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Category: News

  • Journeys needing support

    Journeys needing support

    People from the Asia Pacific are participating in some fantastic Journeys around Climate Change.

    JCJ is delighted, and keen to support the organisers where we can.

    JCJ is working towards linking people in the countries involved. Our dream would be for individuals from one country in the Asia Pacific to take part in other Journeys, as a step towards grassroots collaboration across the whole region. Want to help make this a reality? Get in touch.

    Another bike journey is happening in Sri Lanka. This time it is initiated by United Nations Volunteers. The great news is that ECO-V (Eco-Friendly Volunteers) are now participating as well as giving advice. ECO-V ran the 2011 and 2013 Journeys, and their convenor Kanchana Weerakoon is vice-president of JCJ.

    Pacific Warriors from 13 nations, threatened by rising seas, brought their canoes to Australia in late October. On Friday 17th October, they blockaded Newcastle Harbour, the largest coal terminal in the world. There were supporting events in cities around Australia. Find out about their next Journey and support them.

    The Climate Caravan will roll through Bangladesh, India and Nepal from 10th to the 28th of November. It includes participants from the sub-continent, Australia and elsewhere. Find out more and support them.

    You can also make a contribution to any of these projects on our Donate page. 

     

     

  • Sri Lankan Bike Journey

    Sri Lankan Bike Journey

    In Sri Lanka, a long bicycle journey is being organised by United Nations Volunteers (UNV), starting in November.

    The group is inspired by the Kelani River and Paapedi Bike Journeys that JCJ supported.

    JCJ co-founder Kanchana is providing practical advice and support. Kanchana is also president of ECO-V, or eco-friendly volunteers, which is based in Sri Lanka.

  • Student Visit to Sustainable Daylesford

    On a lovely sunny Sunday recently, we held our very first expedition with international students studying in Australia. We travelled in a convoy of cars to Daylesford, 110 kilometres from Melbourne.

    The aim was to give the students some interesting educational experiences, introduce them to local students, have a good time, and test our approach to running such journeys.

    The students came from China, New Zealand, Canada and Latin America – and we also joined by a high school teacher originally from China.

    First stop was Hepburn Wind Farm, where we learnt so much about community-based energy projects. Debate over wind turbines was initially polarised, but with much explanation and encouraged to invest financially in the community project, 99 per cent of people swung behind it.

    Second stop was a free-range piggery based on heritage-breed Large Black pigs. The pigs roam outside all year, and are fed on brewery by-products. The animals are slaughtered on-site, and the meat sold direct to people nearby and in Melbourne – delivered in a vehicle running on cooking oil and fats collected locally. They have just introduced a Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) membership model.

    Third stop was Daylesford neighbourhood house, where we met two local people very knowledgeable about the local environmental issues and their history. We learnt much about the highs and lows of various initiatives.

    JCJ is exploring models for how to run these trips with Students 4 Sustainability, who ran this trip – thanks to Cath, John and Liz.

  • JCJ talks to renewable energy association

    Helen and Jim recently gave a talk about JCJ aims and actions to the Dandenong Ranges Renewable Energy Association. We also showed a 13 minute DVD of the Kelani River Journey. Members of the association were very interested, and we were delighted that they came out on a wet and cold night.

    We love getting the message out. Would your group like to host us? We can do short 10 minute talks or much longer. Contact us to find out more.

  • 2014 Bangladesh Youth Action Conference Dhaka – BGreen

    JCJ helped fund a part of the BGreen conference in Bangladesh. Over 150 environmental experts, professionals, climate-concerned citizens, and 100 urban youth united to address current environmental issues at hand in their communities, brainstorm and propose solutions. The conference included speakers, educational activities, exercises, and generating action plans. The conference was a resounding success, receiving intense media attention, kick-starting several environmental projects, and successfully building community partnerships among organisations in Bangladesh and beyond.

  • 2013 Bangladesh Climate Justice Project

    This project was run by JCJ via our volunteer Pat Kirkby in Bangladesh. It aimed to empower and inspire the local grass-roots community to respond to the challenges of climate change. Pat worked tirelessly in Dhaka to provide free training activities on climate change, sustainability and environmental leadership for youth, NGOs, professionals and grass-roots communities. Amongst these activities were a JCJ ‘Climate Solutions Conference’, numerous youth environmental leadership workshops, and Bangladesh’s biggest ever Earth Hour event, which brought together hundreds of bike riders and concerned climate activists. These events generated mass media attention and overwhelming local support. JCJ also selected 3 aspiring youth climate activists to visit climatically vulnerable areas of rural Bangladesh, where the team worked with local grass-root organisations to develop initiatives that are driving long-lasting change in these climatically-devastated poor rural villages.

  • 2013 Paapedi Bike Journey

    The second ECO-V run yathra, Papeedi Bike Journey, aimed to empower 25 young Sri Lankans as social and environmental actors. JCJ funded the 25 bicycles required for the yathrees to  travel together for 12 days in an eco-friendly manner. They were taught to engage with the public, how to educate people based on both science and ethics, and how to lead by example. They learnt how to use interactive street theatre, formal presentations, conversation and storytelling. ECO-V taught them how to do water quality testing, air quality testing, and the importance of organic, wholesome and sustainable living. At the end of the yathra the youth pledged to protect and care for Mother Nature using their new-found skills and knowledge.

  • 2013 Vietnam Teacher Training: Environmental Education

    In 2013, JCJ supported teacher-training workshops on climate change and environmental education. Teacher training manuals were produced and widely distributed across the Mekong, and flyers were put up throughout local schools and universities. Daniel Bladh, an environmental professional from Sweden who JCJ met through our Mekong Climate Action Project, was the key driver in leading these initiatives. JCJ also sponsored an exhibition of sculptures made from plastic waste, aiming to raise awareness for environmental conservation.

  • 2012 Mekong Climate Action Project

    The Mekong Climate Action Project aimed to raise awareness and promote adaptation/ mitigation responses to climate change, as well as to encourage transitions to sustainable lifestyles in Long Xuyen, Vietnam. The project was a collaboration between a leading climate change expert from a Vietnamese university and JCJ volunteers. A large conference, workshops, campaigns, and meetings were held around climate action with over 200 people in attendance. Two academic papers were produced after this project and widely disseminated. This project was at the forefront of climate action in the Mekong at the time and received a high level of media attention. JCJ helped plan and provide logistical support, and Pat Kirkby, the project leader, self-funded the project. 

  • 2011 Yathra Follow Up Project

    This was a small follow up project from the 2011 Kelani Nadee Yathra in Sri Lanka. Pat Kirkby, a volunteer during the yathra earlier in the year, visited many of the yathrees in their hometowns to help implement their community projects. He helped continue the connections from the yathra and empower the yathrees on their journeys as environmental leaders. Pat also spent some time working with ECO-V, who runs the yathra program. JCJ contributed to his trip expenses.