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 Sue Brunskill I sit at my computer near a large glass window, looking out on a red salvia that has been flowering for many months. I have been seeing many interesting nature interactions – and we are supposed to look away from the computer regularly aren’t we! While I
By Alan Hewett Walking through our local parks we will often catch a glimpse of our native wildlife. However, on a recent a recent wet Saturday morning I was surprised to see a Satin Bowerbird. I watched for ten minutes as the glossy blue-black male hopped around accumulating various blue
By Lauriston Muirhead If you think tipping points relate to the etiquette of how to politely pay a gratuity at a restaurant, then this may not be for you! For the purpose of this article, the tipping points referred to here are in relation to climate change. The term usually
By Ian Davidson and Chris Tzaros – Wangaratta Landcare & Sustainability The River Red Gum is the most significant and distinctive plant in our district where it dominates our waterway banks and wetlands. The trees usually range from 20–35 m high and taller. Locally, we are lucky to have many
By Geoff Williams, Australian Platypus Conservancy A juvenile platypus typically emerges from its nesting burrow in mid-summer when it’s around 3-4 months old. They then face a steep learning curve if they are to survive, as their mothers will continue to provide milk for only a few weeks before they
By Jonathon Howard I think mussels should be given an award. Afterall, mussels are amazing biofilters, they play a crucial role in keeping rivers healthy, and are an important part of the food web of our inland fisheries. Yet mussels are dying in the thousands, each mass death event brings
By Kirsten Coates We are currently in the midst of a one in a thousand-year event. It’s not a flood or a bushfire or a drought but rather a planetary phenomenon. Over the next few weeks four planets will be in alignment: Saturn, Mars, Venus and Jupiter and we earthlings
By Lauriston Muirhead If you don’t look after your mental health, it can’t look after you. I am no mental health expert but, being an older person, I have picked up some tips along the way. Exercise – a lot of walking will do, but even better, try to get
By Chris McGorlick At the height of summer, and as the cusp of Autumn approaches, there is a highly seasonal occurrence that I relish every year. It’s not the flowering of an exotic plant, nor the arrival of a migratory creature, nor the fruiting of a particular vegetable. But rather,
By Bruce Key, member of Wodonga Albury Toward Climate Health (WATCH) To their credit, Albury Council recently voted unanimously to declare a climate emergency, becoming the 108th Australian council to do so. Many people will wonder why it is an emergency, even if they think that more action to mitigate climate
By Lizette Salmon, Gardens for Wildlife Albury-Wodonga Project Officer Gardens can provide vital stepping stones for native animals moving through the landscape for food, water, breeding or migratory purposes. Even small habitat gardens have the potential to provide temporary and longer-term refuge for native birds, insects, reptiles and small mammals.
By Alan Hewett As we move, albeit tardily, towards a clean energy future, hydrogen has been hailed as a major solution to reducing global emissions, halting climate change and creating employment. What is hydrogen exactly? Well, it is an invisible, colourless and odourless gas that burns cleanly and is the
