Living more sustainably in Southbank

With the new year under way, there is an opportunity to give thought to what we can do as individuals or families or groups of friends to live more sustainably.

It is worth noting that while we often hear or read about environmental sustainability, there are another three aspects to sustainability namely human, social and economic sustainability. 

• Human sustainability considers how to improve the health, education and training and access to services so that we can improve the human capital in society. 

• Social sustainability is about improving society through sustainable development including developing social cohesion and equality in the community. 

• Economic sustainability aims to improve the standard of living while addressing environmental and social risks. 

• Environmental sustainability has at its core achieving positive economic outcomes without doing any harm, in the short- or long-term, to the environment. 

We need to think about all four of these concepts together when exploring how we plan to live more sustainably.

In a practical sense many of the activities of the Southbank Sustainability Group try to integrate these four concepts. 

Our fortnightly gardening meetups provide the opportunity for Southbank residents to come together for the common purpose of growing vegetables and herbs for the community. 

The meet-ups provide a chance to socialise and meet new people improving cohesion and wellbeing while maintaining the community gardens at the Boyd Community Hub. 

Our activities focus on reducing waste, recycling and improving our knowledge on how to reduce our environmental footprint.

We are seeing the benefits of the efforts of members who have been tending the community garden with recent crops of carrots, leafy greens, peaches and herbs. We are also seeing lots of bees and insects enjoying the gardens as well. 

We are busy planning for the Autumn plantings already.

World Wetlands Day is celebrated globally on the second of February every year. The day provides us with a reminder of the importance of wetland habitats for people and the planet. 

Historically much of the lower end of the Yarra River was a wetland. While these former wetlands have disappeared the City of Melbourne has established a series of floating wetlands located at Yarra’s Edge near Webb Bridge, the Turning Basin at Enterprize Park and Victoria Harbour Promenade so take some time in February to explore these wetlands as well as the Westgate Park Wetlands to appreciate the rich plant, animal and birdlife.

Visit our Facebook page if you are looking for information on how to live more sustainably. There are guides on subjects as diverse as sustainable travel, reducing the impacts of your pets on the environment, volunteering and food composting.

About the group

Southbank Sustainability Group is a solutions-focused community group of Southbank residents working to bring positive change in sustainability practices. 

Reach us at [email protected] or facebook.com/SouthbankSustainabilityGroup

If you are interested in getting involved with Southbank Sustainability Group, send us an email or come to one of the upcoming fortnightly Saturday meet ups on February 1 and 28. •