lower Mountains Local News: The Positive Social Impact of the Glenbrook Country Women’s Association
Mid Mountains Local News: Stronger Together: Mid Mountains Neighbourhood Centre Walks the Talk
Springwood Area Local News: People Of Binfluence: The 2024 Binfluencer Awards
#solutionsmedia #hyperlocalnews #planetaryhealth #localstories #inspiration #bluemountains #lithgow
Woohoo we just hit 1 MILLION views on our reel about Physicist Hans Coster and why he`s using nickel-iron batteries.
You can now read the full story and watch a video about him and his wife Tillie at their property Middle Earth (links in profile). We`d love you to subscribe to our Blue Mountains Planetary Health YouTube channel and share the latest video on him there as well.
The video is fabulous:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kqAczIRzqk&t=17s
#offgrid #underground #nickelironbatteries #planetaryhealth #reforestation #selfsufficient #middleearth #bagshotrow
A small group of Blue Mountains women is helping local women survive and thrive and also contributing to improve maternal and newborn survival in developing countries. Assembling birthing kits for women in remote locations is just one of the many ways the @zontaclubbluemountains is empowering and supporting women, both abroad and at home. Read more in Lower Mountains Local News (link in profile)
https://lowermtnslocalnews.com/zonta-blue-mountains/
#womensupportingwomen #maternalhealth #birthingkits #zontainternational #zonta #abetterworldforwomen #localaction #localactionglobalimpact #planetaryhealth
We are thrilled to announce that award-winning health writer and author Sophie Cousins will be leading the workshop: Our Community, Our Stories: Writing for Change from 2-5pm on Saturday 25 May at the Planetary Health Precinct. Sophie`s work has been published in the New York Times, London Review of Books, the Guardian, the Lancet, Meanjin and others. She also works as a public health consultant for the World Health Organisation. The workshop will be followed at 7pm by the launch of the Planetary Health Writers Network. Places are limited so bookings essential (link in profile): https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/our-community-our-stories-writing-for-change-tickets-895548458547
#writingforchange #impactfulstories #solutionsjournalism #writingworkshop #planetaryhealth #changethestory #thenewsweneed #writersnetwork #bluemountains #katoomba
We`re thrilled to welcome Tamsyn McGrouther to our growing team of volunteer storytellers. She`s reporting on how the Springwood Lot Party transformed an underused space, the car park at Springwood Train Station, into a vibrant community space with food stalls, art opportunities and live music. Read more in Springwood Area Local News (link in profile) : https://springwoodlocalnews.com/springwood-lot-party-2024/
#changethestory #hyperlocalmedia #solutionsmedia #springwood #inspiringstories #planetaryhealth #bluemountains #localnewsmatters
What do tea, samurai clans, William McArthur, Benjamin Franklin, Vietnam and the Botanic Gardens at Mount Tomah have in common? Read our story in Blackheath Area Local News to explore the way camellias and cultures are woven together and why it’s important we think about conserving biodiversity as a global project implemented at a local level. (link in profile) https://blackheathnews.com/camellias-at-blue-mountains-botanical-garden/
@botanicsydney #botanicgardens #mountomahbotanicgardens #camellias #camelliasinensis #tea #samurai #bluemountains #themounts #biodiversity #planetaryhealth
Mushrooms are a hot topic at the moment with more and more research illuminating the essential role these organisms play in the health of the planet as well as the significant health and medicinal benefits they hold for humans. Belle Butler visited local mushroom grower, Alex Felix, at his farm in Lawson to talk about the mighty mushroom. Read more in Mid Mountains Local News (link in profile)
https://www.midmtnslocalnews.com/earthrising-mushroom-farm/
#mushroomgrowkit #mushrooms #fungi #growyourown #lawson #bluemountains
Mushrooms are a hot topic at the moment with more and more research illuminating the essential role these organisms play in the health of the planet as well as the significant health and medicinal benefits they hold for humans. Belle Butler visited local mushroom grower, Alex Felix, at his farm in Lawson to talk about the mighty mushroom. Read more in Mid Mountains Local News (link in profile):
https://www.midmtnslocalnews.com/earthrising-mushroom-farm/
#lawson #mushroomfarming #fungi #mushroomcompost #oystermushrooms #mushroomgrowkit #bluemountains
Maligned through the ages for their association with witchcraft, disease, drug use and poisonings, the fungus kingdom is gaining due credit thanks to ecologists, photographers and foragers. Read more in Katoomba Area Local News (link in profile):
https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/fungi-of-the-upper-blue-mountains/
#fungi #fungus #mycelium #fantasticfungi #bluemountains #planetaryhealth #katoomba #foraging #fungiforaging #fungiphotography #ecology
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The Walking Weeder: Marianne Bate and the Grose River Catchment
Marianne Bate is passionate about the bush, fascinated by people and ‘relentlessly positive’ about how we can better care for the land we live on. Meet Marianne, and discover the difference Bushcare and Landcare make to people and places in this piece by Hamish Dunlop.
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For the love of kangaroos
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Cool Mountains – Your Guide to Beating the Heat in Blackheath & Surrounds
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Inspirational, Intergenerational Play in Blackheath
Intergenerational play is creating connection, changing lives and inspiring young and old in Blackheath. Hamish Dunlop visited a play session to experience the fun and joy that intergenerational play brings to all involved.
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April Local News
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Incredible Edible Blackheath
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A Carnival of Camellias: Beauty and Biodiversity at the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden
What do tea, samurai clans, William McArthur, Benjamin Franklin, Vietnam and the Botanic Gardens at Mount Tomah have in common? Read on to explore the way camellias and cultures are woven together and why it’s important we think about conserving biodiversity as a global project implemented at a local level.
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The Lyrebird Festival: The Music of Life in the Megalong
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Birds, Bees, Butterflies and Bats: Supporting Pollinators for Planetary Health
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Growing Community at the Blackheath Vegie Patch
Mel Michael is the newish owner of the Blackheath Vegie Patch. We talk about making lemonade from local lemons, a philosophy of abundance, and how businesses can make communities more resilient.
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Fire Resistant and Fabulous: An Off-Grid Home in the Megalong Valley
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Recreating the Social Benefits of a Corner Store in South Blackheath
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New Water Play Area and Rejuvenated Pond Opens at Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park
Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park has had a fabulous upgrade with a new water play feature, landscaping and improvements to the duck & turtle pond. Take a tour here.
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September Local News
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August Local News – From Medlow to Mount Tomah
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Sustainability at School: Lessons in The Cycles of Life
Blackheath Public School is providing hands-in-the-dirt lessons on how the students can make their school more sustainable. Students will soon be eating spinach and cheese scrolls made by the canteen using garden produce.
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Learning as Resilience: Chris Tobin on History, Country and the Power of Different Perspectives
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Reconnecting the Seven Sisters Songlines from Uluru to the East Coast of Australia
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‘Somewhere to Live’: Singing the Song of Homelessness
Hamish Dunlop attended the launch of ‘Somewhere to Live’, a song written and performed by The Blue Gums, Voices for Social Change. The song and accompanying video aim to raise awareness about the impacts of homelessness and housing insecurity in the Blue Mountains and across the Greater Sydney region.
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Reconnecting the Seven Sisters Songlines from Uluru to the East Coast of Australia
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Swamp Diaries: A Weedy Bunyip & the Water We Drink
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Rooves, Tanks & Rain Gardens: Things We Can Do at Home to Save Water and Help the Environment
Planetary Health Initiative writer Hamish Dunlop talks to Amy St Lawrence from Blue Mountains City Council’s Healthy Waterways Team. Amy explains what she’s doing at her home to collect and use water. She also talks about how her rain garden reduces run-off during and after rainfall.
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Govetts Leap Catchment Group: Collaborating to Protect our Wilderness from Weeds
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Blue Mountains achieves global standard in Ecotourism