Friends of the Earth membership drive 8-12 June
Friends of the Earth is a grassroots network of activists working for social and environmental justice. Our Melbourne HQ is located on Wurundjeri country at 312 Smith Street, Collingwood, home to our campaigns office and social enterprise Food Co-op and Cafe. Like many other grassroots groups we are experiencing the financial impacts of the pandemic lockdown, with significant loss of income. A Friends of the Earth membership will help to keep our vibrant community space operating and cover additional covid-safe costs, building financial capacity to plan and campaign for a better future. You don't have to wait until June to become a member - you can do it online now!
Become a member of Friends of the Earth here
All members receive discounts at the Food Co-op & Cafe, access to the Cooperative Power energy network, a subscription to Chain Reaction magazine and our newsletter, and special offers from our sponsors.
Order from FoE’s Food Co-op click and collect online shopping here
Accessible transport for all digital action 19 May
Join us for a digital action on Tuesday 19 May to call for accessible transport for all Victorians! Our Sustainable Cities collective is partnering with the Disability Resources Centre to fight for equal access to public transport. Over the last few weeks, the COVID-19 lockdown has given us a shared experience of physical and social isolation. For many people with disabilities this lockdown is normal life. We're calling on everyone, whether you find public transport inaccessible, or if you understand how important it is to have a transport system that works for everyone, to post a message or photo with the hashtag #LifelongLockdown on Facebook on Tuesday 19 May.
Sign up here or RSVP to the Facebook event here
Listen to 3CR’s Dirt Radio show: north-east link road project podcast
Listen to 45 years of Acting Up! Sustainable Cities campaigns podcast
Time to get on with offshore wind energy
The Victorian government has stepped up its advocacy for offshore wind, with Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio telling the federal government to “put ideology aside”, stop delaying and bring offshore wind laws to Parliament. Friends of the Earth welcome the Minister’s comments, and say that legislating for offshore wind is critical to pave the way for the sector, which could be a game changer for climate action and play a key role in post-Covid recovery efforts.
Further information on offshore wind laws here
Take action on offshore wind here
Front page news: surging seas and eroding coastline
The Act on Climate collective have had a jam-packed month, continuing to campaign in lockdown for Victoria to become the national leader on climate action. After lobbying and working closely with coastal community groups, on Monday morning we made headlines with a front page story in The Age about the impacts of climate change and coastal erosion at Inverloch and Apollo Bay.
Read all about it! Erosion from surging seas threatens roads, homes and beaches.
The Act on Climate collective has been working with community members in Inverloch for the past year to sound the alarm on coastal erosion, as sandbags and rock walls have failed to protect coastal infrastructure. Community members say we need more than a band-aid solution. We need ambitious climate action from the Andrews government.
Become a climate action champion!
Do you want to be part of the solution? Join the People’s Climate Strategy for Victoria online launch on 3 June and get involved in the next stage of our ACT on climate campaign. Friends of the Earth’s Act on Climate collective is seeking the support of community climate champions and allies to write a climate action strategy to deliver to the State government. We need your help in the coming months to create a robust climate strategy, capable of getting us to zero emissions as soon as possible, and leaving no Victorian behind! Join us for a special online launch event as we outline the project and how you can get involved. RSVP here to join the online launch event and become a climate action champion!
Geoengineers defy moratorium to brighten clouds?
In a shocking move, a small group of Australian geoengineers have defied an international moratorium on the deployment of geoengineering technologies. To accomplish this, the project rebranded a risky geoengineering technology. In this case, brightening clouds to reflect solar energy back into space as a plan to save the Great Barrier Reef. There is an international moratorium which states that “no geoengineering activities should be carried out” until a “global, transparent and effective control and regulatory mechanisms for geo-engineering, in accordance with the precautionary approach” can be put in place. So it is disappointing to see this project underway. Further information on test planetary engineering scheme here
Strzelecki Koala Action Team update
In early February, Friends of the Earth was appalled by yet another koala massacre in the south west of the State. A visit to the region last month confirmed our worst fears; koalas that survive plantation logging are now facing starvation and are on the move across the landscape. In order to get people to better understand some of the dynamics occurring in translocated koala populations, Friends of the Earth produced this short video to watch here.
Sign the petition to protect Victoria’s koalas here
Koala mapping success story
For many years, Friends of the Earth has been concerned about the only endemic koala population remaining in Victoria and South Australia. This population inhabits the Strzelecki Ranges-South Gippsland region of Victoria, and we continue this work in 2020 to further our understanding of the animal and habitat by conducting surveys. Just before the COVID-19 lockdown, FoE conducted a further 92 koala site surveys and visited 420 locations to better understand the range of the animal by concentrating the surveying on preferred koala feed trees. This has resulted in a number of new koala populations being added to the Strzelecki koala map database available here.
Read the full story on koala mapping here
Contribute to Friends of the Earth’s Strzelecki Koala Action Team here
Myth busting a nuclear future in a climate crisis
Friends of the Earth ACE anti-nuclear collective in collaboration with Don’t Nuke the Climate, this month launched our new series Myth Busters: clearing up the nuclear industry. Traversing the most frequently asked questions you may have about the nuclear power industry, we are debunking the myths around the views that nuclear power is a viable energy source to fuel us and save us from the climate crisis. To find out why you need to solve climate change for nuclear plants to even survive, and what a radioactive future would really look like, we welcome people to join us on instagram @acenuclearfree and facebook here
Also check out Don’t nuke the climate website here
We will have awesome articles and resources linked to our posts for people who want to dig a little deeper.
Cry Me a River conversation replay
Cry Me a River, in conversation with Margaret Simons and Mel Gray, was an absolutely fabulous online event. It was an in depth discussion into the issues plaguing the Murray Darling Basin as a whole with a closer look at how this is hurting locals and the rivers we love so much. In case you missed it, the discussion is posted to both Facebook and Youtube. Please watch and share it with your friends.
Watch on Facebook here
Join the River Country collective here
Transform Waste campaigns & podcast
FOE continues to advocate for resource recovery, to repair, reuse and recycle, calling for transformation of the waste management cycle, and resistance to nuclear waste dumps. Find out how to be part of the solution to eliminate waste and pollution, to stop valuable materials ending up in landfill, and to help heal our environment. Read all about it here.
Listen: 45 years acting up! Transform Waste campaigns podcast
Great Pacific garbage patch (photo: Scott Snowden)
Maybe Mullet FoE fundraiser
#StayAtHome Haircut & colour to support Friends of the Earth.
MAYBE ... You’ve been considering a new look during your isolation experience?
MAYBE ... You’re frustrated with the lack of action on climate and environmental issues?
MAYBE ... You’re looking for a fun way to stay connected and have fun during the pandemic?
MAYBE ... You are also considering ... a MULLET?!
Sign up to Maybe Mullet here