Dapto Community farm
Here is a short video I put together from a visit to the Dapto Community Farm. The voices are new and old members, who pay a small fee each month to use the plots supplied by the farm. Featured in the video are Deborah Barber, Rosalie and Steven Smith. Deborah and Steven (the first couple) have only been using the farm for a few weeks, but Rosalie and her husband have been coming to the farm for the last two years.
Flame tree food co-op
A short audio-visual slideshow I put together on the Flame Tree Food Co-op that operates from Thirroul. The voice is Claire Johnston, who works at the co-op, and a new customer who was shopping at the time.
Backyard Greens: Is urban sustainability achievable or impractical?
Unless you’ve been living under a proverbial ‘rock’ (or survive off a diet of fast food and cornflakes) then the chances are you would be familiar with at least a few of the many stereotypical preconceptions surrounding organic food.
Preconceptions like ‘The vegan hipster’, who preaches half researched self righteous morals but puchases their produce from food giants like Woolies or Coles, the long haired hippy who’s eyes seem constantly glazed from the ‘organics’ they have been ‘consuming’, or the socially challenged farmer who spends their time growing a beard in the woods.
While these may be stretching the truth just a bit, one of the most common (and forgivably less outrageous) preconceptions surrounding organic food is that you need hundreds of acres of land to successfully grow your own produce and live sustainably.
In actuality, it is incredibly easy to eat organic food and live sustainably in an urban environment, whether you live on a few acres, a busy street or an inner city apartment. In fact, it’s so easy that people are doing it right now all throughout the Illawarra.
In 2010 the Kiama, Shellharbour and Wollongong councils caught wind of this underground movement and decided they wanted to support it, and educate the wider community on how to live more sustainably in an urban environment. This birthed the ‘Sustainable Illawarra Project’, an initiative that set out to empower residents with the experience and knowledge to reduce their ecological footprint through behavioural and infrastructural changes at a household level.
Through workshops, tours and expos over 9, 350 Illawarra residents were involved in the program, and the initiative ended up saving over 6.4 million litres of water.
As part of the program, 120 families living in the area were selected to participate in the ‘Sustainable Illawarra Super Challenge’, a 12-month program that encouraged local families to learn about sustainability and environmental issues, work towards a set of goals involving achieving urban sustainability and document their progress through several media platforms.
Darren Collins and his family, who live on a one-acre block of land in Jamberoo, were one of the families to get involved with the Super Challenge. Although the challenge is over now, they still live as self sufficiently as they can, and they still their lifestyle online so others can read about what they are doing.
“I saw a lot of other people who got a lot of benefit out of [it],” says Mr Collins, who posts updates about his family’s lifestyle on http://green-change.com/.
"The workshops were really well attended, nearly every workshop was just booked out.”
On just one acre, the Collins’ manage to grow their own fresh vegetables, maintain chickens for eggs and meat and have owned pigs before (which are apparently still in the freezer). Although initial costs of seedlings and gardening supplies may turn some people off, Darren says that in the end it pays for itself.
“What you get back from it is so much more than what it costs,” He says, as he sits among the empty backdrop of the UOW innovation campus where he works.
Another big benefit for Darren has been the education that is children have received from the ongoing experience.
“They think growing food is normal, and they know where eggs come from and they know where meat comes from.”
Like many people would expect, the biggest challenge for Darren and his family has been time.
“We have three young children, one of [which] is disabled, I work full time and my wife works part time, so between all of that it’s hard to find time to get everything done and to put time into things.” He says.
When it comes to the idea of sustainable living, many people will tell you that although they like the idea in theory they are just too busy or it is impractical for their current living situation. However, this is not the case.
There are organic food co-ops popping up everywhere, and these are a good way to buy local fresh and sustainable produce without having to grow it yourself. One of these food coops is Flame Tree Community Food Co-op in Thirroul, which has just moved shop due the high demand for their products.
In just 3 years the food co-op has managed build a membership of 600 people, who all volunteer at the shop and help provide the local community with organic food, cleaning products, ingredients and even shampoo!
Although pricier than produce bought from a supermarket, the Flame Tree food co-op supports local organic farmers and also promotes a relationship between these farmers, the suppliers and the customers they are supplying to.
“The only reason that it is more expensive at the moment is because the demand isn’t there yet, and also big food producers have a monopoly on food production,” Says Claire Johnston, who is the only paid employee at Flame Tree.
“We want to support those food producers who are doing stuff organically and locally.”
Flame Tree also works in collaboration Happy Bellies, an initiative that actually delivers local vegies grown at the Dapto Community Farm to students at the University of Wollongong for as little as $20.
“This space doesn’t just operate as a food purchasing space it also operates as a community space where members can share healthy recipes and ideas on recycling and stuff like that, so it becomes more than just a shop.”
Richard Pike, who runs the ‘certified organic’ Nowra High School Agriculture Farm says that education is also a very important aspect of promoting sustainable living.
“If the kids understand that these environmental issues are serious, and that they can actually do something about it while enjoying themselves, then we will start to see a change in the broader community.” He explains.
A report by the NSW government states that 46 per cent of the participants in the events ran by the Sustainable Illawarra Project were over 55 years old, which suggests a younger audience needs to be targeted for a change to be made in the community.
The report, which can be found here, states that "partnering with council community service teams to target specific community groups such as young adults and culturally and linguistically diverse communities would be beneficial, and avenues such as school newsletters and progressive forms of social media should have been considered."
Urban sustainability and the production of organic produce in the Illawarra have a long way to go before they reach the level that many people desire, however the constant interest and funding shown from local councils is pushing the ideas into mainstream households and the concept is slowly gaining momentum. With the support of a community of likeminded people behind, it may only be a few years before every house in Wollongong has a water tank, windowsill garden and a chicken coop in the living room.
Preconceptions like ‘The vegan hipster’, who preaches half researched self righteous morals but puchases their produce from food giants like Woolies or Coles, the long haired hippy who’s eyes seem constantly glazed from the ‘organics’ they have been ‘consuming’, or the socially challenged farmer who spends their time growing a beard in the woods.
While these may be stretching the truth just a bit, one of the most common (and forgivably less outrageous) preconceptions surrounding organic food is that you need hundreds of acres of land to successfully grow your own produce and live sustainably.
In actuality, it is incredibly easy to eat organic food and live sustainably in an urban environment, whether you live on a few acres, a busy street or an inner city apartment. In fact, it’s so easy that people are doing it right now all throughout the Illawarra.
In 2010 the Kiama, Shellharbour and Wollongong councils caught wind of this underground movement and decided they wanted to support it, and educate the wider community on how to live more sustainably in an urban environment. This birthed the ‘Sustainable Illawarra Project’, an initiative that set out to empower residents with the experience and knowledge to reduce their ecological footprint through behavioural and infrastructural changes at a household level.
Through workshops, tours and expos over 9, 350 Illawarra residents were involved in the program, and the initiative ended up saving over 6.4 million litres of water.
As part of the program, 120 families living in the area were selected to participate in the ‘Sustainable Illawarra Super Challenge’, a 12-month program that encouraged local families to learn about sustainability and environmental issues, work towards a set of goals involving achieving urban sustainability and document their progress through several media platforms.
Darren Collins and his family, who live on a one-acre block of land in Jamberoo, were one of the families to get involved with the Super Challenge. Although the challenge is over now, they still live as self sufficiently as they can, and they still their lifestyle online so others can read about what they are doing.
“I saw a lot of other people who got a lot of benefit out of [it],” says Mr Collins, who posts updates about his family’s lifestyle on http://green-change.com/.
"The workshops were really well attended, nearly every workshop was just booked out.”
On just one acre, the Collins’ manage to grow their own fresh vegetables, maintain chickens for eggs and meat and have owned pigs before (which are apparently still in the freezer). Although initial costs of seedlings and gardening supplies may turn some people off, Darren says that in the end it pays for itself.
“What you get back from it is so much more than what it costs,” He says, as he sits among the empty backdrop of the UOW innovation campus where he works.
Another big benefit for Darren has been the education that is children have received from the ongoing experience.
“They think growing food is normal, and they know where eggs come from and they know where meat comes from.”
Like many people would expect, the biggest challenge for Darren and his family has been time.
“We have three young children, one of [which] is disabled, I work full time and my wife works part time, so between all of that it’s hard to find time to get everything done and to put time into things.” He says.
When it comes to the idea of sustainable living, many people will tell you that although they like the idea in theory they are just too busy or it is impractical for their current living situation. However, this is not the case.
There are organic food co-ops popping up everywhere, and these are a good way to buy local fresh and sustainable produce without having to grow it yourself. One of these food coops is Flame Tree Community Food Co-op in Thirroul, which has just moved shop due the high demand for their products.
In just 3 years the food co-op has managed build a membership of 600 people, who all volunteer at the shop and help provide the local community with organic food, cleaning products, ingredients and even shampoo!
Although pricier than produce bought from a supermarket, the Flame Tree food co-op supports local organic farmers and also promotes a relationship between these farmers, the suppliers and the customers they are supplying to.
“The only reason that it is more expensive at the moment is because the demand isn’t there yet, and also big food producers have a monopoly on food production,” Says Claire Johnston, who is the only paid employee at Flame Tree.
“We want to support those food producers who are doing stuff organically and locally.”
Flame Tree also works in collaboration Happy Bellies, an initiative that actually delivers local vegies grown at the Dapto Community Farm to students at the University of Wollongong for as little as $20.
“This space doesn’t just operate as a food purchasing space it also operates as a community space where members can share healthy recipes and ideas on recycling and stuff like that, so it becomes more than just a shop.”
Richard Pike, who runs the ‘certified organic’ Nowra High School Agriculture Farm says that education is also a very important aspect of promoting sustainable living.
“If the kids understand that these environmental issues are serious, and that they can actually do something about it while enjoying themselves, then we will start to see a change in the broader community.” He explains.
A report by the NSW government states that 46 per cent of the participants in the events ran by the Sustainable Illawarra Project were over 55 years old, which suggests a younger audience needs to be targeted for a change to be made in the community.
The report, which can be found here, states that "partnering with council community service teams to target specific community groups such as young adults and culturally and linguistically diverse communities would be beneficial, and avenues such as school newsletters and progressive forms of social media should have been considered."
Urban sustainability and the production of organic produce in the Illawarra have a long way to go before they reach the level that many people desire, however the constant interest and funding shown from local councils is pushing the ideas into mainstream households and the concept is slowly gaining momentum. With the support of a community of likeminded people behind, it may only be a few years before every house in Wollongong has a water tank, windowsill garden and a chicken coop in the living room.