becoming local
October 7, 2024
The local 3 sisters
For the last 8 years or so I promised myself I would make time to immerse myself to be local in my place I have called home for a long time now – long enough to call myself a local. I mean local in the Helena Norberg Hogson meaning of localisation, who is my inspiration for this effort.
I started off by deepening friendships with the local people I knew. We volunteered, hung out, did projects together, went to local events. I drank local beers, brews and ate locally grown food through my local produce box scheme Southern Harvest Association (now cooperative) and ordering local things by preference where identified on menus. I joined the local sustainability group, volunteered at the community gardens, hosted workshops, and walked the streets in an urban walking sort of way.
This weekend I went to a place making event hosted by Sun Villages. While I am not endorsing any projects or companies, my curiousity was peaked how a FIFO consultant could engage with local community to talk about a development built around community and cooperative models. You can read more about their response to the venture here.https://substack.com/@michaelmcelligott
What I responded to most about the event was being in a local area I had wondered about since dropping off a produce box at a neighbouring home during a COVID outbreak. I also met some heartfelt people who aim to do good in this world and/or affect regeneration of place. I used these terms in a Carol Sanford definition way.
A while ago I had seen locked gate across the road and a verdant block with intriguing paths within. Now I have been into a little of the acreage I can see the contour of the land, its waterways and verdant nature of the gully with the adjacent hills showing the usual scrub (open sclerophyll/eucalyptus dominant bushland). Yesterday the gate was opened, and I was welcomed in to explore. It has made me hungry to explore some more.
Walking the gully