Green Day | Dirt ALIVE!

Published 6th September 2024. Written by Maddison O’Brien

It’s Green Day time, that special time of year where the hard work and collaboration of many brings an unforgettable day to over 700 local students. Watershed Landcare is celebrating Green Day on September 11th and 12th, with events designed to promote environmental education and engagement. Now in its 16th year, Green Day has become a cherished tradition and something students in grades 4 and 5 look forward to as they grow through school, offering enriching experiences for both students and adults.

The main event, taking place on September 12th, schools from across the region, from Mudgee to Ulan, to Glen Alice and Gulgong for a day of immersive environmental workshops under the theme “Dirt Alive.” This year’s Green Day is particularly special, featuring well-known environmental advocates Dirt Girl, Hannah Maloney, and ofcourse Costa Georgiadis who is the ambassador for Junior Landcare. These inspiring figures will join local and regional presenters in sharing their knowledge on topics ranging from sustainable farming to biodiversity conservation, all aimed at fostering environmental stewardship among the youth and future leaders of our vibrant community.

Marie Hensley, the enthusiastic Green Day coordinator, has curated an exciting program featuring 18 different presenters. She expressed her passion for the event, saying, “Green Day isn’t just about fun activities; it’s about planting the seeds for a sustainable future. When students get hands-on with environmental education, they become the champions of our land and soil, ready to care for the world around them.”

To kick off the celebrations, Watershed Landcare is hosting a special Green Day Dinner on September 11th at Our Chow, a beautiful venue on the outskirts of Mudgee. This exciting evening offers adults in the community an opportunity to unwind with a delicious three-course meal while mingling with the presenters of Green Day 2024 including ‘Dirt Girl’. You’re invited!

Green Day is first and foremost about the students, but the dinner is a special occasion for the adults who are just as passionate about caring for the environment. This event is a chance for volunteers, teachers, and landcarers to come together, celebrate, and share their commitment to environmental advocacy in a relaxed and enjoyable setting. Tickets for the dinner are $35 for Watershed Landcare members and $55 for non-members. There are limited seats available so book your spot at watershedlandcare.com.au/events

Green Day is a testament to the power of community collaboration and the dedication of our local volunteers. This annual event wouldn’t be possible without the generous support of our sponsors: Central Tablelands Local Land Services, Mudgee Getaway Cottages, Wilpinjong Peabody, Moolarben Coal, Glencore Ulan Coal, Mid Western Regional Council, A1 Earthworx, and Wollar Solar. Their contributions help ensure that we can continue to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards.

UPDATE

GREEN DAY 2024 is a wrap! What an unforgettable day of celebrating soil and learning about the environment. For this years theme DIRT ALIVE, who else but Dirt Girl from dirtgirlworld to champion the day with songs and a contagious enthusiasm for getting ‘grubby’. Over 600 kids from across the region learned how to grow food thanks to the amazingly talented Hannah Moloney. The kids were dazzled by these heroes! Even asking for autographs! We are so grateful to have shared the day with these two superstars! Thank you Hannah & Laura

We hope you’ll be back in the Mudgee region soon!

A huge shoutout to Marie Hensley who was instrumental in organising Green Day 2024. Marie has done such a fantastic job creating an unforgettable day for the students and connecting so many talented presenters with Landcare. In the spirit of Green Day Marie has been such a wonderful leader and it will be hard to top next year! Well done Marie

Green Day 2024 DIRT ALIVE would not have been possible without the generous support of community sponsors and contributors. THANK YOU to Mid-Western Regional Council , Yancoal Moolarben, Peabody Wilpinjong, Central Tablelands Local Land Services, Glencore, A1 Earthworx Mining & Civil, Mudgee’s Getaway Cottages, Wollar Solar, Print Storm Commercial Printing, WIRES, Red Hill Environmental Education Centre, Botanic Gardens of Sydney , Kanimbla Wombats, Dry Creek Farm Mudgee, Wurrumbungle National Park Environmental Education Centre, Mudgee Show Society, Petaurus Education Group, Mudgee Local Aboriginal Land Council

Thank you to all the teachers that go the extra mile for their students every day!!

Congratulations to all involved!

Imagine this, you’re in primary school and you head off to school knowing today is GREEN DAY! You roll up with all your friends at the Mudgee Showground to see 20 different workshops laid out just for you! This is the reality of Green Day! You read that right! 20 presenters from local regions and beyond have given up their day to come and shine the light on this year’s theme DIRT ALIVE. We had workshops on composting, worm farms, dung beetles, waste to art, theatre plays about Keith the Leaf, Bee hotels and that’s just naming a few. It’s safe to say that the student’s day was filled with bright ideas and positivity for the future of the environment.

We want to thank each and every one of our guest presenters who all bring so much passion and knowledge to the day. Each coming from their unique landscape and area of expertise, it’s an awesome opportunity for kids to see the diverse array of opportunities in the environmental space and feel inspired to make change in the world, just like our presenters do!

THANK YOU

Julie Reynolds Central Tablelands Local Land Services, McKenzie Redfern & Amber Twin Mid-Western Regional Council, Josh Frappell The Regenerative , Billie from Dry Creek Farm Mudgee, Melinda Kerr Kanimbla Wombats, Christine Corner Crave Natural Simone Kurtz, Bill Tink NetWaste, Evie, Claire & Chanel Petaurus Education Group, Hamish Campbell Mid-Western Waste, Wes Leedham Warrumbungle National Park Environmental Education Centre, Holly Manwaring WIRES, Beth Healy DirtMum, Melissa Wales, Beck Nielsen Red Hill Environmental Education Centre, Uncle Peter Swain, Cliodnah Maguire & Paddie Lane from Australian Institute of Botanical Science and Felicity Cavanough Art by You.

Each and every one of you made this an unforgettable day, thank you so much for coming along and for sharing your passion for caring for the environment with the students.