Planetary Health NewsStrengthening community and restoring the health of our planet.
The Blue Mountains Zine Fair
Estee Sarsfield, who started the Mtns Zine Club in 2022
Visiting the Blue Mountains Zine Fair was exhilarating! On Saturday 29th March it was a grey wet day in Katoomba, but from the moment we stepped out of the lift at the Cultural Centre, we felt as though we’d been hit by an explosion of creativity, warmth, joy and proof that ‘the resistance’ to the destructive forces at play in our world is alive, well and spreading infectiously.
Key Points:
Zines are small, handmade independent ‘magazines’ that are not-for-profit and made for love.
The zine community is creative, inclusive and welcoming.
The Mtns Zine Club meets on the third Sunday of each month from 1.30-3.30pm at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre (27th April this month because of the holidays)
Like our hyperlocal news sites in every neighbourhood, zines offer an alternative to mainstream publishing and news, that’s not-for-profit and made for love!
They are generally small hand-made magazines, but what the Zine Fair demonstrated was that diversity is celebrated in every way in the zine community and that there are many ways to communicate complex ideas and emotions, to express your creativity, and to have fun!
At the Fair there was even an opportunity to participate in creating a collaborative Megazine:
Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the Zine Fair, which we got our first glimpse of as we stepped out of the crowded lift, was the wide age range of those attracted to zines.
The Fair included 72 tables of zine makers of all ages, and the Cultural Centre was buzzing with young people attracted to the event.
Elka Hay and Marnie Tomczyk
Elka Hay, one of the younger members of the Zine Club, who was demonstrating how she makes her zines at the Fair, is attracted to zine making because “you can do whatever you want. It is really creative.”
As well as very young and first-time zine makers, the Fair also included pioneers of zine culture in Australia like Vanessa Berry, author of Calendar, and the long-running zine series I Am a Camera (2000-present). Her works are held are held in the collections of many zine libraries in Australia and around the world.
The Mtns Zine Club, which organized the event, meets on the third Sunday of each month (but 27 April this month), and attracts between 25 and 40 participants of all ages.
These social meetings are an opportunity to both make and swap zines at the Cultural Centre, with materials and tea and coffee provided, and an opportunity to become part of this welcoming and inclusive creative community.
If you missed the Fair you can always pop in to the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre to pick up a zine from the Zine Dispensary:
Take Action:
Support zine makers by purchasing a zine from the Zine Dispensary at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre
Drop in to a meeting of the Mtns Zine Club at the Cultural Centre on the third Sunday of the month to learn more.
Join us for this fabulous workshop: Designing Your Future Home on Saturday 19 July (10am-12 noon) Create a Healthy, Comfortable and Energy-Efficient Home
Join local Passive House Designer Karina Rafailov from Earthy Haus for a relaxed, interactive, and inspiring workshop. Whether you’re planning a new build or thinking about a renovation, this session will empower you with the knowledge to create a home that’s healthier for your family and kinder to the planet.
Places are strictly limited in this hands-on workshop so bookings essential here (link in profile): https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/workshop-designing-your-future-home-tickets-1417752157869
As an increasing number of people are being affected by winter viruses, we’re offering a free session of Tai Chi and Qigong on Saturday 5 July in the warmth of our beautiful Frogs of the Blue Mountains exhibition. Places are limited so book in early here (link in profile): https://bit.ly/40fnGW2 Learn more about these Chinese medicine movement practices in the video interview with Virginia Field on our YouTube channel (link in profile) and read about how Chinese medicine helped her overcome illness as a young woman in our story: Healing Body, Mind and Spirit with Tai Chi and Qigong here (link in profile): https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/tai-chi-and-qigong/
If you’re interested in learning how to propagate native plants and are keen to help our bush regenerate, the Bushcare Seed Collectors meet on the second Tuesday of the month. Check out how they cook Banksias to release their seed and learn more about the group, and native seed collecting, in Katoomba Area Local News here (link in profile): https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/bushcare-seed-collectors/
If you’d like to join the group, contact the Bushcare officer Tracy Abbas on 4780 5623 or email tabbas@bmcc.nsw.gov.au
Littlejohni, the Rare and Endangered Northern Heath Frog, photographed in Woodford!
When the Frogs of the Blue Mountains exhibition opened at the Planetary Health Centre in March it featured photos of 20 different local frogs. We were thrilled, however, when Andy Klotz and other members of the Hawkesbury Herpetological Society recently managed to photograph another frog in Woodford: the rarely seen and endangered Litoria littlejohni, also known as the Northern Heath Frog or Orange-bellied Tree Frog. We’ve added a photo of that frog to the exhibition and created a new Frogs of the Blue Mountains video in which you can listen to its call on our YouTube channel. We interviewed Andy to learn more about the Littlejohni and how they managed to find its small local population. You can read this story in Mid Mountains Local News (link in profile). #biodiversity #bluemountainsfrogs #northernheathfrog #litorialittlejohni #bluemountains #woodford #planetaryhealth #hawkesburyherpetologicalsociety...
Our newsletter is now out! Read about how you can contribute to @bluemountainscitycouncil`s Biodiversity Conservation Strategy; watch our video on Falling in Love with Glossy Black Cockatoos; see the new photos of the rare Northern Heath Frog; watch how the Bushcare Seed Collectors cook banksias to release their seeds; learn more about Tai Chi and Qigong, the Chinese medicine movement practices; and take part in our next workshop on Designing Your Future Home with Passive House Designer Karina Rafailov from @earthy_haus
Read it here (link in profile): https://bit.ly/40e4GHr
Our video on Falling In Love With Glossy Black Cockatoos is now up on our Planetary Health YouTube channel (sorry, it`s too big to share here but there`s a link in our profile).
Jayden Gunn finishes his presentation by saying:
"Care is like a snowball. The more people you tell the bigger the snowball gets, and the further it goes. And the more we know, the more we care. And the more we know, the more we`re able to help."
The video is of our fabulous Forum on Growing Connected Landscapes for the Glossy Black Cockatoo, and includes presentations by Jayden Gunn, BirdLife Australia, Amanda Foxon-Hill from Mid Lachlan Landcare, and STEM teacher Samantha Bowden from Glenbrook Public School. There`s a link with the video on how to register for the Community Tree Planting Day in Goologong on 5 July (and it`s also in our profile). Video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCERdF21Ud0&t=13s
Today we`re enjoying eating ripe medlars! Medlars are attractive cold climate fruit trees that were popular in Medieval gardens. They`re one of the few fruits that can be harvested in late Autumn and eaten in early Winter when they`re fully ripe. This is a great time of year to plant them for a future harvest. Check out our short video on how to eat them! #coldclimategardens #ediblegardens #medlars #growyourown #planetaryhealth #bluemountains...
We`re thrilled to share that last night @BlueMountainsCityCouncil`s Planetary Health Centre won the Innovative Leadership Award (Population Under 150K) in the 2025 NSW Local Government Excellence Awards. What a great end to World Environment Day! 🌏 This award celebrates how local government can lead transformative change for a more sustainable future. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard with us to make our vision a reality. You can read more about what we`re doing at our website (link in profile): http://www.bluemountainsplanetaryhealth.com.au/ @ph_alliance #planetaryhealth #worldenvironmentday #localgovernmentleadership #nswlocalgovernmentexcellenceawards...
Blocking out a couple of hours a week to step off the treadmill and give ourselves time to nurture our relationship with the earth and ourselves, is one way to keep our creative spirit and ‘lust for life’ alive. If you haven’t done so yet, one opportunity over the next week is to spend some ‘slow’ time in the 2024 Wynne Prize exhibition at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre before it closes on 15 June. Read more in Katoomba Area Local News here (link in profile): https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/the-2024-wynne-prize/ @bluemountainsculturalcentre @artgalleryofnsw #wynneprize #landscapes #bluemountains #katoomba #artexhibition #planetaryhealth...
Recognising how violence and war impact the health of the planet, the Blue Mountains Planetary Health Initiative has become a member of the Blue Mountains Peace Collective. On Sunday 25th May, we attended a presentation by Dr Keith Suter on Making Peace in the World Today at the Leura Uniting Church. In this powerful presentation Dr Suter questions why we learn about war rather than successful peace negotiations! View the video of his presentation below and read our full story in Katoomba Area Local News here: https://bit.ly/3Fl4WgQ (link in profile)
With an extra day up your sleeve this long weekend, it`s a great opportunity to give nature a hand to regenerate and provide more habitat for our fellow species! Join our fabulous all ages Planetary Health Bushcare Group from 1.30pm and then participate in the Forum on Growing Connected Landscapes for the Glossy Black Cockatoo at 4pm, followed by drinks and nibblies! You can also start the day with a fabulous Tai Chi session at 8am. Visit our Planetary Health Pluriversity website to book in and learn more (link in profile): https://bmpluriversity.org/program/
Or ring 0407 437 553 for more information. #planetaryhealth #bushcare #katoomba #bluemountains #glossyblackcockatoos #landcare #biodiversity #habitat #wearenature #togetherwecan...
In this inspiring interview with Medlow Bath resident Amanda Foxon-Hill she talks about her work with Mid Lachlan Landcare, why Growing Connected Landscapes for the Glossy Black Cockatoo is so important, and why she loves her work so much! Read the full story in Blackheath Area Local News here: https://blackheathnews.com/connecting-landscapes-for-glossy-black-cockatoos/
Book in for the Growing Connected Landscapes Forum at 4pm this Saturday 7 June here: https://events.humanitix.com/growing-connected-landscapes-for-the-glossy-black-cockatoo Register your interest for the Community Tree Planting Day in Goologong here: https://events.humanitix.com/glossy-black-cockatoo-community-tree-planting-5
There’s a small group of passionate Blue Mountains Bushcarers who meet monthly to collect and clean local native seed. We met up with them to find out how and why they cooked Banksias to release seeds, how they cleaned the seeds of a variety of different Gahnia species, and why they love being part of the Bushcare Seed Collectors Group.
