Showcasing Castlemaine
Inaugural Regional Sustainable Living Festival Event
Thursday 19 February 2009 9.15=1.05pm
Ray Bradfield Room, Victory Park, Castlemaine
Hosted by Transition Mount Alexander
Showcasing Sustainable Castlemaine – is it all green? Great sustainability ideas, enormous fun, learning for recycling in YOUR homes and communities
9.15 Participants arrive, Alistair on Fiddle
9.40 Opening – Mount Alexander Shire Council Mayor, Cr Philip Schier.
9.55 Welcome and notices – Transition MA: Carol McDonough
10.00 Mount Alexander working towards healthy landscape, secure water futures, and food
Presenters: Cr Philip Schier*- securing water futures, Nick Barber Don KRC – food processing for wide markets, Phillipa Calwell*, Drought Assistance Coordinator, MASC- securing food futures, maintaining farm communities in our drying climate
Facilitator: Ted and Margaret Levecke, Castlemaine Rotary and Inner Wheel.
10.30 The Blenders
10.50 Mount Alexander working towards safe climate
Presenters: John Anthony, MASC- the MASC GAP; Mike Hall MASG; Janet Phillips, C500 + TransitionMA: How we create safe climate; Bronwen Machin CVGA- Solar Cities
Panel Facilitator: Mez Woodward, The Futures Factory
11.20 Flautasia
11.35 Mount Alexander working towards ensured livelihood
Presenters: Mount Alexander Business Network members from Barkers Street – Wayne Hollis* of Good Foods, Karen Nancarrow* of The Down to Earth Store; Katie Finlay*, Mount Alexander Fruit Gardens; Jo Middleton MASC HACC Climate Change Project: increasing livelihood of low income householders
Panel Facilitator: Dr Darryl Coulthard Deakin University
12.05 Surprise
12.20 Mount Alexander working towards community well being for ensured lifestyles
Presenters: Dave Collins, Officer in Charge, Castlemaine Police Station; Ensuring community wellbeing; Vic Say*, Refugee Home Tutor Scheme: Resettlement ; Ron Moore*, Castlemaine Community House Coordinator; Building community resilience in hard times.
Panel Facilitator: Jacinta Walsh, Consentric Facilitation
1.01 Action steps, thank yous
1.05 In Victory Park performances; go Buy YO lunch and return to park; DYI tours around towns – pick up handouts from table. MAKE SURE you visit Library Mechanics Lane and gaze on Sudanese silk scarves. MP3 Player and guide around town from information @ Market Building, refundable $20 deposit. Watch videos in Market Building!!
Friday, February 27, 2009
Sustainable LIving Festival: Showcasing Castlemaine Press Release
Showcasing Castlemaine: Local Sustainable Living Festival
Thursday 19 February 2009
Showcasing Sustainable Castlemaine – is it all green? Great sustainability ideas, enormous fun, learning for recycling in YOUR homes and communities.
Come to the Ray Bradfield Room,
At the informative morning session in the Ray Bradfield Room, there will be panels interspersed with music talking about sustainable impact of the core 'business' of each group/agency/in the Shire – and beyond (e-businesses, produce/products, tourism etc). The panels will be of
Be surprised as the event spills over into
Our United Nations World Environment Day Awards 2008 and the Sustainability Group 'Carbon Heroes' posters will be on display. Pick up a wide range of regional sustainability and history resources including a leaflet of self-directed afternoon activities which showcases further examples of shelter (sustainable housing, cluster housing, eco- communities), 'closed loop' local water systems, organic food production and sales, community arts hub, town mural, market information centre and ipod walking tours (ipod refundable $20 deposit).
Buy lunch in our many cafes and restaurants or BYO lunch where speakers will be available to talk further with participants. To participate in this exciting Sustainable Living Festival Regional Event, we suggest you book at our bookings hub and project partner The Down to Earth Store at
The complete timetable/ program will shortly be available from The Down to Earth Store info@thedowntoearthstore.com.au or from transitionma@gmail.com
Supported by Mount Alexander Shire Council, hosted by Transition Mount Alexander, we thank our partners and participants who include Mount Alexander Sustainability Group, Castlemaine Community House, Castlemaine Library, Castlemaine Police, Mount Alexander Business Network members: The Down to Earth Store, The Bike Vault, Good Foods, Council staff. Melbourne City Council is major sponsor of The Sustainable Living Festival,
Contact Carol McDonough event coordinator for Transition Mount Alexander on 0427 204 524.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
COMING SOON: Castlemaine Sustainability ‘Trains&Stations’
Castlemaine Sustainability ‘Trains&Stations’
February 19 2009 9-2 pm + optional 2-4pm
These ‘Trains’ will be 4-6 walking or bikeriding ‘trains’ with ‘driver’ and conductor’. Starting from Castlemaine Railway Station, the trains will set off to the ‘stations’ – community agencies, businesses, shire buildings (including walking to free bike hire just up the street at MASG- Mount Alexander Sustainability Group presenting their exciting partnership programs and initiatives). There are exciting visual and aural street/park performances interspersed with brief interviews of sustainable impact of the core ‘business’ of each group/agency/business on landscape lifestyle and livelihood (triple bottom line) in the shire – and beyond (ebusinesses, produce/ products, tourism etc). Some examples: Farmers are coming to the town park to share their sustainable practices and adaptation to drought. East African Refugee resettlement is big here; along with the ‘Carbon Heroes’ poster display, their art is featured in the Library. They will also be a part of the Community House ‘station’, as well featuring brief community participatory music and our household water and energy audit program. Each participant will be given a show bag of regional sustainability resources including a leaflet of self-directed afternoon activities which showcases further examples of shelter (sustainable housing, cluster housing, eco- communities), ‘closed loop’ local water systems, organic food production and sales, community arts hub. There will be a catered lunch ($10 unwaged, $15 waged) at which the speakers will be available to talk further with participants (these ‘Trains’ will run on time!). The lunch will spill over into the park where the mural and silk artists, musos, jugglers, stilt walkers, acrobats, previously in the street will cluster and perform. Castlemaine Sustainability ‘Trains&Stations’ in a kilometre is covering great sustainability ideas and impacts. It will be enormous fun, very educational and recyclable into your homes and communities. The immediate generous ‘buy-in’ by everyone approached to participate has been fantastic. Everyone has immediately said YES.
We are limiting participation to the first 100 booking registering people at our ‘Trains’ bookings hub, to be posted here soon. The complete timetable/ program will shortly be available.
Posted by Carol McDonough
February 19 2009 9-2 pm + optional 2-4pm
These ‘Trains’ will be 4-6 walking or bikeriding ‘trains’ with ‘driver’ and conductor’. Starting from Castlemaine Railway Station, the trains will set off to the ‘stations’ – community agencies, businesses, shire buildings (including walking to free bike hire just up the street at MASG- Mount Alexander Sustainability Group presenting their exciting partnership programs and initiatives). There are exciting visual and aural street/park performances interspersed with brief interviews of sustainable impact of the core ‘business’ of each group/agency/business on landscape lifestyle and livelihood (triple bottom line) in the shire – and beyond (ebusinesses, produce/ products, tourism etc). Some examples: Farmers are coming to the town park to share their sustainable practices and adaptation to drought. East African Refugee resettlement is big here; along with the ‘Carbon Heroes’ poster display, their art is featured in the Library. They will also be a part of the Community House ‘station’, as well featuring brief community participatory music and our household water and energy audit program. Each participant will be given a show bag of regional sustainability resources including a leaflet of self-directed afternoon activities which showcases further examples of shelter (sustainable housing, cluster housing, eco- communities), ‘closed loop’ local water systems, organic food production and sales, community arts hub. There will be a catered lunch ($10 unwaged, $15 waged) at which the speakers will be available to talk further with participants (these ‘Trains’ will run on time!). The lunch will spill over into the park where the mural and silk artists, musos, jugglers, stilt walkers, acrobats, previously in the street will cluster and perform. Castlemaine Sustainability ‘Trains&Stations’ in a kilometre is covering great sustainability ideas and impacts. It will be enormous fun, very educational and recyclable into your homes and communities. The immediate generous ‘buy-in’ by everyone approached to participate has been fantastic. Everyone has immediately said YES.
We are limiting participation to the first 100 booking registering people at our ‘Trains’ bookings hub, to be posted here soon. The complete timetable/ program will shortly be available.
Posted by Carol McDonough
HOt Weather? HOT changes our name to Transition MA
UPDATE: We have changed our name from HOT (Hats Off Transition) to Transition Mount Alexander We are still with our 'hats off', we are being involved in the transition movement as citizens of the shire. Transition Mount Alexander is part of the international transition to resilience movement working to transcend and transform our communities in response to peak oil and climate change (including global warming). As documented below, we formed as an outcome of the Communities of Mount Alexander receiving the United Nations Australia World Environment Day Communities Award 2008, Theme: “Kicking the carbon Habit, going carbon neutral”, in order to further move our communities towards long term resilience in the face of desertification (rapidly reducing rainfall and runoff), climate change and peak oil. Involving more than 200 people of all ages we have conducted 10 community building/community education events about transition issues. We are participating in the international training for transition towns, February 2009. Our network facilitator, Janet Phillips, is one of the three National Transition Facilitators. We network closely in our shire (and also beyond), with all other sustainability, environment, community building groups, networks and our Council.
Community Planning Lunches
Transition MA hosted Community planning lunches in the silly season. Our next event is Childrens SustainabilityBikes and Games in the Botanical Gardens late January (watch this space for details)
The four lunches were:
21 November Taking action locally Community consultation and professional input has given us GAP and MAP2020 What are these? What has been achieved? What our actions and opportunities from these reports? Ian Lillington and Mez Woodward
28 November Complementary water systems How do we best supply our longterm water needs in drought/ step change? Gavin Hanlon, Mangaing Director Coliban Water
5 December National and international transition towns movement There is much to report, including international trainers training up locals in Australia in early 09. Discussion: What next for HOT? Janet Phillips
12 December The Story of Stuff - a video and discussion leading to a sustainable Christmas
posted by Carol McDonough
The four lunches were:
21 November Taking action locally Community consultation and professional input has given us GAP and MAP2020 What are these? What has been achieved? What our actions and opportunities from these reports? Ian Lillington and Mez Woodward
28 November Complementary water systems How do we best supply our longterm water needs in drought/ step change? Gavin Hanlon, Mangaing Director Coliban Water
5 December National and international transition towns movement There is much to report, including international trainers training up locals in Australia in early 09. Discussion: What next for HOT? Janet Phillips
12 December The Story of Stuff - a video and discussion leading to a sustainable Christmas
posted by Carol McDonough
Thursday, September 11, 2008
regional approaches to transition
Regional transition examples
As well as setting up local - Transition Town - movements, the Australian approach seeems to be including [emphasising?] a regional approach. the two are complementary, I think.
shall we have a central Victorian transition region - a loose alliance that consolidates the contacts we already make with each other, and within which area transition towns and villages do their own thing?
Ian
here are some examples:
Northern NSW: www.sustainnorthernrivers.org
Sunshine Coast (SE Qld): http://www.seac.net.au/main/
SE NSW: http://nswcommunities.org.au/setts.html
Bega shire council supports transition: http://www.begavalley.nsw.gov.au/Home/Latest_News/080826planning.htm
As well as setting up local - Transition Town - movements, the Australian approach seeems to be including [emphasising?] a regional approach. the two are complementary, I think.
shall we have a central Victorian transition region - a loose alliance that consolidates the contacts we already make with each other, and within which area transition towns and villages do their own thing?
Ian
here are some examples:
Northern NSW: www.sustainnorthernrivers.org
Sunshine Coast (SE Qld): http://www.seac.net.au/main/
SE NSW: http://nswcommunities.org.au/setts.html
Bega shire council supports transition: http://www.begavalley.nsw.gov.au/Home/Latest_News/080826planning.htm
Monday, August 11, 2008
notes from dinner conversation 28 July 08
Transition-Hats Off dinner #3, Monday 28 July 08 at Bronwen’s in Munro Court, Castlemaine
Luke Bennett: Tafe teacher for private Ag training org. Diploma sustainable Ag. Lobbied head if school to teach it. Problematic because of brand issue. BRIT now advertising the Diploma but won’t hire a teacher until student interest is shown. L. would LOVE to be teaching this Diploma. Also interested in sustainable waste (recycling organic waste).
Eliza Tree: Forest/Wheeler St. development (13th August submissions to council) Trying to get letters of objection. - Printz Plumbing tank project ?organising a bulk buying group to get discounts on tanks and installation.
Joel: -Wesley Hill Car-share proposal ?households meeting tomorrow night to work out the logistics. Looking for a mix of people from different stages of life ?mixed uses. - Wesley Hill Goat share ?shared care, responsibility and resources at central location in Wesley hill. - Trees for mulch, fertiliser, animal feed, could be harvested & used- resources available for this locally.
Carolyn Neilsen: - Currently living in a sustainable cluster housing development ?individual freehold assets but shared facilities & resources (4 households) ? shared child raising, - Also passionate about composting/ recycling. - Also car share & walking/cycling bus for kids to school.
John Sanderson: - Wood gassifier ?gassifierjohn@gmail.com as at Ararat. Waste wood from recycling plant ?heating pool. ? Megawatts.
Ian Lillington: - National & international context for transition. Transition handbook to be reprinted in Australia w/in Australian context & with Australian stories. - 9 other regions/towns in Aust. Which are calling themselves Transition towns?- ? National network (Carol has drafted a response available for comment) - Significant enthusiasm w/in this group to write the Australian book.
Sarah Austin: - Such inertia & negativity around climate change. So good to be positive & pro- active about this stuff.
Tony & Nada: - Started 25+ yrs ago - ran a Permaculture & Biodynamic farm in Harcourt. Have had goats. Both involved in an intentional meditation group. A lot of work dedicated towards putting the spirit into the systems we are trying to create. - Original member of MASG. Undergoing significant changes- Public forum Aug. 6th 7pm, Anglican church hall,- any issues, concerns, suggestions, open & deep listening to enable MASG to go ahead into the future. - Lots of room for different groups to operate in the municipality MASG never wanted/intended a monopoly. The more the merrier- we can all work together well.
Lucy, Ian & Carol: Gave a brief snapshot of the Hats off & transition conversations to date. + 12 Transition steps.
Nada: Noted the Honour the elders stage of the 12 transition steps. Not all about action. Interested in exploring contribution to resilience in myself & my community that may or may not involve action. Andrew Harvey ?Sacred activism. Role with children is also part of my contribution to resilience. If we are spiritually fulfilled & living authentic grounded lives, the resilience grows out of that ?we don’t have to do it. connected with a number of groups exploring what opportunity we have on this planet to collectively fulfill our potential with deep love.
Mark - Studying Bachelor of Urban, Rural & Environmental planning (outside of mainstream planning). President of Northern Bendigo Landcare group. Next weekend (Sun. 3rd) sustainability landuse forum (strawbale carbon offsets). Sometimes there is a fear about other people coming together & being all talk?sometimes need to think & share before we act?
Jac Semmler: Castlemaine is a place which supports my own resilience? Background in Enviro- sustainability. That & other activities push boundaries around own sustainability. Passionate about food ?planting, growing, food systems. Interested in doing things in my community with younger people ?ideas, energy & enthusiasm for true change. Age bracket that other organisations aren’t catering for ?interested in 搉etting?people who will grow up in these changing times.
Bob Rees: blow-in??most expensive supermarket anywhere. Brought up during war in a totally self-sufficient community. We all produced more than we needed ?we wasted nothing. Anyone registered as a supplier could take contributions on strict basis of need and understanding that it wasn’t for re-sale, just own consumption. This central drop-off point was administered by Salvation army but could be run by community. All about people looking out for each other.
Joel: Missing link - people don’t know what to do with real food. 損eak-oil?is the opportunity for IT managers to learn how to weed?
Break for questions –
Nada: Teddy bear project- part of peace festival. It’s a vehicle for connecting schools of different faiths ?children take the teddy home for a week with a journal & record everything the teddy does. If children have an experience of difference that is easy & comfortable & enjoyable then there will be no fear of that difference. Writing the project up. Next Year- peace train ?bring children from Melbourne up on the train ?connect in with steam train to Maldon. What we share is greater than what divides us. Need to continue.
Luke B: Educational resources for youth to do with climate change. All badness currently which is dispiriting. (Joanna Macy - Despair and Empowerment?. Melbourne group? make positive action fun using dance and tree-planting ?yo0unger shoot-off, sprouts? for kids.
Jac: Idea more re. Asking kids/young people/youth what their ideas are. Just sometimes need some structure/support to go for it. Nada: School near B/rat ?kids have developed all the projects & program & the kids went out & sold it to other schools. _ St Michaels.
Ian: Gen Barlow story from 1st dinner. Research for television programs (Nicki) ?looking for a family to feature ?significant transitions for a family to feature ?significant transitions over the next 6-9 months. Someone: Learning to & committing to walking the talk.
Simon: Only just moved to CM - been here 2 wks. Life in transition. Comes from Adelaide. Working for dept. for environment & heritage - wrote ecological restoration management plans. big issues but not disjointed from my life & shouldn’t be. Wants to offer himself to the conversation and the community.
Carol: Physical limits. Spends a lot of time in meditation. Really resonates with the connection with spirituality and transition. Very taken by the power of one in the contribution into the whole. Works reactively - conference ?awards ?hats off book, etc. Interested in closed-water-systems for rural communities (a Conference on this is Oct. 12th ?Benalla) & Women抯 w/end ?divine futures.
Bron Machin: CVGA (Central Vic. Greenhouse Alliance) ?commentary on govt. processes and advocacy, partnering. Slow transport ?spent years as a sustainable transport campaigner ?good resource.
Ian: Slow transport story ?cycling up midland hwy passed old lady in her buggy, struck by the diversity of uses poss?
Joel: Anyone interested in sharing in a community mulcher?
Where to:
- Skilling?
- Film night?
- More on Transition concept
- education.
- Proposed working groups
An apology for any misquotes, mistakes or misspellings in these notes. Hope they make sense. Luke J
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