Welcome to the first edition of ‘News from an Island in Suburbia’, a platform to share knowledge, ideas and happenings on all things sustainable.

We all entered 2020 with the global pandemic, Covid-19, changing the way we live and work. Online meetings have become the norm, as have online events. We hope everyone is doing well as we navigate an ever-changing landscape and look forward to the day we can all meet again face-to-face to share knowledge, build networks and support each other as we continue our journey towards a sustainable future.

2030 SDGs Game

Operating in the engagement space for 19 years, the EcoCentre has a large circle of influence, using its continuing growing networks to educate the community on sustainability. In 2017 the EcoCentre committed to a long-term plan to communicate the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), understanding the importance of this global framework. The question was proposed, ‘how do we make a real difference?’. In a short period of time it became clear the success of the SDGs hinges on effective collaboration between all stakeholders and that sharing of knowledge, resources, skills and collaboration between organisations will need to be mobilised at the local level to successfully implement all 17 SDGs.

It is recognised that education will play a critical role in delivering the global sustainable development goals by providing the knowledge, innovations and solutions to address the complex and interconnected societal and environmental challenges that we face today, but we need a way to connect and empower people. With our long and strong connection to the community, the EcoCentre will drive the SDGs at a local level, using innovative ways to engage the community.

What is the 2030 SDG Game?

The ‘2030 SDG Game’ an innovative, interactive and fun activity which we believe will make a difference in assisting in the localisation of the SDGs by providing a way to understand their purpose. The 2030 SDGs Game is a multiplayer, in-person, card-based game that simulates taking the “real world” into the year 2030. Designed in Japan in 2016, this experience has become a powerful and impactful social phenomenon in Japan, reaching over 150,000 participants in corporate, governmental, educational, and community settings, and now has over 100 trained facilitators in Japan and 50 around the world.

The game approach has three powerful advantages:

1. It gives people a direct experience of participating in co-creating a sustainable world (“I can do it”; “what I do makes a difference.”)
2. It simplifies and makes accessible an extremely complex issue to a level that allows people to begin to understand, while stimulating our natural curiosity to learn more.
3. It activates players’ natural instincts to set their aim toward a worthy goal, simultaneously building confidence and making it enjoyable, while inspiring and motivating players to take action in the real world.

Steps to build your own sustainable garden

Composting Resources:

Growing your own plants

Root vegetables and some leafy vegetables grow best in autumn and winter. Herbs also do well in autumn.

With the use of organic gardening methods, you can make your edible garden more beautiful, productive and healthier for the environment and your family. By amending your soil with natural fertilizers, you can grow, bigger, more bountiful fruits and veges and you help keep our waterways clean.

The weather is cooling down, but the soil is still toasty warm so it's the perfect time to get planting in your garden. But what to grow? Here are the top 20 plants to grow in your home garden in South East Queensland during Autumn.

​Plants to grow side-by-side (companion planting)

Turn off the tap!

In these times of COVID-19, hand washing is a high priority. Instead of leaving the tap running while you wash your hands, try soaping and scrubbing your hands then turn on the tap to rinse. This will save precious water resources and save you money on your water bill.