Beer and TP (toilet paper): Ideas that change the lives of millions

Shebeen is a non-profit bar that sells beers from around the world and gives 100% of profits back to your drink's country of origin. Who Gives A Crap is a brand of toilet paper that helps provide people in developing countries with toilets and better sanitation. Simon Griffiths is the brains behind both these amazing ventures! Read the full story »

Your local community farm: just around the corner

I'm a quintessential city kid. Everything I know about farming I learned from Waterworld: you need dirt. But even as a city kid I know that we, unlike poor Kevin Costner, live in a country that has pretty great dirt (although apparently it's actually called 'soil'). How would a city kid know that? A few days ago I car-pooled with a few of the Alfalfa House crew to visit one of their suppliers, Common2Us. Common2Us is an organic community farm in Dural, only an hour out of Sydney's center. Read the full story »

Spiritual bankruptcy, a modern awakening

In today's age of austerity, bankruptcy is an option that many people are facing due to ever increasing debts and a longing to start again. However, for many people it is so much more than a means to re-establish their financial lives. It is a move towards a more spiritual, stress free way of living that you may not have even noticed you were lacking until you have to start again. Once you have wiped your financial slate clean, the self evaluation can begin. This is a time when many people feel empowered to finally be in control of their finances again; imagine the weight of debt on your shoulders for many years, trying to live a life that you simply cannot and then all of a sudden it is removed - a wonderfully freeing feeling. This is the time when you can start to look at what you do have in a different way, you may start to notice things that you have overlooked previously like the company of friends or a reconnection with hobbies long forgotten. Read the full story »

Mindful in May

Today marks the beginning of Mindful in May – a global campaign that uses meditation and mindfulness to aid a worthy cause. Mindful in May is open to both novice and seasoned meditators and is all about challenging people to become more aware and appreciative whilst also bringing attention to the very real issue of access to clean water – an important one considering that diseases from unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. Read the full story »

One Million Women can’t be wrong: Love Food, Hate Waste

Did you know that in NSW we waste an average of 1 in every 5 shopping bags of food we buy? That is about 20% of our purchased food. Our garbage bins are predominantly filled with discarded food and the reality is that the overall wastage is far more than just the food in the bin but also a waste of everything that went into producing that food. And did you know that in landfill, food waste produces methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide?! I didn’t. At least not until I spoke with Macquarie University’s lovely resident Sustainability Officer Belinda Bean. Read the full story »

Mason Jar Meals

Mason Jar Meals are amazing for so many reasons. No more uncertainty about what’s for dinner, no need to cook every night when you’re exhausted, more organisation in your fridge and say goodbye to plastic containers! It’s a simple idea – prepare your meals ahead in a jar, where they stay fresh and look totally delicious at the same time. You’re also reusing jars. I decided to try these Mason Jar Meals out AND with seasonal produce. You can’t get more sustainable than that. Read the full story »

Top 5 reasons to visit farmers’ markets

Buying local doesn’t mean getting groceries from the supermarket up the road. Often food travels for miles and days before reaching the shelves and you’d be hard-pressed to find exactly where and how it was produced and by whom, which takes its toll on the environment, the food system and our health. Read the full story »

How was your National Close the Gap Day?

Check out some of the pics from the record-breaking 950 events to help close the Indigenous health gap! And if you haven't already, join hundreds of thousands of people across Australia and sign the pledge to Close the Gap! Read the full story »

Around the world in 80 dumps

Stung Meanchey Municipal Dump in Cambodia is a world away from Amy Hanson’s former life as a celebrity reporter for Britain’s Mail on Sunday and yet it marks the beginning of her unglamorous but fulfilling new life, running the Small Steps Project. Read the full story »

Indigenous leadership & spirituality

Strong Indigenous leadership is essential to closing the gap. So what inspires today's Indigenous leaders? What's different or unique about their leadership style? What do they see as necessary to lay the foundations for future Indigenous leadership?

One man who is doing his part to address the leadership gap is former Melbourne Storm NRL premiership winning, New Zealander Matt Rua. Rua has a passion for Indigenous empowerment and took on the role of Multicultural and Indigenous Development Officer (MIDO) for the Melbourne Storm Development Unit after finishing up his rugby career.

Read the full story »