Organisations

The Homes for Older Women (HOW) program is a successful community-based solution to the national housing crisis. Since launching in May last year, the Blue Mountains not-for-profit has secured accommodation for 47 older women facing housing insecurity and homelessness.

The concept of planetary health is rapidly gaining attention globally, as the world increasingly confronts the interconnected challenges of environmental degradation, climate change, and public health crises. But what does the term 'planetary health' really mean, and why does it matter?

What do tea, samurai clans, William McArthur, Benjamin Franklin, Vietnam and the Botanic Gardens at Mount Tomah have in common? Read on to explore the way camellias and cultures are woven together and why it’s important we think about conserving biodiversity as a global project implemented at a local level.

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.

The Rotary Club of Blackheath has launched a Birds, Bees, Butterflies and Bats Pollinator Project. With 65% of the world’s flowering plants, including crops and trees, requiring some form of animal pollination, helping pollinators is critical to planetary health. Club President Sherlie McMillian explains how we can support pollinators in Blackheath, the Blue Mountains and beyond.

Conservation Volunteers Australia recently facilitated a workshop in Blackheath where volunteers, citizen scientists and experts came together to share knowledge, survey bird populations and monitor nest boxes installed to support antechinus, glider and possum populations.

Habitat for Humanity is supplying the Medlow Bath community with CB radios and providing property services to vulnerable people to reduce risk during disasters.

A Blue Mountains program called Connect at Home started during COVID to support early childhood language development. Through the program families access high quality storybooks and are guided on how to optimise learning at home.

There are many voices in this debate. There is a political split, drawn primarily down partisan lines. There are also differing positions among Aboriginal leaders and communities on the best way forward.

Hamish Dunlop interviews Deborah Wells in the Blackheath Campbell Rhododendron Gardens. She shares how a group of passionate and dedicated volunteers have created a community space that is a haven for all species, and how they've helped it recover from drought, fire, flood and pandemic.