Notice: Council services over Easter Read more.
Use space to open navigation items
City of Wollongong

Friday fast five: Planet-friendly fun this week

Friday 26 May 2023

Doing good feels good. Here are five ideas to help you dial up the karma credits and enjoy some family-friendly activities that are fun for both you and planet:

1. Celebrate Botanic Gardens Day on 28 May

Plant yourself at Wollongong Botanic Garden on 28 May for a Botanic Gardens Day smorgasbord of free nature-focused tours, talks and exhibitions.

Pioneered right here in Wollongong, the national day celebrates the role of plants in our lives and the work botanic gardens do to conserve and protect for future generations.

There’ll be a native plant sale, and the Kids Tree Trail and Garden Discovery Buggy Tours will ensure all, whether seedlings or the well-established, can get involved.

Botanic Gardens

2. Plant a tree with your crayons

School kids (k-12) can use their crayons, pens, and computers to take real climate action with entries now open for the annual POEM FOREST nature poetry prize. The prize invites students and teachers to submit nature-themed poems and see them come to life with a tree planted right here in Wollongong for each, creating a forest of poems for future generations.

The planet isn’t the only winner either; there are prizes for the best poems in each category!

Poem Forest

3. Cycle for work or play

We’re proud to be the only UCI Bike City in Australia – and the southern hemisphere!

There are lots of ways you can discover everything Wollongong has to offer on your bike. From shared paths to bike lanes, pump tracks and mountain bike trails, if you like to pedal, we’ve got something for you.

Riding your bike is kind on the planet and a great way for all ages to explore our city’s beaches, parks, playgrounds, town centres and incredible natural scenery.

Cringila Hills Pump Track

4. Join the Coastal Clean Up on 3 June

Roll up your sleeves and help keep our beautiful coastline clean! As a part of the Luv the Lake program, we’re hosting a Coastal Clean Up at Reddall Reserve to celebrate World Ocean's Month.

There will be kids activities, stallholders who are passionate about protecting and conserving the environment, live music and food!

Cleanup

5. Become a citizen scientist (from home)

If the start of the annual whale migration up our coastline has you thinking about more that you can do for the marine environment, have you heard about the annual Great Reef Census?
It mobilises a makeshift research flotilla of dive boats, tourism vessels, superyachts, fishing charters, tugboats and island operations to capture tens of thousands of survey images from across the reef.

They need the help of everyday people (just like you!) to help identify what type of coral, and how much of it, is in each image. You’ll be proving timely data to scientists and marine managers of what is happening across these reefs to better drive their protections.

Reef Census


Want more Council news?

Visit our News page to find out what's happening in your community, or sign up for e-news.