Can schools join or form landcare groups?

• Yes – there are many examples of school-based landcare and coastcare groups.
• There are guides to how to form a group and how to plan a community project
  
• There are grants for schools and communities who work together on community landcare projects available – groups generally must apply through a catchment authority or through the Australian Government’s Envirofund, Natural Heritage Trust, Community Water Grants and the National Landcare Program
• Landcare Groups in your catchment can be found by contacting your catchment management authority – see contacts on the website www.landcareonline.com
• Catchment Management Authorities across Australia may have community education officers that can assist schools with advice
• Schools can search out Award winning school and community landcare projects and ask them for advice and ideas
• Research other schools landcare projects to get ideas and contacts for your community or school projects.

Some landcare activities thay you school can do

• Identify problems firstly on school grounds, but also in your local area
• Research solutions for the problems appearing in your area
• Plan and design a landcare project for your school
• Get help from others - students and teachers from different subject areas might assist you to plan and manage your project
• Seek funds and technical advice from your Catchment Management Authority, local landcare group or agency
• Most State Departments of education, agriculture, environment, water or natural resources planning have great websites and may have officers who can assist with ideas for your projects.

Understand local issues and get active to attract help and support

• Contact a landcare coordinator or group for advice on local issues
• Visit field days and shows and exhibitions held in your community or region to see how others are tackling degradation problems and to talk to people who know and care
• Contact your Catchment Management Office to look at maps and reports on degradation issues and how they would like you to be involved in helping to care for your catchment
• Research and apply for grants for your community – like small grants (Junior Landcare Grants, Australia Post, Coles, Visy and Melbourne Water Grants or the Community Water Grants from the Australian Government Department of Environment and Heritage.
• Talk with community groups and leaders and local farmers about their concerns and whether they might talk to your school about them
• Monitor your environment – through watching and counting fauna that comes into your school, testing soil and water in your school grounds, putting in piezometers to measure groundwater levels and quality
• Create habitat in your school to attract and care for native birds and animals – eg build nest boxes, frog ponds, plant local native plant species and gardens, construct wetlands suitable for a school
• Do a school water audit and plan to install watertanks and to improve drainage and water flow across your school property and investigate and implement other water conservation measures – check the Community Water Grants website for ideas – through the Australian Government’s Department of Environment and Heritage.

Linking with others

• Ask others what is going on in your community and get on mailing lists for information. There is a busy network of landcare groups, specialists, coordinators, project officers, advisers and field studies and environment centres – linked by meetings, newsletters, working bees, projects, workshops and conferences
• Ask community service groups and other groups to help
• Contact other schools and ask them to be involved – either over the internet or actually visiting and helping each others schools
• Get your school involved in youth forums like the River Heath and Coastal Conferences organized by 2001 Young Australian of the Year Arron Wood
• Plan your own regional landcare education or youth forums and share ideas
• Contact your Catchment Management Authority to see how your school impacts on your environment and what project help you might be eligible for.

What can schools achieve?

• Your school can achieve as much as a regular landcare group – and that can be very significant and can really assist your environment and your own learning and skills.

You will achieve more through seeking help for example through the Australian Sustainable Schools Initiative (AuSSI), through the Department of Environment and Heritage and through:

• thorough planning
• access to good information and successful case studies
• lots of communication with people in your community who can assist, followed by:
• action on local solutions.

Who can help schools?

• Junior Landcare Grants program
• Australia Post Biodiversity Grants
• Coles Junior Landcare Grant
• Melbourne Water Young Watercare Grants
• Westpac Operation Backyard
• State Environment Education initiatives eg QESSI (QLD Education Sustainable Schools Initiative)
• Dilmah Water Quality Testing Kits (via Landcare Australia)
• Westpac Landcare Education Awards
• Learnscapes – designs for schools yards.
• State Departments of Education and Environment.