LIFE IN THE LANEWAY/SLOW LANE

For four years we’ve been keeping a little laneway nearby looking good. It’s a spot where rubbish might otherwise be dumped, and is now full of a variety of plants including edibles, exotic climbers and indigenous plants.

The laneway is the track to a local primary school so we catch families on their way, and invite them into a bit of watering, pruning, harvesting and swapping notes about what we see around us.

One recent morning had a few other delights as well: a request about looking out for lost items, the response that our sweet potato that was edging its way to the surface of the soil meant that we have a little city farm! Contact with a parent near the school who has been involved with local verge gardens, who can help extending our network of people interested in past gardening activities.

We keep an eye on other little patches nearby that just need some attention and time, to keep things looking cared for. Council’s ‘Living Connections’ program is inviting anyone to contact them for information and possibly guidance as to what to grow locally to enhance native habitat for local birds, insects and lizards. That’s one of our next steps.

And there’s another Council initiative that gets us escalating our local sustainable actions. For 18 months they’ve been running an intergenerational program (over 60s and under 15s). The aim is to mobilise more households in taking action towards care for the environment, on a local level. The group has been part of developing a game that involves undertaking environmental 40 tasks, with others in your networks or neighbourhood, and building connections by doing so.
Tasks include:
Donate to a charity shop
Feel naturally happy: go to a park and enjoy an activity
Calculate your monthly emissions
Swap an item with a neighbour or friend

If you’d like to participate in this fun and energising community game, contact the Sustainability Officers at Waverley Council.: Alejandra Torres or Suzanne Dunford