EarthChat

Marie Gerrard and Ruth Yeatman interview Ian Dempsey about the plans to build the Inland Rail, especially through Broadford. Ian Dempsey is a local Broadford citizen with a long record of activism in Mitchell Shire particularly in environmental issues. He is an active member of the Rotary Club of Southern Mitchell as environmental chair. He is also involved in the Rotary Environmental Sustainabili...

Not many people may have heard about Footy for Climate, but it is a ground-breaking organisation. It was founded by two AFLM players, Tom Campbell (Melbourne FC, St Kilda, North Melbourne and Western Bulldogs) and Jasper Pittard (North Melbourne and Port Adelaide) in the wake of the 2020 Black Summer bushfires. Tom and Jasper were North Melbourne teammates when their training was forced indoors du...

Join Ruth and Phil this week as they continue their Treaty conversation with First Peoples’ Assembly North East Representative, Levi Power, who returns to update us on the Treaty process here in Victoria.  After years of careful consultation (Phase One of Three),The Allan Labor Government and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria have entered the Second Phase of the Victorian treaty process whic...

Four roadside bins to grace your kerbside. What is this, how will it work? Mitchell Shire begins the four-bin roadside collection system in March. A bin for glass only, another for other recyclables, one for green waste and the red bin for landfill. Four bins will take some thinking, and becoming familiar with timetables. Australia’s recycling per capita is not high: we can do better.  In Mitchell...

Mitchell local and BEAM committee member Peter Gaffney is an organiser for Rising Tide and he joins EarthChat again to talk about this amazing movement. Peter is dedicated to the well-being of both the planet and its inhabitants. He is both an impassioned environmental activist and palliative care nurse specialist. Throughout his career, the planet's welfare has remained a central priority. He has...

This week on EarthChat, Marie Gerrard and John Thompson explore the many and varied ways that our economic future will be affected by Climate Change. These include increased natural disasters, droughts, bushfires and health effects to name some. We can expect major rises in our expenses for recovery. Many homes and businesses will become uninsurable and governments will be expected to pay with our...

Horse studs are big around Seymour and indeed across all of Mitchell Shire. This is a big money industry. What are the opportunities to make this industry more environmentally benign? James Manning is Stud Manager at Godolphin Stud in Northwood Road, and he joins Peter Lockyer on EarthChat this week as we dig deep into horse manure, a BEAM study a decade ago “Stable Waste to Compost” and James's w...

Bertram Lobert, president of the Community Group, ‘Save Our Strathbogie Forest’ (SOSF), joins Nelly and Ruth on EarthChat Tuesday to tell us about their conservation efforts to improve the management of the Strathbogie Forest. A recent campaign with the Victorian Government successfully advocated for a halt to native forest logging in 2019. In 2024, in a legal case brought by Save Our Strathbogie...

You may not know the name Violet Coco, but you would have seen her on the news, arrested for protesting in different places, all to highlight the precarious state of our planet. Violet is a passionate environment and social justice activist. She has been arrested 49 times in 6 years as a non-violent, direct action, change maker. She recently spent two months in prison and is facing court again on...

A new year, a new podcast! On Earth Chat this week, Peter, Marie chats with Simon Millar who is the captain of a whale-watching boat that operates out of Eden, NSW. They discuss the very interesting  and well documented history of the interactions between Indigenous people and whales in the fairly recent past. We will also cover the return of humpback whales since the ban on whale slaughter, their...

It's been a big year! Lots has happened; some good but not everything has contributed to making our planetary home a just and sustainable place to live. On this EarthChat, Tim and Peter pull apart the year, separate out the good, the bad and the ugly and find some music to reflect the diversity of the EarthChat radio show over the last year. What have been your highlights? Which EarthChat episodes...

It's not Christmas week without EarthChat and this week before Christmas Peter Lockyer chats with Dr Jamie Mapelson about his work. Community radio for remote communities has developed as a valuable service for information, be they events, health conversations, community business. In a world where First Nations are ever challenged by the all pervasive media of global empires, the local content has...

This week Marie Gerrard and Peter Lockyer  will be interviewing Patricia Armstrong from ESRAG, the Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group. This program was originally planned to go to air in November but had to be delayed. We are so glad it can now be broadcast. We will take a look at the basic reasons why and how we campaign for a safe future for all, for humans and all living beings. W...

Ruth. Emma and Phil continue their conversation about the impacts of colonization in Australia. On Tuesday's program they will focus on why Treaty in Victoria will ultimately benefit everyone who lives in this State. The First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria and the State Government have formerly declared that negotiations can now begin to create a Treaty for the State of Victoria, Australia. Non in...

Tim Forcey has written a handbook that shows why, and how you can shift your home to being all electric. Good for your health, and your pocket, and good for the planet. On EarthChat this week, Tim shares his story and delivers a compelling case to go “all electric” and “get off gas”.  It is cheaper, healthier, and smarter. In this week's EarthChat, Peter and Tim chat with Tim Forcey about his life...

This week Tim Budge and Ruth Yeatman chat with the Joshua Waters about Indigenous Knowledge. Joshua is a First Nations K/Gamilaroi man, PhD student and Senior Research Fellow with the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Deakin University. His work explores the critical role of Indigenous Knowledges in global higher education and institutional contexts. He is also a core member of Deakin Un...

Euroa Arboretum workers, Bronte Haines, Charlotte Langman, and Nelly Watson join Ruth Yeatman to talk about the wonderful conservation work of the ‘Arb’, its many offerings, and why they love working in this truly beautiful natural environment. Spanning 27 hectares, the Euroa Arboretum offers a unique experience to spend time in the natural environment of northeastern Victoria. Working with tradit...

This week Tim Budge and Peter Lockyer chat with the legendary Cam Walker about forests, climate change, supporting Traditional Owners and his enduring love of the High Country. Cam is the campaigns co-ordinator with Friends of the Earth in Melbourne. Friends of the Earth (FoE) is a grassroots, community-based environmental organisation and Cam is responsible for co-ordinating the various campaigns...

This week on EarthChat, John Thompson president of Mitchell Community Energy joins Narelle Liepa from Mitchell Shire Council on EarthChat to share some of the good work happening in community renewables in Mitchell Shire. What is happening?    - A Solar farm at the tip - Jeff's work on the old courthouse - Our proposal for a solar carpark at Chittick Park and Community Batteries - The proposed Ene...

Join Tim Budge and Jessica Morrison as they chat about Jessica's involvement in peace and social justice issues. Jess has been a passionate advocate for working towards peace in situations such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine and has been outspoken in her opposition to war. She discusses the impact of the war on Gaza on innocent people and how Palestinians (and Lebanese) are suffering. She was...

Ruth chats with creative team members of the Seymour Performers Workshop (SPW) to explore the far reaching benefits of the performing arts, along with exciting news of their latest production and the creation of a Community Choir. They explore how creating music theatre along with the act of singing creates social, physical, and mental benefits, not only for the performers but also for the audienc...

Listen in to this week's EarthChat where Marie Gerrard and Ruth Yeatman chat to Wallan environment advocate Claudia James about managing growth while caring for the environment. They look at the challenges and opportunities for improving amenities particularly in our high growth areas and focus on the connections between health, wellbeing and nature and practical ways of planning these connections...

Tim Budge and Peter Lockyer chat with Andrew Mahar, AM about taking practical steps to support climate action around the world. Andrew is an internationally recognised social entrepreneur, having spent the past 35 years seeding, nurturing, and mentoring over 15 successful social enterprises, both in Australia and Timor-Leste. This includes working with Timorese farmers to produce and market delici...

Peter Sawyer is a Seymour resident with a passion for watching birds. Birds in town, on the Goulburn River and recently at Borroloola in the Northern Territory. On EarthChat, Peter Lockyer teases out some of the delights of Peter’s birdwatching, and of threatened species still about, and what we all could do to assist in their conservation. It's been a wet year and birdlife is abundant. You can fi...

Ruth and Phil welcome Levi Power and Jarvis Atkinson from the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria who bring us the latest Victorian Treaty news. Treaty is an opportunity for First Peoples to have a greater say and control over matters that affect them. It is an opportunity to secure meaningful structural reform to ensure First Peoples make the decisions about their communities, their culture, and...