Eudlo Relocalisation Group

Eudlo Co-op - first meeting

Sonya — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:55:46 -0700

Start: 2008-07-03 19:00

End: 2008-07-03 22:00

Sunshine Coast Energy Action Centre

Would you support the Eudlo food co-operative?

Sonya — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 13:36:15 -0700

* Yes * No

Sunshine Coast Energy Action Centre

the Eudlo Co-operative

Sonya — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 03:08:28 -0700

We are about to start the process of forming a co-operative right here in Eudlo.

Other ideas include;
creating some type of social hub in our town - this need has been raised by new people who are moving here and don't know how to find out what's going on.

starting the EGG group - the Eudlo Grain Growers group - researching and growing grains in our local area.

If you live in or very near Eudlo and would like to be part of these initiatives, please contact eudlogardenofeatin@yahoo.com

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Regional Powerdown Blog

Sonya — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 00:36:05 -0700

Our region wide powerdown project continues... and the importance of relocalisation groups....

It's certainly taking a lot longer than I would like to get our region into serious powerdown action. Our EDAP is still underway - but that is okay. I've heard of other groups planning on taking one year to do theirs, and we are still well within that timeframe.

The Energy Descent Action Plan will be our plan of strategies and what needs to be done. It's our list of wishes, hopes, demands, and requests.

It covers education programs, demonstration sites, celebratary events, incentives and disincentives, and much more. The relocalisation network and the Transition Initiatives Network will be the way we engage the community to get all those actions underway.

While that is happening on a regional level, I've been working hard on getting my local town - Eudlo on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland Australia - into energy descent planning. The main catalyst for this has been creating a relocalisation group. We are now about to celebrate our one year anniversary with a community picnic in the park.

Over the past year we've developed links with local like minded people and the broader community - it seems everyone pretty much wants the same thing - we're just coming at it from different angles. Of course, our group is feeling the urgency of energy descent and has a much bigger picture of how important this all is.

It's great to look back on our past year - we've started up Permablitz working bees and created gardens in people's backyards, and helped those of us who are well established get even further ahead.

We've made raised vegie beds, compost systems, chook yards, green manure crops... we've fed and mulched fruit trees, weeded, planted, propagated, and more importantly, talked, sung and ate some great shared meals. We've also laughed a lot!

We've started a seed saving group, a bulk buying group and our newest project is starting a full-on co-operative! This is something I'm particularly excited about!

We're also researched grain types and grain crop growing, milling and setting up some type of social network with the local town hall committee.

Doing this on the ground, being part of a relocalisation group, being part of making my community more resilent, planning for a future with less oil, actually taking positive action... it has all been so worth it!

We are also a Transition Region (part of the UK network through Rob Hopkins), and we are starting to get a lot of interest about this - I wonder if it's because Australian's have stronger links with the UK (through families etc) than the US. I've found most people who know about TRs have a relative or someone they know well in the UK...

As I travel (the bane of peak oil presenters I know!) being able to actually demonstrate how a group can work on the ground at grassroots level has been absolutely invaluable. I'm walking the walk and talking the talk.

People are surprised how easy it is and they find what we are doing in Eudlo very inspiring.

If you are considering starting a group, thinking about taking things a little further in your area - I urge you to give it a go. It may not be the exact right time, but it soon will be.

Well done to the relocalisation teams around the world and thanks,
Sonya

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Permablitz Eudlo

Sonya — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 13:41:05 -0700

Start: 2008-06-15 09:30

End: 2008-06-15 12:00

Sunshine Coast Energy Action Centre

Heavy rain cuts road access

Sonya — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 17:22:29 -0700

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Local Farmers' Markets

Sonya — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 15:38:39 -0700

Did you know that the Big Pineapple Farmers' Markets are now on every Saturday morning from 7am? Support local food supply chains, shop locally, buy direct from the grower, buy fresh food, support local business people, reduce your carbon emissions, cut down on food miles, and enjoy a true local feast!

The Noosa Farmers' Markets are on every Sunday morning at Noosaville.

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Nambour Organic Co-operative

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 20:11:37 -0700

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Chevallum Permaculture Meeting

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 20:03:29 -0700

Start: 2008-08-27 19:00

End: 2008-08-27 21:30

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Organic Gardening Course

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 20:00:55 -0700

Start: 2008-08-03 09:00

End: 2008-08-03 15:00

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Relocalisation Group Meeting

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:58:33 -0700

Start: 2008-08-03 08:30

End: 2008-08-03 09:30

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Chevallum Permaculture Meeting

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:54:14 -0700

Start: 2008-07-23 19:00

End: 2008-07-23 21:30

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Queensland Home Garden Expo

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:49:31 -0700

Start: 2008-07-11 09:00

End: 2008-07-13 16:00

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Relocalisation Group Meeting

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:44:30 -0700

Start: 2008-07-06 08:30

End: 2008-07-06 10:30

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Organic Gardening Course

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:40:51 -0700

Start: 2008-07-06 09:00

End: 2008-07-06 15:00

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Chevallum Permaculture Meeting

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:37:27 -0700

Start: 2008-06-25 19:00

End: 2008-06-25 22:00

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

World Environment Day

Sonya — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:32:28 -0700

Start: 2008-06-21 09:00

End: 2008-06-21 17:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Another Permablitz done

Sonya — Sun, 18 May 2008 16:24:32 -0700

Another big permablitz day yesterday. About nine of us pitched in to help AB and Tam set up a huge compost system, build a chook run, put in a green manure crop to revitalise a vegie patch, feeding and mulching trees, pulling out weeds and setting up another big vegie growing area.

We all enjoyed a great lunch too.

Creating a Sustainable Sunshine Coast - Nambour to Mooloolah

Newspaper article

Sonya — Fri, 16 May 2008 20:07:02 -0700

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Relocalisation film night

Sonya — Tue, 06 May 2008 15:04:26 -0700

Start: 2008-05-28 19:00

End: 2008-05-28 22:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Permablitz done!

Sonya — Sat, 03 May 2008 21:53:54 -0700

Thanks to everyone who came to today's permablitz working bee at our place.

You really did an amazing job and the garden looks fantastic.

I'm exhausted, but it was worth it.

Tired, but happy,
Sonya and John

Sunshine Coast Energy Action Centre

Maleny Wood Expo

Sonya — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:47:11 -0700

Start: 2008-05-03 09:00

End: 2008-05-04 17:00

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Future Scenarios - David Holmgren

Sonya — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 15:42:38 -0700

Sustainable Maleny Project

Food Forests

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:22:46 -0700

Start: 2008-06-21 09:00

End: 2008-06-21 15:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Animals in the Permaculture system

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:19:54 -0700

Start: 2008-06-14 09:00

End: 2008-06-14 15:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Permaculture Plants & Seed Saving

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:16:54 -0700

Start: 2008-06-07 09:00

End: 2008-06-07 15:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Building Healthy Soil Part II

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:14:18 -0700

Start: 2008-05-24 09:00

End: 2008-05-24 12:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Building Healthy Soil Part I

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:11:26 -0700

Start: 2008-05-17 09:00

End: 2008-05-17 12:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Garden Design & Pest Management

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:08:30 -0700

Start: 2008-05-11 09:00

End: 2008-05-11 12:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Permaculture Principles

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:05:20 -0700

Start: 2008-05-03 09:00

End: 2008-05-03 15:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Introduction to Permaculture

Sonya — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:02:26 -0700

Start: 2008-04-26 09:00

End: 2008-04-26 15:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

Chevallum Permaculture Meeting

Sonya — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 23:56:29 -0700

Start: 2008-04-30 19:00

End: 2008-04-30 22:00

Sustainable Maleny Project

The Power of Community DVD screening

Sonya — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 18:25:19 -0700

Start: 2008-04-26 10:00

End: 2008-04-26 11:30

Sustainable Maleny Project

National summit ignores peak oil

Sonya — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 18:08:05 -0700

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Monthly meeting

Sonya — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 14:19:30 -0700

Start: 2008-06-01 08:30

End: 2008-06-01 10:30

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Regional Powerdown Blog

Sonya — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 00:00:32 -0700

Well, it's one month today since the local council election and the amalgamation of three councils into one.

The EDAP is still being written, but in reality, we it wouldn't have been appropriate to deliver it to the old council and we need to give the new council a little breathing space before we deliver it to them.

Janet and I had a meeting with State Government this week, which was really encouraging. We have a relatively new Minister for a new portfolio called Climate Change, Sustainability and Innovation and he had already commissioned a report on oil vulnerability in our state prior to his appointment as Minister.

It was through his office that we had the meeting and discussed all the things we been setting up here on the Coast.

It all looks very promising, media interview requests are rolling in via the website as are other contacts in universities, councils and community groups around Australia.

Our next step is to meet with the new Mayor, discuss what we have done and plan to do. Keep in contact with State Govt, finish the EDAP and start developing a Transition Team Troika Network to start to really get this out in the community and around the region.

This week is very busy for me - I have meeting to plan the layout of a mock "Transition Town" at our World Environment Day celebrations in May, then on Thursday night Janet and I are presenting at a film screening of The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil which includes special guest Roberto Perez, then on Friday I'm helping Janet all day with a huge school garden seminar she has organised with 45 schools attending (teachers, principals, groundspeople and parents) to discuss how permaculture and all its uses can be incorporated into school curriculums.

On Saturday we have an all day expo on sustainability. Guest speakers include Roberto Perez, Geoff Lawton and locals Bob Cameron (sustainable business owner) and Frances Michael (Green Harvest business owner).

I'll be doing a presentation on Transition Towns and what the community can do about climate change and peak oil. Andi Hazelwood will be there talking Relocalisation and I'll also be doing a compost demonstration.

Busy times and momentum is definately building... exciting times and lots to do!

Sonya

Sustainable Maleny Project

Seed Saving Workshop

Sonya — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 15:49:14 -0700

Start: 2008-05-10 09:30

End: 2008-05-10 14:30

Sustainable Maleny Project

Permablitz Eudlo

Sonya — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 15:41:37 -0700

Start: 2008-05-04 08:30

End: 2008-05-04 10:30

Creating a Sustainable Sunshine Coast - Nambour to Mooloolah

Next meeting

Sonya — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 15:22:07 -0700

Start: 2008-04-06 08:30

End: 2008-04-08 12:00

Sunshine Coast Energy Action Centre

Regional Powerdown Blog

Sonya — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 20:13:34 -0800

Second meeting with one of the mayoral candidates went very well. The election date is the next key timeline point for the region.

Once the new Mayor is elected and he (there are only two candidates, both male) is in place and the councillors up and running it will be time to kick start the real powerdown work in the region.

The document is still under construction, but we do have the March 15 election date and we can't do anything before that, so we have a little lee way in time at the moment.

Staff within council have been presenting peak oil seminars and an introduction to the EDAP in-house and it is being very well received.

It will be a huge undertaking to actually get this document ratified, endorsed, and the implementation process started, but I'm hoping there will also be opportunities for employment in there too. Doing this voluntarily is okay, but not sustainable - for me at least.

Lots of behind the scenes work going on in the lead up to the March 15 date; meetings, letters, writing, ideas exchanges, last minute additions to the EDAP etc etc. Also one of the students from course has devised a survey to test all candidates knowledge of and committment to both peak oil and climate change solutions. Looking forward to seeing the results.

We have one chance with this... if we do it well, we open the door for many others to follow behind us. If we stuff it up, we've made things a whole lot harder for the next EDAP.

The document will be peer reviewed to ensure credibility and strength. We need it to be bullet proof and most of resilient (just like we need all our communities to be too.)

I'll let you know who wins the election and what it means to our EDAP!

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

Climate change & Peak oil are not a problem

Sonya — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 19:43:45 -0800

I don't think climate change and peak oil are a problem... let me explain.

There is so much media, government and public attention focused on the ‘problem’ of climate change and, to a lesser degree peak oil, but aren’t we all looking at this from the wrong angle?

I see the changes in our climate and our impending energy descent as symptoms, not problems.

The problem is much deeper and much more personal.

The problem is the way we – those of us in developed countries – are living our lives.

It’s the way we consume way beyond what we actually need, it’s about the food we throw away, the culture of consumerism we’ve created and have now become enslaved to.

Try telling someone that they don’t need the latest model car, they don’t need a wardrobe full of clothes they don’t wear, that we don’t actually need shopping malls full of useless ‘crap’ and see how far you get.

Somewhere, somehow, we all started believing we had the right to live the high life. Marketers jumped on the bandwagon – or perhaps kicked it all off – and we were on our way. The latest handbags, boxes and boxes of shoes, the latest in-season fashion. Live like a celebrity!

What’s hot and what’s not? Our passion for fashion (not just clothes of course, but the latest model kitchen appliance, the celebrity style overseas get away …) is directly related to what’s hot that’s for sure. And another thing that’s hot is the climate.

Human behaviour – consumerism, land use, deforestation, fossil fuel burning – has now changed the world’s weather patterns – perhaps irreversibly. Warning after warning, each more dire than the one before and appearing in our newspapers, our nightly news programs yet… where is the revolution?

Yet, we continue on our merry way, worshipping the consumerism of today’s life… very few people have really made any serious effort to change the way they live. Our societies make it hard for those of us who would like to seriously change the way we live – you try living without a car on the Sunshine Coast!

We continue to pump out (the problem) carbon emissions in huge amounts (the symptom) despite knowing it is going to cause extinction of species (note to all – WE are a species!), destruction of the environment, major disruptions to food supply and loss of available land…

As for peak oil, do you think an ant cares that we are running out of oil, or a bird, or an elephant?

We care that we are running out of oil because we’ve built ourselves into a corner. A corner built on oil, lives dependant on oil, economies dependant on oil, employment, housing, food, mobility… all dependant on oil.

We’re running out because we’ve consumed what was available at an alarming rate. We’ve wasted oil on frivolous, meaningless things that have done nothing to really improve our lives. We’re less happy and more stressed than our pre-oil ancestors.

Looking at climate change as an environmental problem is taking us off course and away from where we should be focussing. We are losing valuable time and wasting valuable energy if we look at this as an environmental problem.

Because what happens is councils and other organisations, thinking they are doing the right thing – climate change is about the environment right? – employ environmental scientists to get to work fixing the problem.

But then, the poor person put in that position realises the problem is not the environment, the problem is people - social, economic, psychological, planning, infrastructure, systems, systems, systems.

Yes, climate change is about the environment, but climate change is only a symptom, not the problem. Same with peak oil – if we didn’t use (waste?) so much of this precious fuel and if we hadn’t designed our whole lives to revolve around it – it wouldn’t be reaching it’s peak and if it was, we wouldn’t care.

When I worked in the medical field, often patients would be being treated and hospitalised for their symptoms, not the problem. Our health system is a reflection of our current crisis.

Yes we can treat symptoms, we can mask symptoms – but unless we treat the underlying problem – and in this case it’s human behaviour and abuse of earth’s resources – we are only ever going to have a bandaid effect.

Let’s instead bite the bullet and address the real issues 1) consumption – or more to the point overconsumption and 2) a change away from linear globalised systems – resource in waste out – extraordinary transport miles and carbon emissions attached to everything we buy.

Let’s be brave and let's be visionaries
reduce consumption,
produce locally,
build resilient communities
relocalise and
make the transition to our post carbon future with our eyes wide open and looking forward.

Sunshine Coast Relocalisation- Noosa Eumundi and Districts (SCReNE)

The Case for a Sustainability Emergency

Andi Hazelwood — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 18:39:42 -0800

Creating a Sustainable Sunshine Coast - Nambour to Mooloolah

Sunshine Coast Peak Oil action interview

Sonya — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 16:13:11 -0800

SustainaBundy

Composting & worm farming workshop

Sonya — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 14:05:53 -0800

Start: 2008-02-16 09:00

End: 2008-02-16 10:00

Creating a Sustainable Sunshine Coast - Nambour to Mooloolah

Meeting outcomes for February

Sonya — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 17:14:43 -0800

Thanks to everyone who turned up despite the heavy rain. Outcomes from today's meeting;

the bulk buying project will kick off again and we will have a list of items for the next meeting - so start thinking about oil, flour, rice, tahini etc
we've agreed to run a stall at WOEIE and sell plants, produce etc there - look at having a raffle with the prize being a raised garden bed of food and a second prize of a box of produce from our gardens - if we are selling things, we'll need to pay for the site
the seed saving course looks set for May 10 - will chase up holding it at Chevallum rather than Yandina and will advertise it more broadly.
still chasing up cost of Eudlo Hall for a community film night to raise awareness about peak oil, climate change etc.
some members will be attending the Eudlo Concept Plan meeting at the Town Hall tomorrow night (and hopefully find out exactly how much the hall costs, and talk to the WOEIE organisers) and inputting relocalisation ideas and our wish list for the town
will also look into whether we could use the hall as a market place to sell produce
next working bee will probably be at Yukari's and Arnaud's place - they have a creek revegetation seedling planting planned - subject to weather of course - will let members know closer to the date.

Sunshine Coast Energy Action Centre

Regional Powerdown Blog

Sonya — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 21:29:19 -0800

Well, the meeting with the Mayor went very well and I now have a follow up meeting on Feb 18 to discuss in more depth what SEAC has been doing, our role in energy descent action planning action, the model of community action to deliver and implement and EDAP and our milestones so far.

Today was our first open day for the year at SEAC and from now on we'll be open every Saturday morning between 9am and noon at 41 Farrell Street Yandina with events posted on www.seac.net.au

SEAC is a hub that sits within the region and supports local action groups on the ground. It seems to be a model that is workable. It's great to have the opportunity to put these ideas and theory in practice and see them working in real life and being meaningful and of use to people.

This week I met with Eric from CERES in Victoria - they have a 10 acre community garden/centre that is so successful. Their website is www.ceres.org.au - very inspiring to see such good work happening in the community.

Also met with a group planning a regional event for when Roberto Perez from Cuba is here - a public screening of The Power of Community and a talk by Roberto.

Visited the Caloundra Community Climate Change Response Group and they have a lot of great ideas for this year, and SEAC is able to support them with a few ideas and resources. They even came up with a mini energy descent action plan on the night - great stuff!

Today was really inspiring too, here in Queensland we are in middle of our rainy season, so we're having torrential rain almost every day, yet 20 people turned up for a compost & worm farming workshop and to watch the Cuba DVD. They were actually queued at the door when I arrived (probably trying to find shelter)!

From this morning's session I've been invited to speak to a couple of local groups (not groups to do with peak oil or climate change - just community groups in general) about these issues.

The awareness is on the way up - of that I'm convinced.

Tomorrow morning I have our regular Eudlo Relocalisation Group meeting and the next day I'll be part of the initial meeting about an overall Eudlo Concept Plan to put to council.

It's all a lot of work and time at the moment, but I'm keen to see how successful community group models and structure can a) actually work and b) meet the needs of the community (rather than dictate them).

This week there was also a presentation delivered to the council on peak oil and local solutions to peak oil which was very well received and has generated positive feedback.

Just waiting now for the council election to see who is Mayor and we can begin poweringdown this region... yippee

PS - the EDAP is a regional project and therefore will survive the amalgamation process regardless of who gets in.