Wow! - it's April 2024, nearly 6 months after Sustain and Community Gardens Australia co-hosted the 4th national Urban Agriculture Forum and the Annual Community Gardens Gathering at the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence in Redfern. With nearly 240 people from across Australia and many international visitors, that was an amazing burst of connection, sharing, wisdom and passion - breathing more life and momentum into this growing movement across Australia.

So much has happened in the months since we've hardly had time to catch our breath. One of the really exciting developments in this space is the recent launch of LOCCAL - the LOcal Community Compost Alliance (Australia). Founded by an amazing team of community composters and sustainable food system champions, LOCCAL aims to connect community composters across Australia to build this vital part of the urban agriculture and community gardening movement.

In our first members meet-up for this year, we're thrilled that Churchill Fellow Clytie Binder will join us to share insights from her Churchill trip that took her to the USA, Canada, Mexico and Cuba to explore community-based approaches to composting and waste-related programs. Clytie will talk about how the lessons and inspiration she gained on her travels has now been translated into the LOCCAL network, about the goals and actions of this new national initiative and how you can get involved.

In the second part of the meet-up Sustain Executive Director Nick Rose, and CGA National Coordinator Naomi Lacey, will share key updates from each organisation in an open discussion.

This event is free for members of Sustain and CGA! If you are not a member you can join Sustain here and CGA here.

This is the first a series of joint members & supporters meet-ups we'll be organising this year - so help us grow this movement and become a member!

About Clytie Binder

Clytie Binder has spent much of her life finding ways to incorporate nature into every aspect of her life. Combining a passion and commitment to a fairer and more peaceful world, she uses her creativity to dream about what is possible and works hard to do what she can to achieve that dream.

Clytie works in the Waste and Resource Recovery Branch at Brisbane City Council where she has developed a number of programs including Brisbane’s Community Compost hubs program and the Master Composter course, designed not only to reduce waste to landfill but to build community and empower citizens for positive change.

Clytie has recently returned from a Churchill Fellowship tour, exploring how governments and community groups work together across towns and cities in the USA, Canada, Mexico and Cuba to support community-based approaches to composting.

About Naomi Lacey

Naomi Lacey is a permaculturalist who is passionate about promoting healthy food systems, sustainable lifestyles and cultivating community. She helped to establish the first community garden in the satellite city of Palmerston near Darwin and from there became involved with Community Gardens Australia (CGA) in 2015 then taking on the role of President in 2019.

Naomi believes that community gardens have a pivotal role to play in ensuring better health outcomes for Australians, building community, addressing the climate crisis, reducing waste and educating people.

Awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2019 to learn from community garden networks around the world, Naomi’s vision for CGA is to build the organisation into one that supports the growth and needs of community gardens around Australia, providing them with education, support, resources and sustenance to continue their work and therefore their positive impact on the communities they reside in.

About Nick Rose

Nick Rose has been the Executive Director of Sustain since its establishment in January 2016. With a background In law and community development, Nick brings more than a decade of working at the grassroots and institutional level in several Australian states in food sovereignty and sustainable food systems. He is the editor of "Fair Food: Stories From a Movement Changing The World (2015)" and the co-editor of "Reclaiming The Urban Commons: The Past, Present and Future of Food Growing in Australian Towns And Cities (2018)." Nick is also a lecturer in food systems, food policy and governance and food movements for William Angliss Institute in their Bachelor of Food Studies and Master of Food Systems and Gastronomy.