Despite the challenges posed by the weather in recent days, it was wonderful to see our beloved Crystal Creek, on the School's southern boundary, in full flow, following a number of consecutive dry years.
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Despite the challenges posed by the weather in recent days, it was wonderful to see our beloved Crystal Creek, on the School's southern boundary, in full flow, following a number of consecutive dry years.  Shearwater has made the switch to solar in a big way, installing a 99-kilowatt system to power the School into the future. The new system is part of a multifaceted approach to reduce emissions and improve environmental outcomes. Head of School James Goodlet said the School’s existing 8kw solar array was failing and the time was right for a major upgrade. “We had planned to install the panels in 2020. But with the onset of COVID-19 came financial uncertainty and a need to halt spending on infrastructure projects until we had a clearer picture of the impact of the pandemic. “With the increase in electricity prices and the reduction in solar panel prices, came the opportunity to install now and make a quick enough return on our investment without a huge financial risk. We estimate the School will cover installation costs in four years. So it’s a win for the environment and a win for our finances. “Shearwater has a long history of integrating the natural environment into our educational experiences and philosophy. There is a big push from students to make Shearwater a more sustainable place and it’s great that we’ve been able to support that vision with this project.” The new solar array is made up of 242 solar panels, each producing 410 watts per module, creating the 99.22 kW system. “Unlike a regular household, which is empty most of the day while family members are out studying or working, the majority of our power-usage happens during the school day, when our solar panels are hard at work. So on school days we’ll be using most of the energy we produce. On weekends and holidays, up to 60kW of energy will be fed into the town grid. The payment for this electricity produced will offset the cost of running data centres and refrigerators overnight when our solar system is not producing any power." Importantly at this time of year, there are enough panels to take into account fluctuations caused by wet and cloudy weather. While at this stage the school doesn’t have a specific zero emissions target, James said he was confident the School would continue the great work done by many passionate staff and students over its history. “There has been much work done in this area already, with many great achievements, such as regenerative farming practices, waste management and the decades-long bush regeneration project that has seen the planting of more than 20 thousand trees, transforming degraded agricultural land into a thriving wildlife corridor. “Our Class 7 students have recently finished planting over 700 native shrubs and trees, creating a small forest that they can watch grow over the years ahead. Every class across the School is given regular opportunities to help repair and restore the local environment. "Climate anxiety is impacting on the wellbeing of many of our young people today. We want our students to know they can be part of the solution.” This report was produced by Shearwater's Year 12 English Studies class   Every afternoon, rain or shine, you will find our Class 7 students out by the Kindergarten buildings planting, mulching, shovelling chatting and (hopefully) sweating as they play their part in the decades-long bush regeneration project that has transformed the School's degraded creek-side and agricultural land into a wildlife refuge. "The students are learning how to address climate change by increasing the carbon-capturing capacity of the soil," said project coordinator and bush regenerator Nadia de Souza Pietramale. "We are using the school grounds as a giant class room, in which computers and books are replaced with wheel barrows, and shovels." The students get out their gumboots and gloves every afternoon after lunch, for more than an hour of planting with the help of their teachers and the School bush regeneration team. The ongoing management of the reforestation of the School grounds is a huge job that is supported by the school administration. "All planting and maintenance of the trees follows sustainable, organic and biodynamic land management principles," said Nadia.  Is having humans in lock-down doing great things for our environment? While we may be struggling to adjust to our new lifestyles, perhaps this is just what our struggling planet needs. At the end of 2019, tensions across the world rose as did temperatures and sea levels, while the reality of global warming started to hit home. A young Greta Thunberg called on global leaders to take action and protesters took to the streets. But our cries for the planet seemed to fall on deaf ears. Then along came COVID-19, forcing us all to make the changes that climate activists had been crying out for for decades. Planes were grounded, cars stayed put in garages, unnecessary travel has become illegal and factories have ground to a halt. So what’s the upside in all of this for the planet?
On a positive note, since the pandemic has changed the way we are living, the environment is flourishing, the water is clearer and the skyies are bluer. The shutdown of factories in the Chinese city of Hubei has increased the percentage of good quality air days by more than 20 per cent compared to the same time last year. It’s not only Hubei, in major Chinese cities between January and February, the visible cloud of toxic gas hanging over industrial power houses has almost disappeared. Hong Kong's air quality has improved with the shut down of the city. Transport makes up 23 per cent of the world's global carbon emissions but due to travel being cancelled, flights are now at a minimum and car traffic in some parts of the world is scarce. This has reduced carbon emissions significantly. The effect of the world going into lock down has been extraordinary for the environment. In India, along the coast of Odisha, over 475,000 endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles have come to shore to lay their eggs for the first time in seven years. Although Italy may be experiencing a huge human toll, canals are full of fish and sea animals along with crystal clear water, the likes of which hasn't been seen in living memory. In Wuhan, China the skies are clearer than ever and some people are seeing the stars for the first time. Animals have been seen in places they are never normally seen and others spotted roaming around in deserted towns. It isn't all bad news with COVID-19. While it’s important to not play down the seriousness of the crisis on human life and the extraordinary impact this pandemic will have on societies and economies around the world, there is a silver lining on these dark clouds. Let’s make it a challenge to maintain as many of the positive impacts for the planet that we can, once the world goes back to “normal”. Indigo Goss Year 12  Together, we have all had an unusual start to 2020. For Class 7, this is an especially important time as it is the beginning of the end of our seven-year cycle. The theme of growth, regeneration and connection seems especially poignant. 7S started our year with great excitement, looking forward to meeting the High School teachers and enjoying more opportunities to mix with the other Class 7. Our English biographies lesson provided us a chance to share, remember and write about the fun of early childhood, the wonderful camps experienced in the Primary School years and also to dream towards the future, through exploring the lives of those that inspire us. Both Class 7s worked hard to contribute to positive climate action during our Bush Regeneration lesson, planting 1800 native trees in the wetland area, west of the Kindergarten and Preschool. The 2020 Shearwater tree planting project, organised and facilitated by our wonderful gardener, Nadia de Souza Pietramale, extended the wildlife corridor planted by previous Class 7s to almost 1.5 kilometres. The project was made possible with incredible community support including the following donations: 1000 trees from Reforest Now (who also came in with four augers and dug all the holes for the project!); 230 plants from Burringbar Rainforest Nursery; six trucks of mulch from Rainforest 4 Foundation, and a grant from the NSW Government’s Biodiversity Conservation Trust that bought another 250 trees and fertiliser; with additional support from the Mullumbimby Rural Cooperative. When it became clear that our learning experience would take a distinctly different delivery style, we set about creating packs of material with educational content as well as our unique Shearwater hands-on practical work. Hence a Grow your own seedlings project was born (see student images above, at bottom). I would like to finish on our afternoon verse, as we do each day in Class 7, as it also seems particularly apt at this time. Steadfast I stand in the world With certainty, I tread the path of light Love I cherish in the core of my being Hope I carry into every deed Confidence I impress upon my thinking These five lead me to my goals These five give me life Sonia Davidian Class 7 Teacher   Huge thanks to Maximo Bottaro, Tashi Maizey, Matthew Stanley and Michael Martin from Reforest Now (pictured above), who made the planting a hole lot easier with their augers!
With the arrival of the rain, our Class 7 students began a month-long gardening block, in which they will plant close to 2000 native shrubs and trees – part of a 20-year bush regeneration project that has transformed the School's degraded creek-side and agricultural land into a wildlife refuge. "The students are learning how to address climate change by increasing the carbon-capturing capacity of the soil," said project coordinator and bush regenerator Nadia de Souza Pietramale. "We are using the school grounds as a giant class room, in which computers and books are replaced with wheel barrows, and shovels." The students get out their gumboots and gloves every afternoon after lunch, for more than an hour of planting with the help of their teachers and the School bush regeneration team. Students Thea and Amy said planting trees made them feel good. "It makes us feel like we can make a change and, by being proactive regarding climate change, we can give ourselves and others hope for our future environment." These same students had previously expressed their despair for the future. "Right now at 12 years of age we already don’t want to envision our future. We are afraid that its already too late. So we are begging you to listen and more importantly take heed of what we say." This year, the School’s bush regeneration focus will be on extending the flood plain plant community, which is swamp sclerophyll forest - an important habitat for koalas and many other local wildlife species. This project is part of the development of a wildlife corridor across the campus from the east to the north-west, where it will join established plantings on the western boundary of the property. When completed in the next few years, this wildlife corridor will be almost 2km long. This year, the students will also add understory plants to areas planted in previous years. These will include indigenous bush food species such as Davidson's Plum, Small-leaved Tamarind, Native Ginger and Midginberry. Sourcing our Trees But trees are not for free. The 2020 Shearwater tree planting project has been made possible with incredible community support including the following donations: 1000 trees from Reforest Now (who also came in with four augers and dug all the holes for the project!); 230 plants from Burringbar Rainforest Nursery; six trucks of mulch from Rainforest 4 Foundation, and a grant from the NSW Government’s Biodiversity Conservation Trust that will buy another 250 trees and fertiliser; with additional support from Mullumbimby Rural Cooperative. Shearwater's Primary School children, who propagate bush food plants in the school nursery, have grown another 250 trees to go in the ground. The ongoing management of the reforestation of the School grounds is a huge job that is supported by the school administration. "All planting and maintenance of the trees follows sustainable, organic and biodynamic land management principles," said Nadia. "We will cover all the gaps between the trees with biomass, such as pruned branches and palm fronds - resources abundant in the School grounds. This organic material will suppress grass growth. It will also feed soil micro-organisms such as the mycorrhizal fungi which make minerals and other nutrients available to the plants in exchange for the sugars produced by the trees through photosynthesis. Nature is cooperation in action!" "We hope that this becomes a model for managing young forests, where waste biomass covers the forest floor, feeding the soil, reducing waste burning, and controlling weeds. As we cover the grounds with biomass, we increase the capacity of the soil to hold water, which also increases carbon storage. For some species such as bandicoots this ground cover will create habitat. "The process of returning biomass to the earth also restores the intelligence in the soil, assisting the trees to catch carbon to their full capacity, helping to restore the solar balance on earth and reducing the risks of climate change."  The excitement of returning to school was evident in the happiness and anticipation bubbling over in the High School corridors and classrooms last week. A renewed enthusiasm for learning was evident to their teachers, as was the growth and change that the summer holiday break brings.
On the first day back, after gathering with their Guardians in the morning, the whole High School assembled in the Hall for a dynamic teacher-led presentation on sustainability in the School. The aim was to introduce new initiatives, promote the Enviro Club and to provide a potent reminder of our individual responsibilities to protect the natural world. In this period of their development, adolescents respond positively when presented with aspirations and ideals that provide them with sustenance for their journey to adulthood. In this gradual development of sound judgement, founded on clear thinking, we must also ensure that accompanying actions are implemented to address change. This process assists our young adults to form a relationship between their inner lives and the outer world. Shearwater has recently joined the Sustainable Schools Network and is participating in an environmental and film project recently launched by Steiner Education Australia. Expect further news and announcements on a range of sustainability initiatives for 2020! Gillian Rogers High School Coordinator |
