WANT TO CREATE THE FUTURE OF MELBOURNE…?

Future Canvas Inc., Future Melbourne and the City of Melbourne are proud to present Futurelab, a FREE two-day workshop to be held on 17 and 18 May 2008 at Digital Harbour, Docklands. Designed to stimulate creativity and social entrepreneurship among a new generation of Melburnians, Futurelab’s objective is to create and organise community projects that will make Melbourne a more sustainable and innovative city in which to live.

Futurelab is designed to spark youth-driven creative community projects to tackle the city’s social and environmental problems. Through creating small, tangible projects, participants will work towards building communities that are healthy and are in balance with their environment.

Day 1 Creativity:
The first day involves extensive tours through the city (our canvas) where participants are encouraged to observe everyday life and processes around them and become aware of specific issues, with the view to generate solutions and new visions of interaction - both between people, and their environments.

Day 2 Innovation:
The second day involves a consolidation of the ideas generated on day one; through discussions and interactions with experts in a variety of fields participants will focus and develop a few key ideas into projects with social and environmental benefits. They will leave with ownership of, and inspiration from, these projects. A number of events have been planned post Lab to encourage and support the implementation of these projects.

Also.. we will also be making community waste sculptures, listening to local dj Dave Cull … mixing his vinyl collection & listening to an amazing array of social entrepreneurs share their expertise with us.

and…Lord Mayor John So is also expected to make an appearance on the second day to hear about the amazing project ideas you develop to make the city a better “place to be” (have to live up to the number plate slogan).

How to register
Register online at: www.futuremelbourne.com.au
Registration closes Monday 12th May - be quick places are limited!
Participation is free.

Queries and more info:
futurelab @futurecanvas.org
Cathryn Kriewaldt
Senior Tutor
School of Global Studies, Social Science and Planning
RMIT University
GPO Box 2476V, Melbourne 3001
Room 48.4.12
t: +61 3 9925 8261

The State Government has asked for public comment on Sir Rod Eddington’s Investing in Transport Report. Yarra City Council is holding a Community Information Session to discuss the recommendations in the report, the consultation process, issues affecting Yarra and key transport issues affecting the east-west corridor.

When: 6.45pm (for 7.00pm start) - 9.00pm, Monday 12 May, 2008
Where: Main Hall, Collingwood Town Hall, 140 Hoddle Street, Collingwood
RSVP: Wednesday 7 May, 2008 by calling 9205 5025

The meeting will include information about Sir Rod Eddington’s 20 recommendations, a presentation on transport patterns and needs in the eastern corridor and a round table discussion of the issues.

Council strongly encourages members of the Yarra community to make their own submission on the report to the Department of Infrastructure by mid-July.

For more information on the report and consultation process visit www.doi.vic.gov.au and follow the ‘East-West Link Needs Assessment’ link.

As part of our research at the Victorian Eco-Innovation Lab, VEIL , we are currently designing an online, urban food production map of Melbourne. We are asking people involved in the local food / sustainabilty sector to contribute feedback to the design of this project.

We hope that the VEIL food map will:
• Record the quantity & variety of urban food production present within Melbourne;
• Allow Melbournians to contribute data to this site;
• Form a database for people to use to design new products & services towards greater sustainability within Melbourne;
• Provide evidence that urban food production currently exists within Melbourne in order to foster greater policy support of this industry.

The type of produce to be recorded on this website is food that is primary produce, ie. fresh & not value-added/ processed . These food examples must be larger than household production. Examples of urban food production models include: community gardens, commercial production and market gardens, shared private gardens (such as extended family/ group of households), & food produced on public space (such as street edge gardening, nature strips & street trees).

To test the site and contribute feedback visit http://www.veilmap.sustainablemelbourne.com/.

To move around the map:
• Either double-click the cursor to zoom in or use the scale on the top left-hand corner to zoom in or out;
• Hold the cursor down to drag the image from side-to-side;
• Swap from ‘map’ to ‘satellite’ to ‘both’ views by clicking on the boxes on the top right-hand side.

To submit or edit data:
• First, check if the site has already been added. If it hasn’t, submit data on http://www.veilmap.sustainablemelbourne.com/record_entry.php
• If you would like to edit data on the site please email the details to me at fedwards @unimelb.edu.au.

Please email all feedback to Ferne Edwards at fedwards @unimelb.edu.au.

The section below is republished with permission from the Going Solar Transport Newsletter #55, 15 April 2008, compiled by Stephen Ingrouille. Going Solar, www.goingsolar.com.au/transport. This newsletter provides an excellent commentary on local sustainable transport issues in Melbourne.

Hovercraft on Port Phillip Bay
“A fleet of 10 custom-built hovercraft could be transporting thousands of commuters between Geelong and Melbourne daily. The air-cushioned boats could be built and tested locally, with a Victorian manufacturer said to be considering moving to Geelong. The move would bring millions of dollars to the region and create hundreds of jobs, city leaders say. Sustainable transport consultant Stephen Ingrouille has almost finished a feasibility study to run the ferries between Geelong, Port Melbourne, Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula. ‘Hovercraft are perfect for the bay because it’s shallow,’ Mr Ingrouille said. ‘I’d be keen to see hovercraft built in the city because it’s an excellent way of replacing some of the manufacturing industry jobs.’ He said the newgeneration hovercraft would be efficient, relatively cheap to build and have minimal impact on the environment. They would hold 80-100 passengers and cross Port Phillip Bay at peak times. ‘I’ve been looking at this for some years now,’ he said. ‘I have looked at ferry services up and down the west coast of the US and other states of Australia.’ An efficient ferry system would ease congestion on the West Gate Bridge, and reduce reliance on trains and trams. Mr Ingrouille said the manufacturer was building a hovercraft to be used as a rescue vessel at Changi International Airport, Singapore. Councillor Tom O’Connor is pushing the hovercraft bid. ‘It can’t happen soon enough,’ he said.”
Ref: Kerri-Ann Hobbs, Geelong Advertiser, 9/4/08

FREE PUBLIC LECTURE WITH PETER HARPER FROM CENTRE FOR ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY (CAT), UNITED KINGDOM

Responding to the threat of climate change, governments have set targets for reducing greenhouse gas by 60-80% over the next 40 years. Recent climate science suggests this is nowhere near enough. A 100% reduction in 20 years might be necessary. Is this remotely possible? How might it be done? What technologies would we need? How would we design a zero-carbon – modern - economy? What impact would it have on lifestyles – on food, travel, housing, infrastructure, employment, leisure? Would it be a nightmare? Does it offer opportunities for a revitalisation of society?

30 years of living investigation at the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) in Wales may provide the answers the world urgently needs. (www.cat.org.uk)

Peter Harper has been part of a team working on these questions at CAT. He can bring an unusual lifetime of experience to illuminating the vigorous debate around a new vision for ‘Zero Carbon Britain’ 2020. Peter Harper is Head of Research and Innovation at the Centre for Alternative Technology, where he has worked for 25 years, with periodic secondments to overseas universities. He was a pioneer of the alternative technology movement and has always tried to relate technological ‘hardware’ with social and personal ‘software’. His main interests have been in horticulture and low-carbon lifestyles. He runs his own home as an experimental ‘lifestyle lab’. He is mildly obsessed by compost.

6-8pm, 21 April 2008 at the Prince Philip Theatre, University of Melbourne. Please RSVP your attendance to Ferne Edwards at fedwards @unimelb.edu.au. More information will be published shortly.

Map of the campus

Associate Professor Nick Low from GAMUT - The Australasian Centre for the Governance And Management of Urban Transport led a discussion about GAMUT’s work and the top issues concerning sustainable transport for our cities. Proud sponsors of the event, GAMUT is a collaborative research centre dedicated to promoting and supporting sustainable urban transport in Australia and the Asia Pacific region. Based at the University of Melbourne, GAMUT works with a network of researchers to focus attention on the need for innovative institutional design for integrated transport systems. GAMUT is one of a global network of Centres of Excellence in Future Urban Transport created by the Volvo Research and Educational Foundations, an independent research and educational institution. To find out more about GAMUT visit their website at http://www.gamutcentre.org/.

Please find Nick Low’s powerpoint slides and presentation below.
GAMUT powerpoint slides

Bruce Herbes, Wayfinding Consultant from VisualVoice, http://www.visualvoice.com.au/, illustrated the diversity of speakers at the recent Sustainable Cities Round Table with his presentation on 3-dimensional pedestrian maps in Bendigo. Reminding us that cities are inhabited by pedestrians - not just cars - Bruce presented his presentation titled “Making the City Legible”. To find out more about VisualVoice visit http://www.visualvoice.com.au/.

Please find footage of Bruce’s presentation below.

Alice Woodruff, from the Walking & Cycling division of the Department of Infrastructure spoke at the recent Sustainable Cities Round Table on “Changing the way we travel”. To find out more about the DOI’s transport projects visit: http://www.doi.vic.gov.au/doi/. Please find footage of Alice’s presentation below.

It is our pleasure at the Sustainable Cities Round Table to encourage artists to present their work which relate to the event’s themes to broaden sustainable perspectives beyond the technical and purely functional. Marie Watt, a photographic artist presented “The power of spin” at the most recent Sustainable Cities Round Table focused on mobility. She also exhibited her work in the foyer during the event.

Please find footage and images of her artistic work below.

Opening Night: Wednesday March 26: 6:30pm
Season: March: Thursday 27th : 6:30pm, Friday 28th: 6:30pm, Sunday 30th: 3pm and 5pm, April: Saturday 5th: 3pm and 5pm, Sunday 6th: 3pm and 5pm.

Takes place at the end of Harding st. Coburg, at the Merri Creek. Meet at the swing bridge. Melways ref 30A1. Take Tram no. 1, from Swanston St. to the corner of Harding st. and Nicholson st. (stop no. 133). Car parking is available in surrounding streets.

Set in the last remaining vegetable field close to Melbourne’s city centre. Audiences will stand in the rows that are filled with organic vegetables and experience this physical theatre performance that promises to bring the surroundings to life. If you love soulful stories, being outdoors, gardening and organic produce then don’t miss In The Field!

Directed by Ilan Abrahams and performed by Nancy Sposato, Julian Chapple, and Suzan Van Den Haam. Tasty Tales of Growth, Love, and Life performed in an organic vegetable field. Captivating stories told with theatre and dance sprout in the heightened and dream like world that is the last remaining vegetable field close to Melbourne’s city centre. Between the
earth and the sky three lovable and quirky characters share very human stories of their passionate but troubled connections to the land. Come smell the basil, taste the figs and be transported to a place that is unexpectedly close to home. The project is a collaboration with CERES Community Environment Park (www.ceres.org.au). We have been farming and rehearsing in the field since last winter. Come share the fruits of our
labour!

‘It is rare to find something philosophically and politically grounded that can also capture so sensuously one’s attention’. Don Asker, former senior lecturer VCA School of Dance.

TICKETS
$25 full, $20 concession, $20 group bookings of four or more. Email tickets @senseofplace.com.au or call 8486 2158.

Wear comfortable walking shoes, and a hat for daytime performances. Bring a raincoat or umbrella if raining lightly. In the event of heavy rain or extreme heat the show will be cancelled. Please call the booking line for details of ticket exchange/refund options. Wheelchair access is possible but please be aware that there is some rough and soft ground which may make it difficult (please let us know in advance).
www.senseofplace.com.au