LOCK the Nambucca Valley hosted a well-attended meeting at Valla Beach on Sunday, 9 November, bringing together a range of community-based environment groups to discuss issues affecting the health of local river systems.
Among the 24 attendees were representatives from Nambucca Valley Council, Bellingen Environment Centre, the oyster farming industry, community radio station 2NVR, Voices for Mid North Coast and several other conservation organisations.
Also in attendance were citizen scientists who monitor river health and survey native forests throughout the Nambucca Valley.
The guest speaker at the event was Dr Michelle Maloney, an advocate for “earth-centred governance” and co-founder and convenor of the Australian Earth Laws Alliance (AELA).
“Dr Maloner provided updates and information on the work undertaken by AELA, and presented ideas for ways to address the current issues of species loss, habitat degradation, pollution of waterways and catchments, threats to local industries, and overall sense of separation of people from our natural environment,” said Lock the Nambucca Valley secretary Georgette Allen.
“To develop a more holistic approach to environment protection, the key was defined as interconnectivity among community groups.
“There is a perceived need to integrate the efforts, goals and processes of individual local groups, in order to develop cohesive outcomes for the betterment of all elements of our environment.
“This needs to include the understanding and exploration of interconnectivity among native species, both plant and animal, and our human communities, to develop innovative initiatives towards better outcomes for all.”
Dr Maloney also spoke of her new program called ‘Greenprints’, described as a framework for “helping people transition to regenerative economies and nature based, bioregional governance”.
The Valla Beach meeting unanimously agreed to support this initiative, with a further meeting planned for Sunday, 30 November to continue the discussion.
For information about that meeting, contact lockthenambuccavalley.sec@gmail.com.
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