Living Lightly is a collection of local stories about sustainable living.
The column commenced in 2012 and until 2023 was published in the Border Mail newspaper each week.
The content is community sourced – groups, organisations and individuals have written and contributed each of these informative and entertaining articles – all overseen by a local volunteer coordinator.
We are currently considering a monthly schedule for articles, stay tuned as we explore this option.
Here you can browse and search previous articles or subscribe to receive an email each time an article is published.
The Living Lightly coordinator is always keen to receive articles! Use the link below to find out how you can submit an article for the column.
With a big thank you to all the Living Lightly authors for contributing to this wonderful collection of articles.
By Jonathan Howard In spring most of us turn our attention to the garden and plants. Some of us might look to plant natives with nectar-producing flowers to attract honeyeaters and wrens in the garden. This spring, I encourage you to do something different – why not install some insect
By Lizette Salmon, Gardens for Wildlife Albury-Wodonga To be purrfectly honest I’ve always been more of a dog person, but having recently visited a dozen cat enclosures, I’m feeling the fuzzies for cats. But first things first. What’s a cat enclosure? Many people think it’s a cage for transporting cats.
By Karen Retra, Wodonga Urban Landcare Network Have you spotted the delightful purple flowers of Hardenbergia recently? It is also known as purple coral pea, false sarsaparilla and happy wanderer, among other names. Hardenbergia typically flowers in our region from mid-winter. Like several other species, some plants seemed to take an ‘early
By Chris McGorlick As days get longer, wattle blooms, and the thought of spring teases amid the icy grips of winter, I start to feel the need to move. No, not star-jumps. Rather to bust out, throw off the old routine, seek adventure. Usually this would involve seeking a far-flung,
By Lauren Salathiel At 7.30pm every second Monday for the past 12 weeks, I’ve turned on my computer to “meet” digitally with a group of Yackandandah friends and neighbours for a reading group with a potentially world-changing difference. Our group has been one of hundreds, nation-wide, to participate in a
By Anne Stelling, Parklands Albury Wodonga “River restoration” sounds like something beyond the power of ordinary people – something requiring engineers, heavy machinery and lots of money. But here in Albury Wodonga, a long-term community vision for restoration and reconnection of our Murray River corridor is quietly achieving just that,
By Lauriston Muirhead Coal is mostly carbon (C). When we burn it for energy, the carbon combines with oxygen (O2) in the air and produces carbon dioxide (CO2). CO2 is very good at absorbing heat – so more CO2 means more energy from the sun is retained in our atmosphere.
By Kirsten Coates As with most people who have spent the last few months isolating from the general public, I could be accused of “letting myself go”. No trips to the hairdresser, no brush with the makeup bag, no accessorising with matching scarves. In other words, my wearable wardrobe has
By Alan Hewett ‘If a tree falls in a forest and no-one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?’ It is a famous philosophical thought but what role does that dead tree really play? We have heard a lot lately about the amount of debris in our
By Mick Webster Since retiring I’ve participated in many ‘citizen science’ programs all over the world – the best-organised and most satisfying to me has been the Victorian Malleefowl Recovery Program (VMRP). The Malleefowl is an amazing bird that inhabits our semi-arid scrublands from north-west Victoria and western NSW to
By James Sloan Everyone knows bike riding is a great way to get some exercise on the way to somewhere else, be it to work or shopping or (finally) visiting friends. Millions of commuters across Europe and even America are turning to cycling to avoid crowded public transport or jammed
By Chris McGorlick With social restrictions beginning to ease, there is a group gathering whose return I am eagerly awaiting. In February this year, 30 of my neighbours, young and old, responded to a simple letter-box invite to a pot-luck dinner to share thoughts, ideas and feelings about climate change.
