DAY ONE
Meet and Greet with Artists | Guest Speaker: Wayne Bright | Nathaniel Wiseman at Wagtail Urban Farm | Meeting with the Australian Youth Climate Coalition.
The residency began with the artists, Rosie Dennis and the Vitalstatistix team meeting early in the morning with a generous morning tea made up of organic local produce from the Port Adelaide region. Rosie briefly touched on some of the places we were about the visit and some of the varying perspectives we could expect on issues such as sustainability and climate change. Rosie really encouraged us to enter each place with an open mind and to actively listen to what was presented. Needless to say, we were all excited to begin exchanging dialogue!
Whilst everyone enjoyed their delicious produce and cups of coffee, we were also encouraged to think about the food we were consuming, where it was sourced from and the practices behind its creation. Further, as an exercise to make us aware of our individual energy consumption rates we all began to record our carbon emission rates for the food, waste and petrol we were to consuming throughout the residency.
As resident artists we all had a chance to get our hands dirty - literally! Nathan ran us through some of the various tools he used for weeding and we gave him a hand at exactly this. Many hands made light work!
DAY TWO
Site visit to John and Roberta's Sustainable Property | Site visit to Paris Creek Farm and Lab.
After a good night's sleep and an early meet up in the city, we all jumped into a mini bus and headed towards Milang in the Adelaide Hills for our first site visit of the day. Located 76 km south-east of Adelaide, Milang is a small community (permanent population of around 350 people) on the shores of Lake Alexandrina. In fact it is the only town on the shores of the lake. Although the beautiful sight of the lake was welcomed, we were about to be introduced to an even greater sight - Roberta and John's Farm.
Made up on an acre and a quarter of land, Roberta and John single handedly changed and created their garden. They initially planted three olive trees and from their their garden grew to the incredible state it is in now. Roberta and John grow everything themselves and have worked for many years towards being completely sufficient off the land. They don't use any chemicals and they have their own electricity. The results were telling - what can be done with a garden with just a little hard work, determination and trial and error.
Red Chillies were just some of the organically produced products to be found in Roberta and John's incredible sustainable farm.
After a delicious lunch provided by Roberta and John, we headed back out to the garden to gain some practical insights on what it takes to pull off a project such as this. Roberta and John were generous with their knowledge and we all walked away with an increased awareness surrounding sustainable practices.
After a truly inspiring experience at Roberta and John's farm in Milang we are jumped back into the mini bus and headed towards our second and last site visit for the day - B.-d. Farm Paris Creek.
Once we arrived at Paris Creek we were greeted by Managing Director, Ulli Spranz. As founder and Managing Director of the company, Ulli is a busy woman, but she was very generous with her time and talked us through the history of the farm. We were also guided through some of the obstacles she has faced and how she was able to overcome them. All the while we were shown how the farm maintained its commitment to biodynamic farming and respect for the earth.
Through Ulli's insights, we learnt that B.-d. Farm Paris Creek is locally made, Australian owned and committed to supporting South Australian dairy farmers and their families in an effort to manage their farms with bio-dynamic methods. We were shown the years of experience and dedication that have reinforced their respect for nature and the environment. Many of us walked away with a greater understanding on why bio-dynamic/organic farming is important to conserve the environment and our water resources for our health and for the health of future generations.
A great end to Day two of the residency tasting some of the produce at B.-d. Farm Paris Creek.
DAY THREE
Site visit to SARDI | Site visit to Barra Fresh Fish Farm
Some have argued that oceans have become a key
indicator for environmental changes around the globe. For our third day of research and site visits, we headed to South Australian Research and Development Institute - SARDI followed by a trip 20km outside of Adelaide's CBD to Barra Fresh fish farm to explore some of these issues.
From seagrass deaths and
tropical species being found in southern waters, to coral spawning cycles and
cyclone activity in the north, the small changes in water temperature and
ecology can provide long term insight for climatologists and primary producers. At SARDI we were given a presentation on some of these issues and the research conducted by the institute.
On this research site visit we were to learn that SARDI Aquatic Sciences helps deliver the sustainable growth of South Australian aquaculture industries and protects our fisheries resources and their environments by the application of innovative science.
SARDI Aquatic Sciences' core skills include aquaculture nutrition, genetics and propagation, micro-algal production, marine and freshwater ecological research, environmental assessment, oceanography, aquatic biosecurity and fisheries biology, assessment and modelling.
The South Australian Aquatic Sciences Centre (SAASC) is a purpose-built marine and freshwater research laboratory complex located at West Beach, near Adelaide.
"For us to know what is
going on, to provide the advice to the community, to the industries and the
broader community and to the government, is absolutely important."
Following this site visit, we headed to Barra Fresh Fish Farm where we were shown around by owner, Adrian. Check out Adrian's interview in the Our video section on the right >
DAY FOUR
Site Visit to Waterloo Wind Farm | Site Visit to Rohde's Free Range Egg Farm
Operating since October 2010, Waterloo’s 37 turbines generate clean energy to a number of homes in South Australia. On this site visit, we were to learn that the wind farm consists of:
We were also taught that South Australia has some of the best wind resources in the world. Strong winds, known as the ‘Roaring 40s’, regularly blow across this region. These gusts accelerate as they pass over nearby hills and ridgelines resulting in very high wind speeds.
Later that day the team headed North to the Clare Valley to a free range egg farm. Have a listen to John Rohde from Rohde's Free Range Egg Farm discuss some issues surrounding renewable energy in the Our videos section on the right >
Operating since October 2010, Waterloo’s 37 turbines generate clean energy to a number of homes in South Australia. On this site visit, we were to learn that the wind farm consists of:
- 37 turbines mounted on 80-metre high towers
- a generation capacity of 111 megawatts (MW)
- 1.8kms of 132-kilovolt transmission line that connects the Waterloo substation into the South Australian network via the Waterloo East substation
Later that day the team headed North to the Clare Valley to a free range egg farm. Have a listen to John Rohde from Rohde's Free Range Egg Farm discuss some issues surrounding renewable energy in the Our videos section on the right >
DAY FIVE
Site Visit to Nunga foods
With a very early start the team travelled up to Port Victoria to visit one of the farms producing food for Matjarra: Nunga Produce. From their website:
"Nunga Produce is a business that encourages private Aboriginal farmers to embark on producing on their own land for their own financial benefit for commercial market. Nunga Produce will then market the collective product on behalf of the growers under the MATJARRA branding.
Aboriginal people are natural born farmers and the connection to the Land opens endless opportunities for individuals which can then be extended. The affiliation and respect for the land is the benefit and advantage these farmers have which is essential in order to have success in this challenging industry.
Hence, by supporting MATJARRA you are supporting an Aboriginal enterprise, Aboriginal employment and the future support of Aboriginal employment and enterprising. The farms which we are currently supporting are in the following regions:
- Port Victoria
- Ceduna
- Port Lincoln
Nunga Produce is constantly seeking other micro farms to partner with us in this venture. Our goal, under the MATJARRA banner, is to empower Aboriginals to build better lives for themselves, their families and their communities. As an actively operating Aboriginal business we intend on leading this Path."
