| Landcare Australia Limited | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 10 October 1990 |
| Organisation | Non-profit organization |
| Office Location | Sydney, Melbourne, Perth |
| CEO | Brian Scarsbrick (1990-2009) Heather Campbell (2009-Present) |
| Volunteers | 60,000 |
| Landcare Groups | 4,000 |
| Coastcare Groups | 2,000 |
| Websites | http://www.landcareonline.com.au http://www.coastcare.com.au http://www.juniorlandcare.com.au |
Landcare Australia Limited is a partnership between the community, government and business to carry out environmental protection in Australia. Landcare Australia Limited is a not for profit, non-political bipartisan organisation, it does not lobby and is not an advocacy organisation. Most Landcare and Coastcare groups are however allowed to lobby and see themselves as advocacy groups.
Landcare Australia Limited (the organisation, often abbreviated to LAL) was formed by the Commonwealth Government on 10 October 1989[1] as a private non-profit company to manage the national public awareness and sponsorship campaign for the "Decade of Landcare". LAL was established as part of the Decade of Landcare to raise awareness and corporate sponsorship for landcarers.
Landcare (the movement) is a uniquely Australian partnership between the community, government and business, consisting of approximately 4,000 Landcare and 2,000 Coastcare volunteer groups.[2]
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The Decade of Landcare[3] initiative was launched in the 1989 Statement on the Environment by Prime Minister Bob Hawke. The initiative began as a joint National Farmers' Federation - Australian Conservation Foundation proposal to the Commonwealth Government for action on land degradation. This approach emphasised the importance of self-help, relying heavily on local community groups, within a framework that recognised the responsibilities of the Commonwealth, state and local governments.
The Statement on the Environment identified only very general landcare objectives. The Soil Conservation Advisory Committee then recommended to the Minister for Primary Industries and Energy that landcare should have a strategic framework. This proposal gained strong support and the Australian Soil Conservation Council agreed to prepare the plan for a Decade of Landcare.
The result was the national Decade of Landcare Plan. This comprises: a National Overview (agreed by the Commonwealth Government, the state and territory governments and leading non-government organisations) and individual state, territory and Commonwealth component plans.
The Decade of Landcare initiative has been in place since 1989. The national Decade of Landcare Plan was negotiated during 1991 and finalised in 1992.
The Commonwealth Government, state and territory governments and the landcare community have allocated considerable resources to the Decade of Landcare Plan. It is important to assess the impact of that expenditure. At a meeting in August 1992, the Australian Soil Conservation Council agreed to national reviews of the Plan in 1994, 1997 and 2000 to publicly assess progress in dealing with land degradation.
These objectives have been very successfully met over the past twenty years with the awareness of the landcare logo in the general public being measured by Roy Morgan in 2009 at 79%. In the 2009 financial year $8.6m of non-government corporate funding was raised and $46.7m (equivalent advertising value) of media coverage was generated.
In the early 1990s, the Australian Government’s Resource Assessment Commission undertook an inquiry into the management and use of the resources of Australia's coastal zone. The inquiry was the most comprehensive investigation ever undertaken into the coastal zone. One of the recommendations of the Resource Assessment Commission was that a national coastal action program should be established that involved all governments, community and industry groups with responsibility for and interests in the management of coastal zone resources.
The initial Coastcare program was established by the Australian Government in 1995. In 1997 the Coastcare program was rolled into the Australian Governments’ Natural Heritage Trust Clean Sea Program.
While there were community groups undertaking environmental works along the coast before this, the term Coastcare and Coastcare groups started around the mid 1990s. Coastcare is, in many ways, an extension of the Landcare movement focusing on the coast. Coastcare is community volunteers caring for their coast. Coastcare volunteers identify local environmental problems and work together to achieve practical solutions. There are currently 2,000 Coastcare groups all around the country.
Coastcare and landcare groups tackle problems like dune erosion, loss of native plants and animals, storm water pollution, weeds and control of human access to sensitive areas.
Junior Landcare is about encouraging young people to play an active role in ensuring the safe future of their environment.
Launched in May 1998, Junior Landcare recognises that the contribution of young people is vital if the land they are to inherit is to be in the best possible condition. Junior Landcare also encourages young people to develop a sense of responsibility to the land and other natural resources.
Landcare activities can be successfully integrated into a range of topics within the school curriculum or be part of scouts or similar youth group activities.
Landcare programs organised by schools and youth groups provide a great framework for learning in outdoor ‘living classrooms’. Junior Landcare enables kids of all ages to become involved with their local landcare group and work on a range of environmental projects.
In 2007-08, Junior Landcare called on Australian kids to become Dung Detectives and take part in a national science project mapping the distribution of dung beetles across Australia.
Over several months, kids tracked down dung beetles in their local paddocks, put them in matchboxes and sent them to CSIRO scientists for identification and registration.
Throughout Summer 2008-09 over 10,000 Junior Landcarers challenged themselves to grow Australia's biggest watermelon.
Opened to schools, groups or individuals under 16, the challenge inspired kids to think about sustainability and the environment. It taught them about local food, "food miles", healthy eating, sustainable gardening practices and encouraged them to get off the couch and experiencing nature.
Entrants received free watermelon seeds thanks to Yates as well as a project kit with tips and expert advice for growing a whopper melon.
Australians have taken steps to help the environment by collecting more than 200,000 bags in support of the Coles Plastic Bag Challenge.
Schools, businesses and individuals were urged to collect their unwanted plastic bags in October 2009 and place them inside new recycling bins in Coles stores nationwide, with all proceeds from the challenge donated to Junior Landcare and the Coles School Gardens Grants Program.
In total, 229,712 bags were collected by more than 300 participants during the four week challenge, with the majority of bags being collected by 185 primary and secondary schools across Australia.
Similar to the Watermelon Challenge, this challenge ran through Summer 2009-10. Participants challenged themselves to grow Australia's biggest pumpkin.
The Sustainable Farming Program is a collaboration between Landcare Australia and Woolworths Limited to develop, improve and encourage sustainable farming practices.
Sustainable Farming Grants are aimed at supporting farmers develop or implement good ideas to improve the sustainability of farming practices. The projects develop or support the adoption of improved farming practices, production techniques, technology or products. Projects focus on issues such as climate change adaptation, crop or animal production, water or nutrient use efficiency, management of waste or salinity. The projects also provide results of interest and benefit to other farmers. Innovative ideas that will share information about successful strategies for adapting to climate change and managing under variable rainfall are mostly traits of successful applications.
LAL receives funds from governments, corporate organizations and private donations. Prior to 1993 the Commonwealth government provided untied funds to cover LAL’s administration expenses. Since 1993 funds have been provided through Commonwealth departments (The Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry for Landcare and The Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts for Coastcare) for the support of both the Landcare and Coastcare programs. These grants support defined deliverables such as significantly improving the National Landcare Directory, National Landcare Awards, Quarterly Landcare publication, Landcare Week and Coastcare Week activities. The aim of these is to increase the level of community volunteering in both Landcare and Coastcare and to increase corporate sponsorship.
The State governments in Victoria and Western Australia support the operations of LAL through funds or in-kind resources to provide for outcomes specific to these States.
Funds are received from Corporate sponsors to support projects undertaken by groups operating under the landcare and coastcare ethos. These funds are dispersed via a combination of competitive and non-competitive grants. In order to manage this process and provide the appropriate reports and PR outcomes for the sponsors management fees are also charged to sponsor. These vary depending upon the type and extent of partnership.
Given the enormous community awareness of the work that landcare and coastcare groups do LAL has in recent years received individual donations and bequests. A policy has been developed that meets the wishes of the donors and provides for the use of these funds for predominantly on the ground work by groups.
The partnership model has been tested in numerous industry sectors and across a broad range of marketing and corporate citizenship platforms. Although there may be some ‘givens’ involved with a sponsorship, each partnership LAL develops is distinctive in its application; it should not be considered as something you ‘buy’ off the shelf. LAL works closely with its corporate partners to identify their unique needs and build a partnership which is aligned to the partners’ business objectives and risks, as well as their overarching vision, mission and values.
Awareness of the Landcare and Coastcare brands makes them the most recognized Australian environmental brands within the general population. LAL raises awareness for the brands through media campaigns, community service announcements, newsletters and publications, and key events such as the National Landcare Awards and Landcare Week activities. Awareness is also raised through the commercial use of the brands by sponsors. The highest profile of these in recent years has been the use of the Junior Landcare logo on the Coles reusable bags.
LAL owns the trade marks to these brands but in effect is actually custodian for these communities brands. Thus LAL considers very carefully how these brands are used. LAL works with the community groups and individuals under the landcare banner to make sure that they are able to use the ‘caring hands’ logos to support the work of their groups. From a commercial perspective LAL controls the use of the logos to make sure that they are only used, in approved ways, by companies that have an agreed sponsorship relationship with the landcare and coastcare movements. As the ‘caring hands’ have a very high commercial value LAL works to make sure that companies who partner with LAL pay an appropriate license fee for the use of the logos.
A rebrand of the Landcare Australia, Coastcare and Junior Landcare logo was introduced in May 2010.[4]
LAL is a small team based predominantly in Sydney and Melbourne. The main areas of focus of the team are:
Partnerships – these staff members manage all of the relationships with Corporate sponsors and with the landcare and coastcare groups for the use of donor funds
Public Relations and Marketing – these staff deliver the public relations benefits to sponsors. They also manage key campaigns and events such as the National Landcare Awards, Landcare Week and Coastcare Week, as well as all communications such as e-newsletters, website upkeep and the national landcare publication.
Corporate Services – this group manages the complex financial structures and processes as well as other governance arrangements.
The staff fully supported by the LAL Board of Directors, LAL Advisory Council and the newly formed LAL Steering Committee which will oversee key deliverables against LAL’s contract with the Commonwealth Government.
Mr Ellis is Chancellor of Monash University, Chair of Pacifica Group Limited and director of several companies, including the ANZ Bank, and was formerly a Rhodes Scholar and Chair of BHP.[7]
Brian Scarsbrick studied at Hawkesbury Agricultural College Macquarie University – Sydney and Massey University – New Zealand, to gain a broadly based grounding in agricultural, biological and earth sciences.
After 13 years as a front line Farm Advisory Officer with NSW Agriculture, he served as Regional Director of Agriculture and Fisheries in two regions of New South Wales.
In 1993 Brian was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to study sustainable land management and sponsorship marketing in Europe and the USA.[8]
Before joining Landcare Australia Limited, Heather was National Operations Manager with Cheetham Salt and was previously the Group General Manager of Operating Risk and Sustainability for Amcor. She has extensive experience in executive management, highly developed skills in leadership, sustainability, environmental and risk management in corporations and the not for profit sector in Australia and internationally. Currently a Director of Earthwatch Australia, Heather has a passion for environmental research and education, and believes fully in the benefits of linking scientists with enthusiastic individuals. Heathers educational qualifications are in Agricultural Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Occupational Hygiene and Business.[9]
The National Landcare Awards happen once every two years. Finalists from the State and Territory Landcare Awards the year before become the nominees in the National Landcare Awards.
The 2010 National Landcare Awards ceremony were held at Parliament House, Canberra on Thursday 24 June, celebrating 20 years of community environmental volunteering in Australia. 88 individual and group projects were in the running for a prestigious National Award.
Awards celebrate the achievements of ordinary people making an extraordinary difference. The 2009 State and Territory Award winners make up the 88 finalists from across Australia with the overall winners to be announced in front of 600 people at the National Landcare Gala Awards ceremony and dinner.
The winners of the 2010 Landcare Awards, by state were[10]
The National Landcare Awards celebrate the work of individuals and groups from around Australia who are making a significant contribution to the environment, and they are not limited by age, gender or culture. The People’s Choice Awards provides an opportunity for everyone to learn more about the finalists and their passion for the environment.
The first Landcare People's Choice Award ran in the 2008 National Landcare Awards. In 2009, each state and territory also ran the People's Choice Award. Winners from this category at the state level do not become finalists at the national level. The general public are encouraged to participate in the Awards by voting for their favourite finalist in The People’s Choice Award.
Educating students about the importance of the environment is a priority for Wyong Creek School in the Yarramalong Valley near Gosford in NSW. With only 30 students, it is one of the smallest schools in the country, yet the students are making a big impact on the local environment. They have brought their neighbouring creek back to life, and are now enjoying the return of platypus, echidna and kangaroo to the area. They are minimising waste in the school, have built vegetable gardens and are collecting their own water for the gardens.
Educating students about the importance of the environment is a priority for Wyong Creek School in the Yarramalong Valley near Gosford in NSW. With only 30 students it is one of the smallest schools in the country, yet its students are making a big impact on the local environment. Principal Gale Ball drew up a 10-year environmental plan a few years ago which aimed to teach children lifelong skills to care for the planet. Gales plan put principles of ecological sustainability firmly on the agenda and now students are taking ownership over the care of their beautiful environment, not only within the school grounds but beyond.
Gale identified a number of environmental challenges facing the school and local community. The Wyong Creek School in situated along a creek which flows into the nearby the Wyong River. The riparian corridor had been severely neglected. It was covered in privet, lantana, blackberry and Wandering Jew. Neighbouring cattle were wandering into the area to drink from the creek causing serious erosion along the banks.
The students tackled the problem head on. They were successful in gaining a grant to fence out the cattle. They installed a water trough for the cows in a nearby paddock and filled the trough with water collected in a new tank that they had installed beside their environmental outdoor classroom.
They propagated native seeds in the school greenhouse from seeds collected along the riparian zone and began a regeneration project along the creek. The students carried out dense plantings along the creek to deal with the erosion. The school then received funding to plant an additional 200 trees and grasses along the bank. The soil is now holding together and the area is flourishing.
The NSW coast historically had a thriving platypus population, but these animals are now under threat from yabby traps being set along creeks and rivers. The traps have been made illegal east of the Newell Highway, but some in the community continue to use them. In an effort to encourage platypus back into its creek, the school became involved in a regional project known as the Platypus Awareness and Conservation Team (PACT). Local councils, Waterwatch, RTA, community members and local schools are all working together to educate the broader community of the serious plight of the platypus. The school is disseminating an education kit, which highlights the problem of yabby traps.
Back in the school grounds, students replaced water-hungry camellias, honeysuckle and gardenias in the school garden with native species. They sited water tanks strategically throughout the grounds to take care of water needs. The students then took a hard look at the products the school was buying. They made sure that all printer cartridges were recycled and only environmentally friendly products were brought into the school.
Students then moved on to establish effective waste management systems. Recycling stations now ensure that all paper is recycled either through reuse in the classrooms or by using recycling facilities. They dealt with food scrap waste by building worm farms to compost the scraps and building vegetable gardens that are nourished by the compost.
The students efforts have been richly rewarded. They are enjoying the food that they have grown in their school gardens. Snow peas and strawberries are definite favourites! Their riparian corridor is flourishing with healthy trees and grasses. Platypus have again been spotted in the area as well as echidna, wombats, kangaroos, snakes and lizards.[11]
Landcare NSW Inc evolved from a community desire to have a representational body of Landcarers at the state level. Following the Musters at Lake Macquarie and Tamworth in 2007, a number of issues were raised that threatened the ongoing effectiveness and existence of Landcare and Landcare groups in NSW. Landcare NSW Inc was formed to provide a forum to address those issues seen as barriers to the success of Landcare in NSW.
The members of Landcare NSW are endorsed members from Landcare regions, districts, or composite groups. Landcare NSW Inc has developed clear objectives and terms of reference to guide the direction of the organisation as it moves forward to promote Landcare.[12] http://www.landcare.nsw.gov.au/
http://www.landcarevic.net.au/ Strongly supported by The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) The Victorian Landcare Gateway is an interactive and informative website where users can find all the news from Victorian Landcare groups and networks, including volunteer activities, events, project information and contacts. The Gateway also hosts an online discussion forum, allows you to find Landcare groups and networks in your region and is chock-full of resources, case studies, grant information and toolkits for community groups.
Coast Action/Coastcare is also a program by The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) The Coast Action/Coastcare program was established in 1995 to encourage and support the hard work of volunteers working to make a difference all along the Victorian coastline. Today, the program works with more than 25,000 people annually, to improve the management of Victoria's precious coastal assets, and to develop positive and foster positive community attitudes towards marine and coastal environments.
The Coast Action/Coastcare team consists of the State Program Coordinator based in Melbourne, and the statewide network of nine facilitators based in DSE offices along Victoria's coast.[13]
Tasmanian Landcare Association (TCLA) TCLA are a non-government, independent association of Landcare, Coastcare, Bushcare, Waterwatch and ‘Friends of’ groups in Tasmania. Formed in 1994, TCLA aim is to provide an independent, cohesive voice on behalf of the community Landcare movement, increasing our involvement in government decision-making.
TCLA mission is to work with Landcare groups, community organisations and government agencies to ensure that Tasmania can reverse land degradation and achieve ecologically sustainable management of our land and water resources.
Supported by the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia http://www.agric.wa.gov.au/PC_91753.html?s=1001
Landcare groups in the ACT are supported by 3 Catchment Coordinators and Landcare Coordinators , who work closely with local communities and across the border into NSW. They play a vital role in helping new groups to form and supporting existing groups in their development and effective operation. Some examples of issues being addressed by Landcare in the ACT are:
Groups in the NT: http://www.nt.gov.au/nreta/natres/landcare/groups/index.html
The formation of The Queensland Landcare Foundation (now known as Landcare Queensland Limited) was spearheaded by a number of long-time landcare support workers who saw the need for a Queensland based organisation equipped to encourage corporate sector and public investment in the future of Landcare in Queensland. The Queensland Landcare Foundation was launched in Townsville during the 2002 State Landcare Conference.
Landcare Queensland continues to develop partnerships to support the landcare community of Queensland and also provides essential support services to this network by providing relevant and up to date information and responding to community requests. Since its formation Landcare Queensland has facilitated the delivery of significant project funds to landcare groups in Queensland and continues to work towards the establishment of long-term strategic partnerships to support education, awareness and on-ground activities in Queensland.
Landcare Queensland’s board members hold much corporate knowledge about Landcare in Queensland and remain an essential link to both the community groups the organisation represents and the businesses and corporate partners supporting the landcare network. http://www.landcare.org.au/default.htm