Community Education Network Involving Hawkesbury Earthcare Centre, Permaculture and Multiple Stakeholders
Mr. Eric Brocken, RCE Greater Western Sydney (Hawkesbury EarthCare Centre)
Asia-Pacific Regional RCE Meeting 2018
25-27 September, 2018, Parramatta (Sydney), Australia
3. SDG Goals & Targets
SDG1A. No Poverty - Socio economic factors - egalitarianism
Ensure significant mobilization of resources from a variety of sources, including through enhanced
development cooperation, in order to provide adequate and predictable means for developing countries, in
particular least developed countries, to implement programmes and policies to end poverty in all its
dimensions
SDG2.4 Zero Hunger - Food literacy – Horticulture
By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that
increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for
adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that
progressively improve land and soil quality.
SDG3. Good Health & Wellbeing - Belonging - Food choices
SDG4.7 Quality Education - Learning environments – contextual
Ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development
through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, humanity and promotion and of
culture and its contribution
SDG10. Inequalities - Affordability, value........perception
Ensure enhanced representation and voice for developing countries in decision-making in global
international economic and financial institutions in order to deliver more effective, credible, accountable and
legitimate institutions
SDG16. Peace, justice Strong institutions – Social networks / personal relationships
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/education/
4. Sustainability Challenge
The Knowledge, the Will and the Power to:
• influence elected representatives who set policy and influence the
corporate sector - democracy
• choose consumption which impacts positively on sustainable
development - like agriculture
• adopt better practice through engagement
5. Hawkesbury EarthCare Centre HDRAA
Vision statement
To stimulate awareness of the need to
adopt more sustainable living practices
and support efforts to do so. To develop
the Centre as a place where people can
gain inspiration, knowledge and skills
through participation, demonstration and
interactive learning.
7. Context
• Numerous existing unsustainable practices.
• Toxics /waste, decreasing food nutrition, non renewable inputs,
decreasing quality, decreasing biodiversity...
• Urban encroachment on potential food production land and ‘natural’
environments
• Socioeconomic tensions and ‘struggling’ local economies
• Hawkesbury EarthCare Centre. A real life
Community setting with a Collaborative
governance based in a peri urban environment.
(Living Laboratory) in a Peri Urban Setting
• RCEGWS.A coalition of organisations
collaborating on a people centred approach to
understanding sustainable development
8. Sustainable Agriculture
and Permaculture
Permaculture is a design concept utilising an innovative
systems-approach to consciously create landscapes, human
settlements, and systems of agriculture that integrate
functional diversity and biological fertility by mimicking
natural eco-systems. Holmgren
9. Analysis and Methodology
• A focus is on experiential learning in an integrated,
interconnected, socially and aesthetically attractive setting.
• Exposure to diverse social/ ‘class’ backgrounds.
• Identifying roles of partners (RCE GWS) / stakeholders.
• Strong academic connections across a number of disciplines
• The Permaculture Methodology Communication Linking
Common agendas. Greater collaboration.
10. Outcome of Practices
• Attendance, engagement and associated program challenges (feedback)
• Ongoing liaison in relation to learning situations by participants, through
lecturers (ie course requirements, peer support etc.)
• Behavioural changes expressed in social settings
• Social settings reinforcing positive behaviour adding another layer/s to Big Data
11. Recommendations
• Present models of interconnected
environmental ‘best practices’ and challenge
innovation.
• Provide contexts to formal knowledge
integration.
• Engage with ‘experts’ and academic support
for contextual engagement.
• Build collaboration and networks of
individuals and like minded (sustainability)
organisations, promulgators and promotors
of diverse environmental paradigms.
• Invite participants into problem solving,
welcome critical thinking and the sharing of
decision making.
