by GreenSkills | Jun 9, 2017 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Green Skills has been actively controlling senecio glastifolius with the support of the City of Albany, DPaW and South Coast NRM since 2006 when it was first brought to our attention.
A native South African species, senecio has the impact of outcompeting our native species, and spreading seed on the summer easterlies along the south coast. Uncontrolled, it threatens our global biodiversity hotspots in the Stirling, Fitzgerald River, and West Cape Howe National Parks.
This highly invasive weed quickly spreads through disturbed or burnt areas, creating a monoculture and diminishing opportunity for native species regrowth. It is particularly invasive in damp open areas where it can dominate understory growth. It can also spread rapidly along fire breaks.
Senecio was spread to Mt Clarence from a home garden before 1986, and has spread to many areas, with the highest priority along the coastline in Sandpatch Reserve. The seed can spread on the summer easterlies for over a kilometre, making the best action to remove the weeds before setting seed.
This project is supported by funding from the Western Australian Government’s State NRM program.
by GreenSkills | Jun 9, 2017 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Green Skills is a key partner in the Gondwana Link an iconic landscape scale conservation project with an international reputation.
Green Skills focuses primarily on the Forests to Stirling section and works collaboratively with a large number of organisations, stakeholders and landholders to restore ecological connectivity in that part of the Link. The work is guided by a Conservation Action Plan which Green Skills had a significant role in developing.
Guided by the CAP, Green Skills has coordinated a large number of initiatives:
- Extensive surveys, mapping and management reports to guide restoration activities;
- Assisting landholders to fence off bushland and wetlands;
- Working with Shire of Cranbrook to survey and control weeds in roadside vegetation;
- A substantial program of community awareness raising workshops and community events.
Key Reports
by GreenSkills | Jun 9, 2017 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Green Skills Albany are successfully showcasing creative ways to prevent waste going to landfill through a program of Create No Waste Festivals. Four events have been held so far, with two more to come in 2017.
Stallholders are encouraged to sell upcycled or recycled items, display information about the impact of waste or how to reduce household waste, sell durable alternatives to disposables or promote repairing. Stalls are asked to operate without giving out disposable plastic packaging. All kind of upcycled goods, sculpture, plants and beeswax wraps have been sold. There have been workshops for children, t-shirt bag making, talks on worm farming and composting. Music from the Secondhand Band and River Beats brightened up the festivals.
In March 2016, the Create No Waste festival nestled into the larger Sustainable Living Fair & Expo in the Albany Town Square. This larger event meant that our stallholders enjoyed a steady steam of customers and conversation. The Create No Waste area was designated Upcycle Avenue, and we focused on stalls who sell creatively repurposed items, from jewellery to woodwork. Yann Toussaint demonstrated how to make worm tubes for composting food scraps, and the Uthando dollmakers demonstrated dollmaking throughout the day.
Green Skills has two more festivals, a plastic free shopping tour, a compost tour, op shop tour and household waste workshops planned for 2017.
Get in touch with Green Skills Albany on 9842 1334 if you would like to be involved.
This project is funded by the Waste Authority through the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Account.
by GreenSkills | Jun 9, 2017 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
Art Not Waste continues to get better.
The exhibition which is a collaboration between Denmark Arts and Denmark Tip showcases art made from our societies waste stream. Presenting these artworks in a gallery setting helps to change people’s attitudes about the things they throw away.
From amazing welded sculptures to dot matrix sand printers there is no end to imagination.
by GreenSkills | Jun 9, 2017 | Green Skills Inc. - Sustainability Non-Profit
March is the month to celebrate Sustainable Living in the Great Southern!
Green Skills hosted its third successful Sustainable Living Festival across the region, pulling together a diverse program of family friendly events and activities. Combined with the Sustainable Living Fair and Expo and the South Coast Festival of Birds, the festival resulted in more than 100 activities, events, talks, demonstrations and workshops.
Some of the highlights of the festival included:
The Festival Launch night, supported by Great Southern Development Commission and the Great Southern Film Harvest, and included a screening of the movie ‘A Plastic Ocean’.
The Festival Keynote, presented by Jemma Green considered A Sustainable Great Southern, and how do we transition to low carbon, liveable, innovative towns and cities in the region? What is possible? Jemma delivered an engaging and passionate presentation on the rapid
economic change surrounding sustainability and disruptive innovation.
The South Coast Festival of Birds incorporated a huge range of activities and events celebrating the special bird life of the South Coast region.
The Sustainable Living Expo & Fair had a further comprehensive program of activities that included interactive workshops, speakers, demonstrations and tours. An estimated 800 people attended through the day.
The Mini Film-Fest consisted of three films (one to be aired later in April) and an experimental Green Screen stall at the EXPO to capture individuals’ ideas and aspirations around a sustainable regional and world.
The 2nd Denmark Festival of Cycling had a collection of 4 events over a 7 day period with a total
attendance across the week of more than 200 community members, young and old.
The Kalgan Pumpkin Fair at the tail end of the festival attracted more than 1,000 people on the day.
You can read the full evaluation report of the Festival here: Sustainable Living Festival Evaluation Report
