Cana farm - A great social enterprise in Orchard Hills

Cana Farm is a scenic farm located in Orchard Hills. Run by Cana Communities, the farm works with marginalised people and aims to equip them with the skills and confidence to get their lives back on track. One of their key programmes is their work with Tafe Outreach, which provides people with skills and qualifications to gain full time employment.

We were shown around by Julie Sneddon, who coordinates the farm and is a volunteer. Her enthusiasm and love for her work and the positive changes they have achieved is infectious. Listening to her stories about the successes they’ve had, it’s hard not to get inspired by it all.

For more information on Cana Communities visit their website.

The Cana Cafe is in the old farm shed, and offers hospitality experience for their tafe Outreach students. I can recommend the scones!


This furniture is made in the Cana workshop from recycled timber. It's another example of the work done through their Tafe Outreach programs.


This side of the farm features a nice dam overlooked by a new chill out space. The building of the deck and shade structure was again done by people participating in Cana programs to give them work skills. It will be used as a counseling and relaxation space.


This brightly coloured artwork is painted on recycled paper. It will actually be used as wrapping paper for their Christmas Puddings (on sale now), profits of which go towards a Christmas feast for the community in Redfern.


This is their organic chicken run - plenty of room for them to stretch their wings!

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Council staff back a donkey in the Melbourne Cup. And a chicken. And a fruit tree...

Tuesday was the Melbourne Cup. Widely referred to as the ‘race that stops a nation’, for most workplaces it sees some betting sweeps and an afternoon tea. However Margaret Streater from Council’s Children’s Services had a different idea for the Cup – Council staff should back a donkey!

Not just any donkey mind you, but a donkey from Oxfam. Oxfam have a number of gifts available to help people living in poverty and disadvantage. Donkeys are used in emergencies to carry essential medicine and food packages where vehicles can’t access.

So on Melbourne Cup day Margaret went around and collected money from staff for the donkey, and ended up collecting an impressive $390.30! On top of the donkey, this enabled her to directly support:
• Water for a school in Cambodia
• Breakfast for HIV positive children in South Africa
• A couple of goats for a family in Mozambique
• A chicken for a family in Laos
• Fruit trees for a community in South Africa

Thanks to Margaret for organising the collection and to all of the Council staff who donated their own money instead of having a flutter on the Cup.

For more information on how you can support initiatives like this, check out the Oxfam shop www.oxfamshop.org.au

Local students plan a city for our future

Check out this amazing sustainable city created by 140 students from Erskine Park High School. The year 8 students involved had to consider what it takes to make a ‘city’ and then construct it themselves as part of their ‘Suburban Upcycle’ project. Cardboard boxes (including some from local businesses) were used to make a variety of buildings which made up the city, which was displayed at Penrith Regional Gallery & The Lewers Bequest over the weekend.

I’ve got to say I was pretty impressed with not only their artistry and design skills, but also their planning skills. There was a variety of housing types, essential services like hospitals, entertainment and dining options, and small businesses to serve the community. Not only that, the whole thing was built from sustainable materials and it can also be completely recycled at the end of its lifecycle – it’s basically a perfect model of a sustainable city! Congratulations to all of the students involved, and the teachers for coming up with such a cool project.

Green with veggie patch envy

While I love my veggie patch, I'm the first to admit it has a few weeds and is far from a manicured beauty. So it was with a serious case of envy that I checked out the veggie patch at Vaucluse House on the weekend.


Image from HHT website

Vaucluse House was built over a period between 1805 and the 1860s by William Charles Wentworth and his wife Sarah. Though financially they were quite well off, they were shunned socially, as not only were they both 'illegitimate' children, but they also had two children together before they married. Charles Wentworth was involved in a number of firsts for NSW, including the first European crossing of the Blue Mountains, establishing Sydney University as the first university in Australia, and he was also involved in establishing the colony's first independent newspaper. These days the house is managed by the Historic Houses Trust and is open for the public to check out (click here for more info). If you do visit, I can highly recommend the fresh scones from the Teahouse!

The Trust have set up the house to appear as if the family had just left the day before, kind of like a time capsule. The kitchen garden is no different, and is planted with the same varieties that would have been grown for the family. One interesting thing is the inclusion of pineapple - you have to remember that back in those days fresh fruit was nowhere as readily available as it is today, so exotic fruit like pineapple was virtually unheard of in England and would have made an exciting addition to their garden.

This is the view of the picturesque kitchen garden from the house.

And the view from the garden back to the house.

Celebrating the Glenmore Ridge Fitness Trail Launch

On the weekend just been, Council's sustainability mascot Echo was seen celebrating the launch of the new Glenmore Ridge Fitness Trail. With a range of fitness equipment spread out at intervals, it's the perfect place to get some exercise and some fresh air - just the thing after a week of work! To find the new fitness equipment, it's on the south side of the bushland next to Parakeet Grove, in Glenmore Ridge. Although Echo is a lizard of few words, he seemed pretty impressed with the new fitness trail. Or maybe he just liked the music...