Project summaries - 2007 Environmental Education - state and local government grants
| 2007 Environmental Education - state and local government grants |
|---|
| Organisation | Project title | Amount $ |
|---|
| Baulkham Hills Shire Council | Enhancing the environment management capacity of CALD farmers | 47,000 |
| Cessnock City Council | Sign up for Sustainabillity | 23,750 |
| Department of Environment and Climate Change NSW | Aboriginal culture and heritage teachers resource kit for K-6 | 100,000 |
| Dubbo City Council | Building our Future - salinity education for builders | 8,000 |
| Landcom | New estates sustainable living education program | 95,000 |
| NSW Department of Education and Training (Environmental Education Unit) | Schools WRAPP - school waste reduction and purchasing planning | 48,500 |
| Pittwater Council - Coastal Environment Centre | Coastal Ambassadors - resourcing phase 2, project expansion | 49,167 |
| Port Stephens Council | Increasing environmental understanding in rural residential areas | 21,760 |
| Sydney Coastal Councils Group Inc | Groundwater Education project | 54,000 |
| University of Technology, Sydney | Climate change education and advocacy for university students | 49,185 |
10 Projects | TOTAL | $496,362 |
Baulkham Hills Shire Council
Enhancing the environment management capacity of CALD farmers
Grant: $47,000
This project aims to inform and empower culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) farming communities to develop more sustainable farming practices. The project will involve outings to demonstration farms highlighting sustainable farming practice and products, professional development workshops, provision of a sustainable farming toolkit and community harmony events to connect CALD community farmers from the older resident groups (e.g. Maltese) and newer groups (e.g. Chinese) and expand the networks and partnerships associated with market gardening in western Sydney. We hope by these engagement methods the farming CALD communities in the north west sector of Sydney will become more active informed citizens.
Cessnock City Council
Sign up for Sustainabillity
Grant: $23,750
"Sign up for Sustainability" is a program based on written pledges from the community and UK research concerning behaviour change in groups. The program will commence with an in depth survey on the knowledge, awareness, attitudes and actions of a sample of the whole community. From this research a program of educational activities will be developed to take to local service clubs, P&C Groups, youth groups and community events. A pledge system will be incorporated into the program whereby residents will 'sign-up' to undertake specific actions to change their behaviour and improve their sustainability impacts. These pledges will then be tracked for evaluation purposes to see if actions are being undertaken and savings achieved.
Department of Environment and Climate Change NSW
Aboriginal culture and heritage teachers resource kit for K-6
Grant: $100,000
This project will develop an Aboriginal culture and heritage teachers resource kit for use in primary schools, to assist teachers conduct lessons about traditional and contemporary Aboriginal culture and introduce the concept of caring for country. The resource kit will be aligned to the NSW human society and its environment K-6 syllabus, aiming to develop an understanding of Aboriginal culture and heritage and its contribution to, and reliance on the sustainable management of the environment. The resource kit will comprise of teacher lesson plans, student fact sheets, community/parent fact sheets, suggested activities including the development of interpretative gardens; recording of local natural resource and cultural uses; and participation in environmental educational programs such as the National Parks Aboriginal Discovery Program and Botanic Gardens Schools Education Program.
Back to top
Dubbo City Council
Building our Future - salinity education for builders
Grant: $8,000
Salinity is a growing concern in the Dubbo Local Government Area and surrounding areas with Council and other stakeholders already investing approximately $1 million in salinity management and research. The Council has identified a need for construction industry education to ensure that buildings and associated infrastructure are constructed with consideration to salinity. Present and future councils aim to hold a number of workshops (4) to educate members of the construction industry in the appropriate building methods for saline environments. The workshops would be conducted by appropriately trained providers (TAFE has recently developed a course on this subject) and attract CPD points.
Landcom
New estates sustainable living education program
Grant: $95,000
The new estates sustainable living education program will provide new home buyers in Landcom estates in south west Sydney with point of sale information about the range of sustainable house design choices available to them and deliver an ongoing education and information program to encourage and support the establishment of good environmental practices in new households. Information will be provided in Landcom sales offices, via Landcom's welcome kit and welcome program and through a series of themed workshops and events delivered by Macarthur Centre for Sustainable Living (MCSL). Later stages of the project will see MCSL train volunteers through mentoring and active learning to facilitate sustainable street/sustainable suburb initiatives to create a "culture of sustainability" in each estate.
NSW Department of Education and Training (Environmental Education Unit)
Schools WRAPP - school waste reduction and purchasing planning
Grant: $48,500
The paper based Environmentally Friendly Purchasing for Schools Training Package will be edited and redeveloped into the 'Schools WRAPP', web based learning modules with tutorial notes, videos and in-school activities contributing to the School Environmental Management Plan (SEMP). It will help schools align themselves with and understand the implementation of the State WRAPP policy. It will be hosted on the Sustainable Schools NSW website (launched September 2007) and promoted to all NSW schools. Resource management investigations, reporting and purchasing recommendations will be developed as sustainability learning activities for schools administrative staff, students, teachers and the school community. The use of 'Greenbuy' and 'Smartbuy' websites will ensure increased integration into current procedures.
Back to top
Pittwater Council - Coastal Environment Centre
Coastal Ambassadors - resourcing phase 2, project expansion
Grant: $49,167
Pittwater Council's Coastal Ambassadors is a successful regional partnership with Surf Life Saving Northern Beaches (SLSNB) using the surf club structure as conduit to deliver knowledge on sustainable and environmental stewardship of sensitive coastal habitats. Our goals are two-fold:
- provide specific education tools and training to assist current environmental initiatives and increase the participation rate of surf club members in the Northern Beaches Coastal Ambassadors project
- use project model and resources to engage other surf clubs in the Sydney region.
Surf Life Savers comprise the largest potential volunteer force in Australia and are in an ideal position to promote sound environmental knowledge within diverse sectors of their club and to thousands of beach visitors that frequent our coast.
Port Stephens Council
Increasing environmental understanding in rural residential areas
Grant: $21,760
Recent demand for the rural lifestyle has seen the amount of rural residential holdings undergo a steady rise across Port Stephens. This, and the proximity to large urban centres (Sydney and Newcastle), has resulted in an influx of people that love their new found lifestyle but do not necessarily understand their immediate environmental impact. Rural residential properties have increased land space which is ideal for a more sustainable way of life. Unfortunately, many new comers to the rural residential lifestyle bring urban land management practices that can place pressure on surrounding environments. This project will work with rural residential landholders to increase their ability to manage their land so that it is possible for the land owner to live more sustainably and have a positive effect on the regions biodiversity.
Sydney Coastal Councils Group Inc.
Groundwater Education project
Grant: $54,000
The Groundwater Education project is a partnership between the Sydney Coastal Councils Group (SCCG), Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (WSROC) and Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (SSROC) to engage the Water Research Laboratory (WRL) at the UNSW to develop and deliver information and training on sustainable groundwater management. The project integrates information on the regulatory aspects of groundwater management with education on the dynamic nature of groundwater. The outcome will be the production of a suite of tools and resources including 6 regional workshops that build individual and organisational understanding of groundwater management in NSW and capacity to manage it sustainably. This will assist councils and industry to identify proactive solutions for sustainable management.
University of Technology, Sydney
Climate change education and advocacy for university students
Grant: $49,185
The Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF) will work with the Australian Youth Climate Coalition (AYCC), Australian Student Environmental Network (ASEN) and UTS Environment Collective to develop and pilot a training program that will equip interested university students with the skills to undertake climate change education and advocacy. The training program and materials will draw on existing research on communicating climate change and new research on the specific needs of university students. It will also draw on the practical experience of AYCC's existing school climate change education program. The objective of the training program is to provide university students with the skills to lead an effective response to climate change amongst their peers, in their university environment and in their future careers, and to encourage personal behaviour change.
Back to top
Page last updated: 27 February 2011
