What do tea, samurai clans, William McArthur, Benjamin Franklin, Vietnam and the Mt Tomah Botanic Gardens 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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Latest from around the region
Yesterday we interviewed physicist Emeritus Professor Hans Coster at Middle Earth in Lithgow. He was in charge of the Sydney Chapter of the Club of Rome and we can`t wait to share with you everything we learnt when we visited him in the home he`s built into a hill in Lithgow. Subscribe to our newsletter via any of our news sites to make sure you get this story!
#nickelironbatteries #middleearth #planetaryhealth #hanscoster
Inspiring reading and a video of Harry Laing`s mesmerising performance of `Time of Fire` in the Blue Mountains Planetary Health newsletter (link in profile): https://bit.ly/3UyytbE
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Katoomba Area Local News: Fungi of the Upper Blue Mountains
Mid Mountains Local News: The Fun Guy: Earth Rising Mushroom Farm in Lawson
Blackheath Area Local News: A Carnival of Camellias: Beauty and Biodiversity at the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden
Springwood Area Local News: Springwood Lot Party: Transforming an Underused Space Into a Vibrant Community Event
Lower Mountains Local News: Women Helping Women to Survive and Thrive
Lithgow Local News: Fabulous Fungi in Lithgow & the Blue Mountains
@botanicsydney @zontaclubbluemountains
#fungi #fantasticfungi #camellias #zonta #camelliasinensis #springwood #harrylaing #timeoffire
With a bit of tweaking we can reduce how much we need to spend on water and energy. Blue Mountains libraries now stock free-to-borrow ‘My Energy and Water Saver’ kits that Blue Mountains residents can use to assess their homes for energy and water efficiency. Belle Butler borrowed one of the kits and discovered some room for improvement in her Lawson home. Read more in Mid Mountains Local News (link in profile) https://www.midmtnslocalnews.com/saving-power-with-take-home-kits/
@bluemountainscitycouncil
#energyefficiency #waterefficiency #savemoney #savetheearth #freeresource #librariesrock #takeaction #planetaryhealth
Blackheath Public School is providing hands-in-the-dirt lessons on how students can make their school more sustainable. From Crunch & Sip to Cluckingham Palace – literally! – organic waste makes the sunflowers shine and worms frolic in the fertile compost. Students will soon be eating spinach and cheese scrolls made by the canteen using garden produce, while parents report their children want to eat more vegetables. Read more in Blackheath Area Local News (link in profile): https://blackheathnews.com/sustainability-at-school/
blackheathpublic_pandc #blackheathpublicschool #blackeath #bluemountains #sustainableschools #schoolgardens #schoolgardensmatter #planetaryhealth
A fun day yesterday for @bluemountainsplanetaryhealth! In the morning we interviewed and filmed the young people in our Upcycling Fashion Skillshare program. They`re helping create the circular economy we need. In the afternoon we ran a workshop on media skills to help another group of young people learn how to create the news we need, and the news they want to see! They learnt how to use green screen and teleprompter technology as well as skills for interviewing and presenting the news. We`re looking forward to sharing the outcomes! Thank you @heli.jones @kalanigacon @kfmmedia #solutionsmedia #thenewsweneed #upcyclingfashion #planetaryhealth #skillshare #katoomba #bluemountains #pluriversity
Such a fabulous day working with a great bunch of young people to learn how news is made, how green screens work and how to create the news we all need to hear. We can`t wait to see the end result!
#solutionsmedia #thefixingnews #thenewsweneedtohear #greenscreens #mediaproduction #planetaryhealth #skillshare
For over 45 years the Springwood Neighbourhood Centre Co-operative has been providing much needed community resources, advice and facilities to the people of the Blue Mountains. Tonje Akerholt and the other staff at the Centre work tirelessly to ensure that the space continues as somewhere everyone can feel welcome and connected, and they offer a fascinating range of volunteer opportunities. Read more in Springwood Area Local News (link in profile):
https://springwoodlocalnews.com/springwood-neighbourhood-centre/
@centre2777 #springwoodneighbourhoodcentre #neighbourhoodcentre #communitycentres #springwood #bluemountains #communitytogether #planetaryhealth
As our ageing infrastructure begins to fail in the face of extreme weather events, the Blue Mountains Planetary Health Initiative is bringing together international experts to ’talk infrastructure` at 10am next Tuesday 23 April.
In 2016 Dr Penny Burns and a group of global asset managers created the Talking Infrastructure Association to focus on improving infrastructure decision making around the world, including developing tools and techniques to ensure that new infrastructure projects will survive the coming changes in technology, demand and climate change - that is, that they will be ‘future friendly’.
Next Tuesday, Ruth Wallsgrove from the UK, a board member of Talking Infrastructure, and a global leading Asset Manager trainer who has trained thousands of people to date on five continents, will join other board members, Dr Penny Burns from South Australia, and Jeff Roorda from Blue Mountains City Council, to look at lessons learned from the last 40 years of asset management that can help us meet the challenges of the next 40 years. Amongst other things, Ruth created the Women in Asset Management North America Network. She will bring to the discussion a long career in asset-intensive industries including water & waste water, rail, power, and cities, in both major government and commercial organisations.
Join us at the Planetary Health Precinct as we discuss the urgent changes needed in our mindsets around assets and the tools we need going forward to protect planetary health and biodiversity, and build climate change resilience.
The event is free but bookings essential (link in profile):https://bit.ly/4aD7bpT
#fitforthefuture #assetmanagement #talkinginfrastructure #planetaryhealth
The Story of Asset Management: Coming up at the Planetary Health Precinct 10am-12noon Tuesday 23 April
As we work at recovering from yet another extreme weather event the question many of us are asking is how do we ensure fit-for-purpose infrastructure in a world that is changing in many ways? This month it is 40 years since Dr Penny Burns developed the engineering-economics hybrid we now know as Asset Management. From 1994 to 2014 her newsletter ‘Strategic Asset Management’ became a beacon in the industry. In 2016 Penny set up Talking Infrastructure with Jeff Roorda, now Director of Infrastructure & Project Delivery Service at @bluemountainscitycouncil to look to the future of Asset Management. Join them for a discussion at the Planetary Health Precinct. They`ll discuss the need for a shift from grey to blue and green assets and address the critical question: we can afford to buy it, but can we afford to keep it?
Join us for this very important discussion. This event is free but bookings essential (link in profile):
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/talking-infrastructure-40th-anniversary-tour-of-australia-and-new-zealand-tickets-875789759747
#infrastructure #greeninfrastructure #assetmanagement #pennyburns #disasterriskreduction #disasterrecovery #fitforthefutureinfrastructure #newparadigms #planetaryhealth #symbiocene
The Rural Clinical School of the The University of Notre Dame in Lithgow, together with the Blue Mountains Planetary Health Initiative, have been introducing first year medical students to rural medicine, Aboriginal Health and Planetary Health. When given hands-on experience in using a thermal imaging camera they were very surprised to see the difference between the temperature of the deep shade under a tree and the temperature of pavers in full sun was 30C!
Read more in Lithgow Area Local News (link in profile):
https://lithgowlocalnews.com/introducing-medical-students-to-planetary-health/
#firstyearmedical #futuredoctors #ruralhealth #aboriginalhealth #planetaryhealth #heatwaves
#heatislandeffect #thermalimaging
For an entire year over COVID lockdowns, Merryl Watkins posted a new bird photo on social media every day. The Blaxland resident wanted to remind people there was still beauty in the world and joy to be found if you stop, look and listen. Her photography obsession captured imaginations both in the Blue Mountains and overseas, raising awareness of endangered wildlife and treating audiences to the fun antics of our feathered friends. Read more in Lower Mountains Local News (link in profile): https://lowermtnslocalnews.com/merryl-watkins/ @merrylwatkinsphotography #birdsofthebluemountains #birdsofaustralia #birdphotographyaustralia #biodiversity #planetaryhealth #blaxland #bluemountains #beauty #resilience #hope
This week we welcome guest writer Camille Walsh with an inspiring story about Sal Isaksen and how she`s helping shift our attitude to one of the most polluting industries in the world: fashion. Read more in Katoomba Area Local News (link in profile):
https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/sal-on-katoomba/
@_sal_on
#fashion #prelovedfashion #culturalshift #katoomba #bluemountains #sustainablefashion #upcycling #planetaryhealth #togetherwecan #abetterway
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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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April Local News
Check out all the April events in the Blackheath Area: from Medlow to Mount Tomah.
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Incredible Edible Blackheath
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March Local News
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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 Mt Tomah Botanic Gardens 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