Welcome! The main focus of this blog is on campaign & petition supporters. I will be inviting both supporters and guests to write about the campaign and its goals, to use their voice, influence and networks to raise awareness.
We will be able to gain valuable perspectives from head teachers, teachers, TV chefs, nutritionists, school cooks, experts in renewable energy, CEO’s, writers, nurses, bee keepers and more.
My questionnaire for schools doubles as a manifesto for change. Goals are broken down into 8 sections: 1) Renewable Energy & Energy-efficiency; 2) Bio-resources; 3) Food production – growing; 4) Food preparation & science; 5) Rain-water harvesting & filtration; 6) Air quality; 7) Selling produce, saving money, making money and 8) Mindfullness, improving health and wellbeing.
From solar power to anaerobic digestion, food for health and food as medicine, to increasing life-satisfaction, schools should be teaching relevant life-skills for healthy and sustainable futures.
The manifesto is long, how will the changes be funded? how can we fit it all in to an already full curriculum? The hope is that school food-growing and self-sufficiency would be it’s own dedicated subject area within the curriculum, an accepted subject just like maths or English, with a catchier title perhaps: Eco-studies, Green futures, perhaps the children/young people could come up with a name?
The key however, is to get this concept in front of the powers that be, the Government. It will require thousands more names on the petition, it will require raising awareness and profile and that CAN be achieved with the amazing contributions of this campaigns supporters.
The campaign has got this far with zero funding. I am currently considering setting it up as a not-for-profit organisation so that I can apply for funding. There are lots of plans and I have been very lucky to have the support of web designer and musician Tim Steward who built the website for free. Based in Brisbane, he manages the site and I’d like to thank him very much.
I hope that you will look forward to reading the blogs as much as I do. Thank you for your interest and support, if you haven’t signed the petition, please do and share it with your networks.
Best wishes,
Ian Dunn