Meeting this Sunday

Transition Town Eudlo will be getting together at Sweetheart's Cafe in Eudlo between 8.30-10am this Sunday May 2. We will be doing a little seed saving and catching up with what's been happening and what's coming up... all welcome,

What is a Transition Town?

So just what exactly is a Transition Town?

A Transition Town is started by a small group of people (you only need four people to get started) who are concerned about climate, energy, oil, resource, economic and food issues and want to do something constructive and positive about it. They are sick of the gloom and doom and want to be part of something positive, something that offers real solutions.

It comes out of permaculture - which is a grassroots movement of people who study and practice the design and implementation of sustainable systems.

While permaculture is well-known as a food production method, those very same principles of sustainability, energy saving, waste reduction and functional resource use can be applied to any system - a transport system, waste system or a regional food supply system.

So Transition Initiatives take those same principles and start looking at their local area - whether its a town, village, city, street, workplace, church, school or an organisation and look at how they can start turning their supply and production systems into resilient systems.

What does this look like on the ground?

Well, using Eudlo as an example, we discussed what we needed here and the idea of an organic food co-op came up and attracted a lot of interest.

A local food co-op would reduce food miles, reduce costs for customers, reduce packaging and waste... so the idea fitted very well with those sustainability principles.

In a nutshell and based on what we've seen happen here on the Sunshine Coast over the past three years that this idea has been out there, a Transition Town is really a catalyst.

A catalyst for bringing people together, specifically people who want to live more simply, more locally and step a little (or a lot) off the consumer treadmill. People who want to be inspired by others in the community and who want to make meaningful community connections. Transition Towns are also a catalyst for reskilling the community and equipping them for a future with less oil.

So whether you want to learn how to knit, how to preserve food, how to grow your own food, how to build a chook tractor... a local Transition Town can help you.

If you want to see if other people in your area are interested in bikeways and walkways, whether people would like to share in a bulk buy of rainwater tanks or solar panels... a local Transition Town can help you.

If you want to learn how to seed save, about permaculture, or about Local Energy Transfer Systems (LETS), what to do with a glut of mangoes... if you can teach a skill or learn a skill... Transtion Towns can be the catalyst for that to happen.

If you want to find out if there is a local organic food box system or Community Supported Agriculture near you, how to start a community garden, where to buy native trees, where the best local produce markets are and when they are on... a local Transition Town can help.

In Eudlo a lot of people come to our meetings to find out what is happening and what's on in the community... Transition Towns don't just make things happen, they let people know what is already happening in their local area.

We sit around, have a coffee, catch up with what's happening both in the community and in our groups and we'll probably be doing some seed saving too, just to keep busy!

Our groups include;
Eudlo Permablitz Team
The Eudlo Food Co-operative
The Eudlo Steam Team
Eudlo Seed Savers' Group
Eudlo Beekeepers' Collective
Waste Busters
Eudlo Transport Solutions
Permaculture Eudlo
Eudlo Market Team
Solar Cooking Group
Eudlo Health Hub
What's On? Eudlo Networking Group
Energy Descent Action Planning Team
EGG (Eudlo Growers' Group) (coming soon)
Community Harvest Project (coming soon)

We meet on the first Sunday of the month at Sweetheart's Cafe in Eudlo.

Other Transition Towns on the Sunshine Coast are at;
Nambour
Cooran
Eumundi Markets
Maleny

If you're interested in starting a Transition Town in your local area, we have a weekend workshop on how to do just that coming up in June at Eumundi. If you'd like infomation on that, please email us at transitiontowns@yahoo.com.au

cheers,
Sonya
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Eudlo Autumn Markets

Transition Town Eudlo were at the Eudlo Autumn Markets today. We had a lot of interest in our produce and information with more of a focus on local food this time and seed saving.



Our next markets are Sunday June 13.

cheers,
Sonya
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Eudlo Autumn Leaves Market + Seed Saving

Looking for something to do this weekend? Why not visit the Eudlo Markets?

Our seasonal markets are only held once every three months so catch them while you can.

Transition Town Eudlo will be there so drop by and say hello. We'll have some seed saving happening, so if you'd like to find out more about our seed saving group and how to get involved, pay us a visit.

You'll find the markets in and around the Eudlo Town Hall in the main street - very easy to find - they start at 7am and run until noon. You can enjoy a great organic coffee and a meal at Sweethearts Cafe or the General Store.

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Eudlo Organic Food Collective

Transition Town Eudlo's Food Collective is working on a variety of projects to help localise our food production, supply and distribution.

Projects include: the Eudlo Organic Food Co-op, supporting local produce, supporting our local markets, permablitzes, our seed saver group, EGG (Eudlo Growers Group) and the start of a Community Harvest Project. Live local, eat local.

Our Food Co-op is a major project and this year it's set to really ramp up its activities.

You can find out more about the Eudlo Food Co-op and all our Transition Town activities at the Eudlo Autumn Leaves Market on Sunday March 28 at the Town Hall from 7am-noon.



cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

WOEIE postponed, Markets still on

Unfortunately the annual WOEIE Festival has been postponed until later in the year.

With the threat of a major cyclone looming off the Queensland coast, the decision was made to postpone the event. It's a shame and a hard call to make, but safety and comfort must come first.

The Eudlo Autumn Markets are still on though - Sunday March 28 from 7am to noon.

Transition Town Eudlo will be there with fresh local produce for sale including Eudlo Raw Honey - BELOW



There will also be plants, seeds, fresh produce, herb books and much more for sale.

We'll have our Talking Tent there - with some people busy seed saving, so drop by for a chat.

The first steps toward a Eudlo Community Plan are underway, so if you're interested in being part of that, let us know and we can let you know how to keep in the loop.

Cheers,
Sonya
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Events and a couple of new ideas...

It's coming up to a busy time in Eudlo... next Saturday - March 20 - is the WOEIE Festival (Where On Earth Is Eudlo?) in the school grounds from noon.

Then the following week it's time again for the Eudlo Markets - this will be our Autumn Markets. Transition Town Eudlo will have a 'talking tent' there where you'll be able to sit and chat about what's happening and we'll be doing some seed saving there too.



Following on from our last meeting, it was raised that our regular Sunday mornings are a great time to find out what's on, so perhaps we need a Eudlo Network Group.

Some people who are in the loop and know what's happening - workshops, tours, guest speakers... any type of local community events that fit the theme of building resilience - and sharing that information with everyone else.

Another group worth considering could be an arts and crafts group. We need skills kept alive for the future - do you have a secret talent? Do you know how to make something really useful? Would you like to teach others?

I was reading No 62 edition of the Permaculture Magazine and found a story in their about a Transition Town group in the UK who have revitalised a much-loved eighteenth century annual event - the Montpelier Bean Feast to celebrate local hertiage, local harvest and local genius.

Maybe Eudlo could create a special annual event to celebrate local harvests and heritage?

Hopefully the weather will clear up by next weekend and WOEIE will be a huge success and then it stays clear for the markets the following week - fingers crossed.

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Seedy Sunday success

Our first Seedy Sunday was yesterday - and it was a great success.

Anne organised equipment and seeds and explained how best to process the seeds for saving



Everyone enjoyed it, sitting around the table chatting and bagging up the seeds.



We also found we had two people who work in health who are interested in starting the Eudlo Health Hub - early days yet, but they had some great ideas on how to get started.



Also, a couple of Eudlo diary dates - the WOEIE Festival (Where On Earth Is Eudlo?) is on at the school grounds on Saturday March 20 from noon and the next Eudlo Markets are on Sunday March 28 from 7am.

Our next get together falls on Easter Sunday, so we'll skip that one and move straight to May (can you believe how quickly the year is going?) on May 2nd.

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

TT Eudlo featured in Australian Geographic

Transition Town Eudlo (and Transition Sunshine Coast) are featured in the Australian Geographic magazine (issue number 96).



The article is titled 'when the oil runs out'



And ABOVE - it even features our dear friend Yukari Desjardins who sadly passed away last August.

Sonya

March meeting - a Seedy Sunday

Our next meeting - in March - will be our first official Seedy Sunday with our focus being on seed saving.

So if you have any seeds lying around that need to be processed, bring them along and we'll go through them and sort them out together.

The day is all about building important seed saving skills in our community.

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Eudlo... now on Facebook

Become a fan of Eudlo Village Community on Facebook - see button on the right...

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Community meeting Jan 11, 2010

As mentioned in a previous post, there was a get together of locals last night to discuss a few ideas for Eudlo and how we might get them started and out into the community.

There are a number of things happening in Eudlo already and we looked at how we might start linking them together and create opportunities for people to meet.

We already have;
A Town Hall association and the lovely Town Hall itself
Transition Town Eudlo
The Tennis Club
The Old Mill Site
Recreational grounds (skate park and play equipment)
The Eudlo Markets
The Rural Fire Service
Local shops - the General Store, hairdresser, beautician and Sweetheart's Cafe
Local Primary School and it's P&C
The Post Office
The Pony Club
The Bike Club
Numberous B&Bs and lots of other home businesses
and Chenrezig Buddhist Institute

We talked about how we might start contributing to Council's Town Planning process, how we could create a Vision and Plan for Eudlo, and ways we could share information and communicate better with each other.

Most importantly, we also talked about how we could retain the character and heritage of Eudlo, the things we love most about it, the reasons we moved here in the first place.

So outcomes were;
looking at how we can create a 'get to know your neighbours' area at the next markets
Setting up a facebook page for Eudlo Village so people can stay up to date with what's happening
and setting up a follow up meeting

For Transition Town Eudlo it's the start of the Energy Descent Action Planning process and we also identified some opportunities for how we might get the Eudlo Food Co-operative up and running.

We'll also hopefully have a talking tent at next markets in March and we might look at having family film nights in the Town Hall too.

And the idea of Eudlo being Carbon Neutral by 2020 was floated too...

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

The Eudlo Energy Descent Action Plan

Transition Town Eudlo and the Eudlo Town Hall Committee are about to begin work on creating a community plan for Eudlo to be delivered to Council.

We aim to work together to create an energy descent action plan (EDAP) - one that puts forward what the community would like to see happen in Eudlo. A plan that factors in climate change mitigation strategies and peak oil preparedness. A plan that helps keep Eudlo unique and retains the things we love about Eudlo.

On January 11 at 7pm in the Eudlo Town Hall, a few of us will be getting together to discuss how we might go about doing this - if you have an interest in putting forward positive, constructive ideas for the town of Eudlo, please come along.

The EDAP will cover things like; local food, water, energy, waste, built environment, transport, health, arts and culture, environment, emergency preparedness and much, much more. You're welcome to be part of this, the Sunshine Coast's first town led EDAP.

Cheers,
Sonya
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Eudlo Summer Market and our Christmas Break

The Eudlo Summer Market has been and gone for 2009 - here is a photo of our stall just after we'd set up.

First time we've had our lovely new banner on display too - kindly made by Maria - thank you.



There will be no Transition Town Eudlo meeting for January - it's just too hot and too close to Christmas, New Years' and Woodford.

First meeting for 2010 will be on Sunday February 7 at Sweethearts Cafe in Eudlo from 8.30am.

Over the Christmas break there will be the start of community planning to put forward to council for the Eudlo Energy Descent Action Plan, so if any of you would like to be included, please email me on tteudlo@yahoo.com and I'll add you to the mailing list.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,


Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Eudlo Markets

Transition Town Eudlo will be at the Eudlo Town Markets this Sunday December 13.

Visit our stall for a chat, we'll have herb and self-sufficiency books and permaculture calendars for sale, and we'll be running a worm farming workshop at 10am.

I'll have information about the sustainability workshop I run from home too.

The markets are held in and around the Eudlo Town Hall, easy to find in the main street of Eudlo, and run from 7am to noon.

Food and good coffee available too, do your Christmas shopping locally.

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Get together this Sunday

Transition Town Eudlo is having its monthly get together this Sunday morning (December 6) at Sweethearts Cafe in Eudlo at 8.30am.

Everyone is welcome, particularly people living locally who are interested in be part of and contributing to the Transition Town movement.

We'll also discuss our stall at the Eudlo Summer Market on Dec 13.

Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Town Eudlo Coordinator

Transition Town Training February 2010

Transition Sunshine Coast is running a Transition Towns workshop on 6 and 7 February (begins on the evening of the 5th) at the Bamboo Forest at Eumundi on the Sunshine Coast.

The two-day intensive workshop is for people interested in starting or joining a Transition Town initiative.

Learn how to go about it in a way that will create a successful, long-term initiative. Benefit from others' experience and discover how to become part of this rapidly evolving network of people creating real change in our communities.



The Bamboo Forest at Eumundi offers a great space for learning and networking with comfortable accommodation options nearby if needed.

This popular and proven Transition Town course is one not to be missed.

Spend time immersed in learning about Transition Towns and how others are Transitioning to a better future with like-minded people.



We kick the course off on the evening of Friday February 5 with a shared organic meal as we get to know each other a little better, then its straight into two full days of intensive learning, sharing, activities, games and discussion at the end of which you will leave with a toolbox of new skills, a list of contacts and most importantly a plan of action tailored to meet your particular needs.

If you are interested and would like to find out more - email Sonya at info@seac.net.au for a flier.



Cheers,
Sonya Wallace
Transition Sunshine Coast
Transition Town Eudlo

Feeling Seedy on a Sunday

Following yesterday's get together there definately seems to be enough interest in holding a seed saving day in Eudlo - our first official Seedy Sunday.

It would involve people bringing seed from their own gardens and then we all chip in to get it cleaned, processed, packaged, labelled and then shared among the group.

There will probably be a small fee per person, just to cover the costs of seed envelopes and plastic bags.



If you're interested in coming along and learning by doing - you're more than welcome. Email tteudlo@yahoo.com and I'll add you to the mailing list.

Cheers,
Sonya
Transition Town Eudlo
Coordinator

Meeting this Sunday

A reminder that Transition Town Eudlo is getting together this Sunday 8.30-10am at Sweetheart's Cafe in Eudlo.

Cheers,
Sonya

Transition Town Nambour anyone?

Transition Town Eudlo isn't limited to people living in Eudlo, in fact people come from far and wide to see what all the fuss is about this thing they call 'Transition Towns'.

People who live in neighbouring areas come along regularly to get a feel for what it's like and to see if they'd like to start a Transition Town in their own town.

We have people from Palmwoods, Mooloolah, Ilkley and Keil Mountain regularly attending and contributing to what's going on in Eudlo.

Others come because they're not sure if there is enough interest in their own home town to get one started yet.

Which leads me into (finally) this post...

Over time there have been people who've asked, "Is there a Transition Town in Nambour?", to date there hasn't been and unfortunately, these individuals haven't turned up on the same day.

So I'm putting the idea out there - would some Nambour folk like to start Transition Town Nambour?

I'm happy to help and you're still very welcome at the Eudlo meetings - but if there is enough interest in Nambour itself, and I suspect there would be, why not take the plunge and jump right in?

It fits very nicely with the whole revitalisation of Nambour after the loss of the sugar mill in town too. I think local council would be supportive of the idea as part of that whole project.

Contact me at tteudlo@yahoo.com or come along to the next Eudlo meeting on November 1 and meet face to face.

Cheers,
Sonya
Transition Town Eudlo