Science Education News (SEN) Journal 2017 Volume 66 Number 4 December 2017 | Page 53

REPORTS
People, Planet, Profit: Telling Stories about Sustainability
By Keith Heggart, IEU Organiser
Putting the Australian Cross-Curriculum Priority of Sustainability
at the heart of the work of teachers’ and support-staff’s work in
schools and early learning centres was the central message
of the IEU’s 5th Environment Conference, held on Friday 20th
October. More than 140 educators from across NSW and the
ACT participated in the Conference, which had the theme of
Sustainability: Think, Connect, Act.
The Conference began with John Blair (a member of the
Gamilaroi people and public school parent of the year in 2015)
acknowledging the traditional owners of the land, before Kirsty
Costa from ‘Cool Australia’ spoke about making Sustainability
meaningful in education. Kirsty’s high energy presentation
focused on defining sustainability as the nexus of people, planet
and profit, and suggested that schools need to find a way to work
within that nexus in order to make their sustainability work a long
term endeavour.
Participants also took part in a series of workshops that were
intended to connect practitioners with organisations that provide
educational materials and resources. There were representatives
from the National Parks and Wildlife Service, the Royal Botanical
Gardens, Mobile Muster, TerraCycle, and Sutherland Shire
Council.
The highlight of the day for many participants was the afternoon
keynote, delivered by Costa Georgiadis (of ABC TV fame), who
enthused participants with music and stories about his work with
different organisations – all of which he encouraged participants
to connect with. Following this, participants heard from winners
of the 2016 IEU/TMB Environment Grants, as they told their
stories about how they had used the grants to create sustainable
practices in their schools.
IEUA NSW-ACT Branch Deputy Secretary Gloria Taylor; Railway
Square behind
The IEU Environment Conference takes place every two years
and is always well received by members and other interested
parties. For more information, please contact Gloria Taylor,
Deputy Secretary IEUA NSW/ACT on [phone].
Keynote speaker Costa Georgiadis addresses the auditorium
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SCIENCE EDUCATIONAL NEWS VOL 66 NO 4