From Tai’chi to Bushcare, and from Upcycling Fashion to a range of workshops like learning about the Frogs of the Blue Mountains and How to Build a Survival Garden, the Planetary Health Centre’s Skill Share Saturdays are providing a regular opportunity to learn new skills, save money, connect with community and contribute to restoring the health of our planet. Last month, an Upper Mountains Seed Saving and Gardening Group were also launched.
Key Points:
Skill Share Saturdays are held at the Planetary Health Centre on the 1st Saturday of every month
Learn Tai’chi, Fashion Upcycling, How to Protect Wildlife, Bushcare, How to Grow Edible Gardens and more
An Upper Mountains Seed Saving and Planetary Health Gardening Group was launched at Skill Share Saturday this month
Many of us feel overwhelmed by the complexity of the challenges we’re facing locally and globally. Skill Share Saturdays, held at the Planetary Health Centre on the first Saturday of every month, are a way to re-set and put aside a few hours each month to have some fun and learn something new to manage some of these challenges: whether it’s learning how to do gentle exercise and find a calm centre with Tai’chi, or learning how to tackle all those fabrics and old clothes filling our wardrobes to give them new life and keep them out of landfill.
Tai’chi led by Virginia Field, who has more than 30 years’ experience.
Last month’s Fashion Upcycling Workshop
There’s even the opportunity to be mentored to establish new social enterprises, and to connect more deeply with the natural world as we regenerate the Planetary Health site to create habitat for wildlife with the Planetary Health Bushcare group.
Last month’s Bushcare: “Such a beautiful way to do our bit to give back to nature after all the damage we’ve caused.”
Last month participants viewed our exhibition of the Frogs of the Blue Mountains, learnt how to use the FrogID app, and were introduced to how to build frog ponds. They were delighted to see both frogs and an echidna enjoying the ponds we’d built in a previous community workshop.
Learning how to use the FrogID app in the Frogs of the Blue Mountains exhibition
Frogs of the Blue Mountains and their calls
A participant photographing a frog in our pond.
Our resident echidna enjoying our pond
How to Build a Survival Garden
Our first How to Build a Survival Garden workshop attracted 30 participants who enthusiastically launched an Upper Mountains Seed Saving and Gardening Group at the end of the session. We were keen to collaborate to build resilient, community-wide food systems and to ensure that we grow and save a wide variety of seeds to support the vanishing biodiversity in our cultivated food crops.
We discussed the way that gardens help us survive mentally and emotionally through providing spaces of beauty, joy and hands-on connection with the natural world and each other, as well as fresh locally grown food to supplement our diets.
The session started with a tour of the Centre’s Water Demonstration Site to address the critical importance of managing water to protect all life and our capacity to grow food in the future. We looked at Drip Irrigation, Wicking Beds and a Composting Seat as we discussed how to increase life in our soil and improve its water-holding capacity with worm farms and composting.
The workshop then addressed other natural systems that needed to be taken into account to build healthy and resilient food systems and began an exploration of cultures around the world who have had reliable ‘survival’ foods during major global stressors like the Great Depression.
This exploration included a case study of an Israeli academic in Galilee who has grown all his own food on 750 sq m for the last 12 years, and a range of hardy and nutrient-rich crops that, in many cases, have a long storage life which helps reduce food waste.
View the slideshow here:
A Sydney participant in the workshop shared how she now grows Loofahs so she can scrub her veggies without releasing microplastics into the waterways. She shared her seed so we can do the same.
We tasted Yacon and shared their rhizomes, as well as sharing Purple Congo Potatoes, Oca, Turmeric, and seeds for Salsify, Egyptian Spinach, Red Mustard, Echinacea, Parsley, Chard, Radish, and Red Noodle Beans.
We also agreed to start a quarterly Upper Mountains Seed Saving Get Together.
Contact planetaryhealth@bmcc.nsw.gov.au to suggest skills you’d like to learn, skills you can share, and/or if you’d like to join the Upper Mountains Seed Saving and Planetary Health Gardening Groups
In May last year a group of local women launched Homes for Older Women Blue Mountains to address the housing crisis locally. They have now successfully secured affordable accommodation for 50 older women! Writer Julie Nance helped set up the program as a volunteer and recently finished a challenging but rewarding year as Program Manager. She shares the experiences of women involved with, and impacted by, the grass-roots initiative. Read more in Springwood Area Local News here (link in profile): https://springwoodlocalnews.com/gaining-hope-and-a-home/
What glorious weather for our Skill Share Saturday today! We had a fabulous day of sharing: T`ai-chi, Fashion Upcycling, Cool Climate Edible Gardens. and then a very enjoyable and productive Bushcare Session, in which we made real progress making a dint into the massive wall of invasive weed. It`s exciting to see beautiful bushland revealed when the weed is removed! And thanks Amanda for this photo of the little frog that leapt out of the rhubarb during our Cool Climate Edible Garden workshop. #skillshare #taichi #upcycling #coolclimategardening #bushcare #planetaryhealth #katoomba #bluemountains...
After a very wet week it looks like it will be the perfect day to enjoy our Skill Share Saturday tomorrow at the Planetary Health Centre: sunshine is predicted! Start the day with gentle calming exercise in our T`ai-chi class at 8am, view our Frogs of the Blue Mountains exhibition, get hands-on experience building a Cold Climate Winter Edible Garden from 9.30 to 12.30, then join us to help restore habitat for wildlife with our Planetary Health Bushcare Group and afternoon tea in the bush from 1.30-4.30. Bookings for T`ai-chi here (link in profile): https://bit.ly/4iF9bkD Bookings for Build a Cold Climate Winter Edible Garden here (link in profile): https://bit.ly/4jqRerw
Contact Karen if you`d like to join our Bushcare Group via email at khising@bmcc.nsw.gov.au or call the Bushcare Office on 4780 5623.
The Planetary Health Centre was buzzing all day today as we welcomed over 100 first year medical students from the University of Notre Dame to learn about Planetary Health. We`re looking forward to more groups coming tomorrow! #medicine #planetaryhealth #medicalstudents #universityofnotredameaustralia #healthyplanethealthypeople...
Our Bushcare Group meets this Saturday 3 May from 1.30 to 4.30 pm. Join us! We`re restoring habitat for wildlife and `dreaming of a time when the land might give thanks for its people`. Our Bushcare group is part of the Planetary Health Centre`s Skill Share Saturday which starts at 8am with T`ai-chi and Qigong and is followed by different workshops each month, then Bushcare and a delicious afternoon tea in the bush! No experience is required. You`ll receive training on identifying native species, and invasive weeds, and training on how to treat/remove those weeds. All tools, gloves and training will be provided by Blue Mountains City Council’s Bushcare Officer. If you have any enquiries or are interested to attend, please contact Karen Hising (Bushcare Officer) via email at khising@bmcc.nsw.gov.au or call the Bushcare Office on 4780 5623. Full information as to what to wear and bring, where to meet and what to expect during the work session will then be provided. If you`d like to learn more about other Planetary Health Centre activities email planetaryhealth@bmcc.nsw.gov.au or ring 0407 437 553 #bushcare #planetaryhealth #wildlife #habitat #katoomba #bluemountains #biodiversity #robinwallkimmerer...
We`re looking forward to our next Saturday morning T`ai-chi and Qigong at 8am this coming Saturday 3 May. It`s the most beautiful gentle exercise to start the day (and the month!), and Virginia Field is a fabulous trainer with over 30 years` experience. Numbers are limited so book in here (link in profile):
Over 80 people gathered in Peace Park Katoomba today to reflect on all victims of war: those who died in battle; those who were maimed physically and/or psychologically; the suffering of loved ones and relatives on the homefront; and those who opposed conscription and war. It was an opportunity to reflect on the causes of war and call for a future of peace and reconciliation. @bm_peace_collective #peace #anzacday #peacenetwork #planetaryhealth #katoomba #bluemountains...
‘The resistance’ to the destructive forces at play in our world is alive, well and spreading infectiously in the welcoming and inclusive zine community. Zines are small, handmade independent `magazines` that are not-for-profit and made for love. Read about the recent inspiring Blue Mountains Zine Fair in our Katoomba Area Local News here: https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/blue-mountains-zine-fair/ (link in profile) and go along to the Mtns Zine Club`s monthly meet-up for making, swapping and sharing zines this Sunday 27 April at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre from 1.30 to 3.30pm (usually on third Sunday of each month) @mtnszineclub #zines #independentpublishing #resistance #planetaryhealth #club #bluemountains #katoomba #artmaking #creative...
Do you have food growing in your garden over winter? At our next Skill Share on Saturday 3 May you can find out which edible foods grow well over winter in a cold climate, and get hands-on experience building and planting out a no-dig garden bed with a winter crop at the Planetary Health Centre. Through this process you will be given an introduction to permaculture and learn more about seed saving, seed germination, composting and cold climate gardening strategies. Seeds and seedlings will be shared to help you get started at home! Places are limited so bookings essential here: http://bit.ly/4jqRerw (link in profile) #coldclimategardening #wintergardens #ediblegardens #bluemountains #katoomba #planetaryhealth #permaculture #skillshare...
At the Blue Mountains Interfaith Gathering on the 30 March, 97-year old Sister Jacinta Shailer from the Sisters of the Good Samaritan urged us to respond to the increasing challenges facing us by `joining heroic communities’. Read more about what she said and all the other inspiring contributions on the day in our Katoomba Area Local News here: https://www.katoombalocalnews.com/create-heroic-communities/ (link in profile) #interfaith #heroiccommunities #bahai #brahamkumaris #quakers #unitingchurch #catholic #bluemountains #planetaryhealth #katoomba @planetaryhealthalliance...
Our Planetary Health newsletter is now out! Read about the Trainee Administration Position available with the Planetary Health Centre, our upcoming workshops, and the Heroic Communities of the Blue Mountains who are finding housing for older women; creating inclusive and creative alternative media with zines; sharing their faith in the value of compassion, love, kindness, gratitude and joy; and sharing skills for improving physical and mental health and restoring habitat for wildlife, reducing textile waste and growing seeds and edible gardens.
Follow the link here: https://bit.ly/42l8W9O (link in profile)
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.
