How can my school participate in Junior Landcare?

Landcare is the activity that groups of people do to care for our land and water. Some groups are on farms, some in schools, in cities or care for beaches. Landcare includes a wide variety of activities, depending on the local environment and problem and what the local group wants to do about them.

People form landcare groups when they want to work together to fix and prevent land and water degradation or care for their local environment. They can be groups of farmers, groups of neighbours in a bushland area, or a whole town. They may be students concerned about a degraded site within a school, or surfers looking after a coastal dune.

Students and teachers have whole-heartedly embraced the Landcare movement and natural resource management is now an established and valuable part of the school curriculum. Your school can get involved in Landcare in a number of ways:

Find out about local issues

• Read and listen to media reports on degradation and find out how you can reduce your impact on the environment. There are many Australian websites which contain information on natural resource and environmental management issues. (See links below)
• Invite a farmer, landcare coordinator, council officer or facilitator to talk to your school community about degradation or natural resources in the local area to investigate what the problems are and how to address them.
• Visit a degraded site or take a bus tour through your catchment.
• Survey students, staff or local landholders to find out what people are concerned about.

Take action 

Develop a landcare project:

• Design a landcare project that not only helps to restore a degraded environment but also teaches others about landcare. It is usually best to think small and work on something which can achieve change within a school term or year. Your project could involve removing weeds and rubbish, bush regeneration, planting trees, monitoring water quality or designing and planning rehabilitation activities.
• The success of your project will rely on thorough planning and research, and strong communication links with key people in the local community 
• Carry out a monitoring program to determine if your project, or the local landcare group's work, is achieving change and environmental improvements. 

Form a landcare group:

• There are many school landcare groups operating around Australia. However, because these groups often rely heavily on the commitment and dedication of at least one teacher or member of the local community, they can be difficult to maintain in the long-term.
• Landcare support staff can help you set up a group and they have information sheets on a range of associated topics such as planning your project, maintaining a group, funding, sponsorship and insurance.

Link with a landcare or similar group: 

• Contact your local Community Support Officer or the HRLN Office (below) to find out about Landcare, Coastcare, Bushcare or Rivercare.
• Discuss with a local group how you can work together. Your school could become involved in the planning or activities of the group.
• Your school and the local landcare group could develop a joint landcare project.

Tell others

• Promote your landcare activities through the school newsletter and the local media.You could build a display which is used at shows, school fetes, field days or other events. Special events could also be used to raise funds for the school landcare projects

Get support

• Identify all the separate issues and groups involved in your landcare project. List people who can help with advice, machinery, labour, administration and financial matters.
• You will need the support of the teachers, students and broader school community. 

National Landcare week

•  National Landcare Week is held in the first week in September each year. Groups throughout Australia undertake special activities during the week to raise the profile of landcare. Your school could get involved with the activities of other groups or develop your own activity to tell people in the community about landcare.

Awards and Grants

• Landcare Australia Ltd's partners support the landcare efforts of the nation's youth through the Westpac Landcare Education Award and Mitre 10 Junior Landcare Grants Program.
• Environmental forums for youth, such as the River Health Forum, are a great way to bring secondary students together, get them thinking about land and water degradation issues, and how they can be involved in addressing them.

Staff development

• Undertake staff development for teachers on natural resource and environmental management issues