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 Roger Findlay I have come to the conclusion that the best garden produce is grown using traditional methods much the same as when I was a boy. At that time garden centres didn’t exist. Consequently the gardener had no option but to make do with what was available. Soot,
By Kylie Durant, Holbrook Landcare Network and Slopes to Summit Today I got a dose of the “big picture” watching a webinar presented by Dr Graeme Worboys – a researcher from Australian National University who works with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in landscape conservation. Across the world
By Lizette Salmon, Coordinator, Repair Café Albury-Wodonga Planned obsolescence is now a crime in France. Marvellous, isn’t it? Since August 2015, company directors face a two-year prison sentence and significant fine if they use techniques that deliberately reduce the lifespan of products. This legislation was introduced to protect consumers from
By Lizette Salmon, Coordinator, Repair Café Albury-Wodonga One of the main reasons I wanted to start a Repair Café in our region was to provide a fix-it service for broken electrical appliances. I’d had a run of broken kettles and was keen to learn how they might be repaired. Sadly, offering
By Maureen Cooper, Wooragee Landcare On the 7th November at 2.30pm I was sitting in the shade at the dam closest to the house, hoping to see the Eastern Long-necked turtle that is now living in the dam. A flock of Superb Fairy-wrens was hopping around near my chair and I
By Tess Middleton, Fin Free Albury Wodonga Many people think an ocean full of sharks is scary, but to consider the consequences of an ocean without sharks is even scarier. Unfortunately this thought is quickly becoming a reality with at least 25% of all shark species now endangered. So what’s
By Melissa Kane, Eco-friendly mum An atmosphere of hope is certainly how I felt after listening to Tim Flannery speak at the Write Around the Murray festival recently. Tim discussed his new book of the same title. I highly recommend reading his book or listening to the podcast at http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2015/09/30/4322635.htm.
By Thea McCarthy, Wangaratta The word ‘superfood’ has become popular in the past few years. From goji berries to acai, chia seeds and quinoa, every day there seems to be a new ‘superfood’ hitting the supermarket shelves. It appears to be marketing jargon for a food that is particularly nutrient dense,
By Karen Bowley, member of Wooragee Landcare and Wodonga Albury Towards Climate Health (WATCH) After our Christmas and New Year festivities and feasting, we will still probably have a lot of food left over. According to Sustainability Victoria research, each household wastes about $2,000 worth of food, and in NSW, in
By Francesca Ciantar I’m on the seafood diet; I see food, and I eat it – Homer Simpson Perched on an island as we are, both Indigenous Australians and European settlers alike have historically enjoyed the fruits of the sea. Furthermore, as a nation of people who enjoy a summer
By Claire Coulson Christmas is the most wasteful time of the year. It’s a well established fact, just ask a garbo. But raising the topic will quickly see you labeled the family Grinch, ‘tis the season to be jolly after all. Instead I try to let my actions do the talking.
By Melissa Kane, Eco-friendly Mum It’s that time of year again when I am making a list and checking it twice (and trying to use my green conscience at the same time). I got to wondering, since when has Christmas been about proving to people you love them by how much
