Stories From: Biodiversity

Blackheathen Bianca Nogrady is an award-winning freelance science journalist, author and broadcaster. She reflects on conversations from this year’s Blue Mountains Writers’ Festival and shares what she and her family are doing towards planetary health.

A green roof, with soil and a vegetation layer, reduces energy use, boosts biodiversity and reduces bushfire risk. Read about a home in Linden where the owners have enjoyed the benefits of their green roof for over 30 years.

There are many steps you can take to protect your garden from the impacts of hot, dry conditions. Glenbrook Native Plant Nursery and Reserve volunteers share their advice on how to help native plants thrive and, in turn, cool down your home environment.  

In Lithgow, the once common call of the Gang Gang Cockatoo has become a rarity. On Threatened Species Day 2023, Lithgow and Oberon Landcare volunteers banded together at Farmers Creek to see what could be done to address their decline.

The Lyrebird Festival in the Megalong Valley runs between the 23rd and 26th of November 2023. Immersive multimedia experiences, deep listening, conscious eating and art help to reimagine our place in the interconnected web of life.

In response to the global biodiversity crisis, which has seen around 69% of wildlife populations decline in 50 years, Lawson resident Ian Tanner has established an Ecological Funding Group which is raising funds to provide focussed donations to the Environmental Defenders Office and The Nature Conservancy.

Australian Pollinator Week 2023 is 11-19 November. And BUZZBUZZ is a new shop that has opened in Leura to champion pollinators. You can too - find out how here.

November is turtle nesting season and this month hundreds of these popular reptiles will be travelling to nesting sites across the Blue Mountains. Thanks to Springwood resident, Associate Professor Ricky Spencer and the innovative citizen science project 1 Million Turtles, there is a lot everyone can do to make sure our local turtle populations are protected and healthy.

Dr Megan Halcroft, from Hampton, is a leading educator on native bees. She's creating awareness around the critical role of our native bees in protecting biodiversity. She spoke with Planetary Health writer Tracie McMahon at Eskbank House earlier this year.

Margaret Gough ran a WIRES animal refuge for more than two decades, was District Commissioner for Scouts in the Blue Mountains, and coordinated the Lithgow Community Centre for a decade. Her home was burnt in Mount Victoria during the 2013 fires, but she’s rebuilt and is now more prepared. She continues to nurture the diverse life on ‘her patch’.