The Benalla Food Co-op is in its 14th year of operation and currently has a membership of 75 households with over 50 of them shopping regularly.
 
The committee has been very busy. The warmer weather saw an increase in oat bugs, resulting in some stock losses. Efforts to address the issue included a very well attended working bee, the introduction/replacement of bait traps and the storing of most products in plastic containers in the fridge. A chest freezer is now on the shopping list in preparation for the next warm season in the hope that we can quarantine some products when they first arrive.
 
Callum Morrison, The Public Health Coordinator, provided a Food Safety Assessment report after a visit during one of our open sessions. He raised a few items that needed addressing, including the labelling of clean and used scoop tubs and a small hole in the wall of the building. The committee promptly addressed these concerns.
 
Post-pandemic publicity for the co-op included a stall at the BRCC’s Creating Community Connections Expo, an interview on ABC local radio, an opening during the Benalla Heritage week and an article in the Ensign announcing the appointment of a new Coordinator.
 
We currently stock 127 products, many of which are chemical free and sourced from within Victoria. Our product list had a few changes with the introduction of Australian dried figs. Teabags are no longer available and we are now stocking 3 types of loose organic tea. Some of our regular and much-loved products such as dried apricots, choc hazelnuts, olive oil and more recently, plain and SR flour have been difficult to source for a variety of reasons. Thankfully, we now have a supply of olive oil and choc hazelnuts in stock. We are hoping the other products will be in stock again soon.
 
The Co-op continues to open earlier on Monday afternoons during winter due to shorter daylight hours and colder weather. This commenced in May.
 
Thank you to Claire Mathlin-Cook for her time in the co-ordinator role. She did a great job keeping on top of the many demands of the role.
​
Thank you to Wendy Baker for the overall accounting matters (see Wendy’s financial year report).​ Thank you Christine for continuing to coordinate the roster, and Peter for ongoing management of the day-to-day accounts as well as the biannual stock take. The Holmes have been a huge support to me in my new role as coordinator, having relied heavily on their knowledge and experience.
 
Thank you to Rhona for the regular email update news and for the fabulous job she did being interviewed on radio. Her promotion of the co-op directly resulted in the signing up of some new members.
 
Thank you to Graeme Greed for ongoing equipment and building maintenance.​
 
Thank you Maren and her support crew (Julienne and Marlies) for ordering and packaging the spices and herbs.
 
Thank you to Karen for her dedication as a committee member, which she resigned from late last year. She will continue supporting the co-op in her role as a computer operator.

Thank you to my husband Damien who has regularly collected products and helped unload and stack into the cupboards.
 
Thank you to Beverly Lee and Peter Maddock for maintaining our social media and BSFG website presence.
 
And finally, a special thank you to our dear friend and committee member Julie McPherson, who lost her battle with cancer in May this year. Her friendship along with her dedication and passion for the co-op over the many years she was involved, will be deeply missed.
 
Co-op Committee: Sonia (new coordinator), Christine (rosters), Peter (finance), Rhona (weekly up-dates), Judy (BSFG secretary), Tanya and Rosalie​
 
Duty managers: Graeme, Sonia, Tanya, Rosalie, Christine, Rhona, Joy, Robyn, Eleanor, Claire, Jenny Muller (new) and Theresa Carney (new)
 
iPad Operators: Peter, Karen, Glenys, Simon, Stacy, Deanne, Jenny, Julienne, Maren, Marlies, Sally and Robert, Graeme
 
Enquires/feedback welcome via the BSFG website or the Co-op email [email protected]


Sonia Burke
Benalla Food Cooperative Coordinator
​June 26 2025

BSFG has continued a wide range of activities in the past year aimed at supporting sustainability in our locality, region and beyond (the mantra think global, act local is trite but relevant to our purpose). Brief details of our various involvements are covered by the action group reports from members and convenors in a few minutes, but I would like to highlight a few special moments of the past year.
 
Firstly, I need to thank the Committee and members for their support of me and of our activities since our AGM last year. We have maintained a steady base of memberships and with a significant number of supporters we do have a voice which is used for the benefit of our community.
 
In making ourselves heard, we have: -

• Submitted to Benalla Rural City Council on the draft Climate and Environment Policy.
• Made representations to Parliamentary Committees of Inquiry on several occasions.
• Run public meetings with guest speakers – for example Dr Lynette Bettio (a former Benalla student, now working for the BOM) was our Guest Speaker at the last AGM.
• Conducted workshops on a variety of matters (as you will hear later). Together with the Food Cooperative, manned a stall at the Creating Community Connections Expo of BRCC at the Lakeside centre and showgrounds in February.
• Maintained a watching brief on renewable power developments in our municipality.
• Contributed to forums such as NERSA, NEWA and CEN (more on these in a moment).
• Together with Swanpool Landcare put on the iconic annual Swanpool Environmental Film Festival.
• And more.

 
A big task for the Committee over the past twelve months has been coming to grips with new reporting requirements for not-for-profits such as ourselves, landcare and other environmental organisations with the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit Commission (ACNC).
 
For a Not for Profit with an ABN, only undertaking charitable purposes and self-reported as tax exempt (which describes BSFG), advice from the DEECA Volunteering webinar with representatives from the ACNC in June 2024 on “Understanding Income Tax Reporting changes affecting Landcare and Environmental NFP organisations” was that BSFG must undergo such a process.
 
The good news is that we no longer have to prepare an annual report to Consumer Affairs Victoria!
 
This task took considerable effort from the Secretary and Treasurer and other Committee members, but we were finally successful in obtaining registration late last year. A consequence of this registration however is the need to develop and formalise a number of guiding documents.
 
The first step is ratifying tonight a Policy and Action Plan, and on Implementation Plan on Safeguarding vulnerable people; this will be put to the meeting shortly. The other documents to be developed in the future include: -

1. Privacy Policy
2. Risk Management Plan
3. Code of Conduct

 
A further step for the new Committee will be the appointment of a Safeguarding Officer, to meet the policy requirements.
 
Looking to the future more broadly, the need for ramping up the energy transition to renewables is self-evident. The current rate of global temperature increase from climate change suggests that the target 1.5 deg maximum increase may well be exceeded already.
 
However, despondency will get us nowhere; proactive action at all levels is critical.
 
I’m pleased to announce tonight that REB has a new solar panels project in Benalla in sight: details will be forthcoming in the very near future.
 
In our other areas of action, work continues to improve sustainability in Benalla, and I wish the new President (to be elected) and Committee all the best in working together towards this objective.
 
 
David Blore
26 June 2025

Benalla Sustainable Future Group invites members and supporters to attend our Annual General Meeting at 7:30pm on Thursday 26th June 2025 in the Benalla Uniting Church Meeting Room opposite Coles car park. 

Our Guest Speaker for the AGM is Mr Peter Keane, the new CEO for Benalla Rural City Council.  Peter is an Engineer with post-graduate management qualifications, and has worked across industry and in the municipal field in New South Wales, Queensland and now in Victoria.  His recent experience in waste management in Western Australia and Queensland will be of particular interest to a number of our members.  He will be talking on his journey to Benalla Rural City Council.

BSFG Membership

At AGM time we also remind our members to consider renewing their membership, and for supporters to think about becoming a member of BSFG. 
​
Our website  https://www.bsfg.org.au/  has information about membership. You can apply to become a member by following the JOIN tab / ONLINE MEMBERSHIP FORM  or by following this direct link  https://www.bsfg.org.au/online-membership-form.html 

If you are aware of anyone who may be interested in our Group's activities but is not yet a member please feel free to invite them to our AGM and of course to our ordinary meetings held quarterly throughout the year.  As you know, we have a wide range of interests and in the current national and global situation our personal and collective actions as community members for ourselves and our descendants are of paramount importance.

As part of the process of becoming a Charity, at this meeting members will be asked to ratify BSFG's "Safeguarding" Policy; part of our obligations to the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission.

A light supper will be served at the end of the evening.

Please RSVP your attendance at  [email protected]    We hope you can join us for this occasion.

Judy Schwarzman
Secretary, Benalla Sustainable Future Group

This is an advance notice of our forthcoming AGM, to be held at the Uniting Church Meeting Room in Carrier Street Benalla on Thursday 26 June (please note, not May!) at 7.30 PM.

The meeting has been deferred until June instead of the usual May date to allow our proposed Guest Speaker to attend.  More information on who this will go out with the formal Notice in the next week or two.  In the meantime, the Committee is seeking interest from members for various Committee roles including especially the role of President. David Blore, our current President, is relinquishing the role because of his responsibilities as a Councillor, so if you have ideas and a willingness to assist our Group in this fashion, please get back to us at this address ASAP.

If you are aware of anyone who may be interested in our Group's activities but is not yet a member please feel free to invite them to our AGM and of course to our ordinary meetings held quarterly throughout the year.  As you know, we have a wide range of interests and in the current national and global situation our personal and collective actions as community members for ourselves and our descendants are of paramount importance.

Rather than reflect on just the past 12 months, I would like to comment on the five years during which I have been President.

Over the 31 years I have lived in Benalla and Lima East, I have been President or Chairperson of many and varied organisations and committees, but when I somewhat apprehensively became President of BSFG in May 2019, I felt that this role carried with it an enormous responsibility – not just for the BSFG membership, but to the wider community, and especially for the future generations of residents of Benalla and district.

​That is why I have tried to promote important events and information sessions through our local secondary schools, print and social media, and other organisations which may be related to the particular events. With this approach, I have been so grateful to the people who have served as either committee members, or organisers of events, or produced newsletters, because their enthusiasm and expertise has been amazing, and has helped alleviate my initial level of apprehension. Within our organisation, there is such a diverse range of interests and concerns for the future sustainability of the planet, such that it is impossible for any one person to grasp all the concepts involved. That is why BSFG has Action Groups that allow people to work within their spheres of interests and abilities to make a difference within our community, and as the years have passed, I believe that each of the Action Groups have contributed to better outcomes, and greater awareness of the issues, for residents of Benalla and district.

In the recent newsletter, I mentioned in my President’s comment that urgent action on climate change mitigation was “my thing” during my time as President. I sincerely hope that our Benalla Councillors present tonight will take back to their fellow Councillors and Council officers the sense of urgency that we in BSFG have felt for a very long time. We, as individuals can only achieve small steps by modifying our own lifestyles, but each level of governance that we have in Australia can make contributions, either through actions or legislation, that will make large differences to the future wellbeing of our communities. I hope that tonight’s presentation and discussion will open our eyes, not just to the threats climate change imposes, but to the possible actions that can be taken to address and mitigate these threats. This is not an easy or simple task, but it is one that cannot, and must not, be continually placed on the “to do” list. We in BSFG, are ready and willing to work alongside Council to tackle this task, so would like to be able to contribute more directly to the relevant discussions and planning centred on climate change mitigation. Without pre-empting tonight’s discussion too much, it is already evident within Australia, that a number of communities have become unsustainable due to climate related events, and this number will continue to grow, not just due to their location in low lying coastal areas, but for other reasons such as economic or health related issues.

Finally, again I want to thank all those who have contributed to the work of BSFG over the years, to acknowledge the support I have received from all the committee members and others over the past five years, and also to thank David for accepting the role of President for the near future, and the members who have agreed to continue on the committee. I look forward to another year of informative, interesting, and progressive events.

​ 
Peter Holmes
​Friday 24 May 2024

The Financial Report produced by Treasurer Wendy Baker was also presented to the AGM:

President's Report - Peter Holmes

Financial Report - Wendy Baker
​
Benalla Food Cooperative Report - Susanne Bennett
​
Ecologically Sustainable Development Report - Peter Maddock

Greening and Cooling Benalla Report to AGM 2024 - Judy Schwartzman

Renewable Energy Benalla Report - Kevin Smith

WasteWise Benalla Annual Report to AGM - Kaye Blore

Website Report - Peter Maddock and Bev Lee

NERSA Report - Kevin Smith
​

Judy Schwarzman
Secretary

​Both Kevin and David have been attending Community Energy Network bi-monthly meetings - these are an excellent information source on this fast moving topic.
 
One of our main interests is Community Batteries.  While the engineering need is straight forward, sadly the politics of our totally privatised system make it impossible for Community Batteries to actually benefit the Community - they are, of course very beneficial to the likes of Ausnet! There is much movement to change the rules and tariff structures to enable a fairer system - strongly opposed by those benefitting from the current system!
 
REB organised an electric vehicle for Benalla drivers to have access to an extended driving experience which was enthusiastically taken up. We know of at least one local EV recently purchased. Benalla will need more EV charging points.
 
We have also been looking at ways to encourage more and better use of PV and Batteries. We hope to expand a current pilot trial to Benalla for more economical use of Heat Pump hot water and PV.
 
There is currently strong pressure to start subsidising behind the meter Batteries (perhaps drop the PV subsidy seeing they are now so cheap), which would be very beneficial to everyone.
 
There is a proposal to extend our revolving fund (kindergartens) PV installation to the new Men’s Shed complex if we can sort out the metering complexity.

Kevin Smith

BSFG members have again been represented at the bi-monthly meetings of NERSA during the year. Kevin has been joined by David and Kay this year.
 
NERSA, an alliance of numerous groups throughout the North East, is a forum that enables everyone to keep up with all the sustainability-related going-ons within the region. While BSFG finds it difficult to get traction with Benalla Rural City Council, it is really encouraging to hear just how much is going with other groups, Councils and Authorities. NERSA co-ordinators Jenny and Rowan produce an amazing set of minutes (about 14 pages!) with all the links and contacts. I distribute these minutes to interested BSFG members.
 
Since Kay has been attending, the Region response to Wastewise has been very enthusiastic and many other groups are participating (see Wastewise Report).

Benalla Sustainable Future Group invites members to attend our Annual General Meeting beginning at  6:00pm Friday 24th May 2024.  We will meet in the Benalla Uniting Church Meeting Room opposite Coles car park. 

The evening for members will start with a shared dinner and committee nominations/AGM at 6:00pm. 

Supporters are welcome to join members at 7:30pm, when our guest speaker, Dr Lynette Bettio will give her presentation entitled "Climate Extremes in North East Victoria - Current and Future Risks". Dr Bettio is a former student of FCJ College Benalla, now Climate Scientist at the Bureau of Meteorology, Melbourne. 

Lynette was co-author of the 2023 "State of the Climate" Report, so is very well informed of the latest trends occurring in climate change.

It is three years since Dr Lynette Bettio and Dr Leanne Webb (CSIRO) spoke to over 130 people at the Benalla Town Hall at BSFG's invitation. 

Since then Australia and most other regions of the world have experienced ever-increasing record-breaking weather events; either highest ever average temperatures or record rainfall and flood events.

BSFG believes it is very important that at all levels of government, and as individuals in the community, we urgently tackle the issue of climate change, not only to learn to adapt, but importantly to find ways to mitigate the climate threats our future generations are facing. 

It will be very interesting to hear from Lynette what has been driving the severe weather events experienced around Australia over that period.

Collectively and individually, we can use this opportunity to formulate ideas and take actions to assist or lead the Benalla Community into a more positive future. As a community we cannot continue to give low priority to this issue, hoping that a higher level of governance alone will be responsible for the problem. Rather we can "Think globally, Act locally".

There will be a Q and A opportunity after Lynette's presentation, and we invite members and supporters to stay for a light supper at the end of the evening.

Please RSVP your attendance at  [email protected]    We hope you can join us for this occasion. If you are planning to attend the shared dinner / AGM, we would appreciate it if you are able to bring something to share.

BSFG Membership Renewal and Committee

​At AGM time we also invite our members to renew their membership of BSFG. 

Our website  https://www.bsfg.org.au/  has an online form where you can select renewal of membership. Follow the JOIN tab / ONLINE MEMBERSHIP FORM  or find it with this direct link  https://www.bsfg.org.au/online-membership-form.html  

We also extend an invitation for any members interested in joining the committee to contact Peter Holmes, President, on 0438625638 for more information.


Judy Schwarzman
Secretary, BSFG

Foremost in my mind when writing this report, was the reality of how important it is for BSFG to continue to be a strong voice in our community, urging action on climate change and promoting sustainable living practices in so many ways.

In the past twelve months, we have organised meetings with guest speakers and documentary films covering the topics of renewable energy, caring for people and planet in our health system, ways to make rental properties more energy efficient, the importance of trees in a changing climate, electric vehicles, battery storage systems, and the remarkable story of the Indian eco-activist, Vandana Shiva, in her battles to overcome the monopolies of the agricultural giant Monsanto.

Our action groups have continued to evolve, and I thank all who have been involved in each of these groups for their enthusiasm and dedication to trying to educate and involve the community. There have been many articles during the past year in the Ensign dealing with the issue of waste management, and I know that these articles will continue to materialise.

It is a testament to the fact that there are many people in our community who feel very strongly about these issues, that we have had marvellous attendances at most of the events we have organised. A highlight for me personally was listening to Dr Greg Moore's talk on trees in our urban landscape, and their importance in a changing climate, with an enthralled audience of around 130 totally engaged for almost 2 hours with his talk and answers to questions. I just hope that our recording of that presentation has since been viewed by Councillors and officers at Benalla who were unfortunately unable to attend the meeting, as it is information such as that given by Dr Moore that is critical to shaping policies that will help us mitigate and cope with climate change effects.

Occasionally, I revisit the transcripts of the presentations that the four student leaders of Benalla    P-12 College made in 2021, when we urged Council to declare a climate emergency. I do this because it helps to remind me of why we are fighting to create a better and safer future. Each year, there are many young people who stand out in our community as potential future leaders, by their actions, and we hope that they continue to utilise those gifts of leadership, wherever they choose to live. We as the older members must encourage them to take up those leadership roles.

I have been challenged by my four years as President, as I have needed to try to be informed across a wide array of sustainability topics, some of which I will readily admit that I am no expert in! However, the one thing that I have been certain about is the need for the world community to urgently halt the advance of climate change, and the profligate use of the Earth's resources. Someone recently asked me why I write letters to the paper - did I get some sort of self-satisfaction from doing so? Well no - I write when I hear or read about an issue or action that needs more serious attention than it was being given, and usually on behalf of the youth who don't read the newspaper, but directed to the older folk who do.

Finally, my sincere gratitude to the committee and all others who have given so much of their time to the causes espoused by BSFG over the past year, and a special mention to Peter and Bev for their work on our websites, and Ian for his Newsletter production, each of them over many years.


Peter Holmes - May 2023 

​Other reports presented at the AGM include: 
​Benalla Food Cooperative
Environmentally Sustainable Development
Renewable Energy Benalla
Wastewise Benalla
Web Team

We would like to invite you to our AGM on Thursday 25th May 7.30pm at Benalla Uniting Church.

The focus of the meeting will be our guest speaker from Indigo Power, Donald Mace. Don will speak about the 100% Renewable Community Blueprint, derived from their work in Yackandandah. Don is very familiar with the principles that drive success in Yackandandah and part of his talk will include the story behind Totally Renewable Yackandandah. Denis Ginnivan who assisted Russel Klose in our EV talk in March, and has been involved in TRY from its inception, will also be present to contribute to the discussion.

Indigo Power is a local community owned energy provider and a certified social enterprise. Its commitment to renewable energy has placed Indigo Power at the top of the rankings in Greenpeace Australia's recently published Green Energy Guide.

This is a rare opportunity to learn of a local success story in community renewable energy and the possibilities for other communities. We hope to see you there.

In the last couple of turbulent years, there haven't been many uplifting events to raise our hopes that any governments in Australia were seriously prepared to tackle climate change. The wheel may just have finally turned, as Australians have finally voted for candidates espousing much stronger action, and this gives me hope that, despite the rhetoric, the Labor Party might just need to raise their emission reduction target for 2030 beyond their policy level.

For BSFG, the review sessions held in March and April, and so well facilitated by Cath Botta, have given our organisation a new burst of enthusiasm, and new ideas to move forward and engage with the community and local government, in addition to continuing the successes of the Food Coop and REB's community energy project. Each of the focus groups established during the review sessions have already had preliminary meetings to establish their plans of action.

Also, on a very positive note, from the review sessions, was the interest shown by younger people in the work of BSFG, and this, together with ongoing contact with student leaders at Benalla College gives me encouragement that we can continue to enhance our engagement with the wider community on these vitally important issues. Some of this year's student leaders have registered for the Youth Climate Action Group sponsored by the City of Shepparton.

Just last week, we conducted a successful forum for landlords in Benalla on the topics of installing solar systems on their rental properties, along with potential energy efficiency measures to take to improve the houses. The forum was addressed by Brad Foletta from Solargain, and the audience of around 30 people were quite engaged in the discussion. A forum for renters will be held next week, and largely concentrate on the energy efficiency theme. Thankyou to Peter Maddock and Kevin Smith for leading last week's forum in my absence.

BSFG members also contributed some regular articles to the Benalla Ensign over the past twelve months - these were related to issues around the use of plastics and waste management.

I want to acknowledge the incredible amount of thought and energy that has gone into enabling the Food Coop to continue functioning throughout the pandemic. Congratulations to firstly Christine, and then Susanne, and the coop committee for developing strategies and procedures to safeguard the health of members during this time.

Congratulations also to REB for securing the funding for a second solar on kindergarten project, and now that the revolving fund is beginning to build, they can look forward to auspicing further projects very soon.

After a hiatus of 2 years, we are excited to have the Swanpool Environmental Film Festival returning next weekend. This festival has become a highlight of the annual cinema program, with the range of internationally and nationally recognised experts who have accepted the invitation to speak, and the fantastic selection of films that have informed, challenged and encouraged us over the years. Thanks and congratulations to Ian Herbert and the festival committee for providing us with yet another great program, and of course to the Swanpool catering team for their efforts in providing the physical nourishment required to see us through the 8 or 9 hour program!
 
Amongst all the positive achievements of BSFG during the past 12 months, unfortunately there was one large disappointment - our petition of 600 residents and submission to Benalla Rural City Council to declare a Climate Emergency and develop plans to reach net zero emissions by 2030 was rejected. We will endeavour to work closely with Council to make sure that steps are taken to reduce emissions, to help Benalla avert the worst consequences of climate change. The most obvious of these steps are the rapid uptake of renewables, the reduction in energy usage from all sectors of our community, the transition to electric vehicles, and the future-proofing against climate shock through greening and cooling our urban environment. We want to see targets and timelines developed that will ensure a safer and healthier future for all generations of the Benalla community.

In conclusion, I want to again thank everyone who has helped keep BSFG ticking - especially the committee members, David (vice President), Wendy (Treasurer), Judy (Secretary), Kevin (NERSA rep), Kay and Wendy, the website coordinators Peter and Bev, and our newsletter editor Ian. We will be welcoming new committee members this year, and as part of a longer term transition plan, we hope to coopt a few other members to join the committee as the year progresses. As Wendy Sherlock is retiring from the committee this year, I wish to acknowledge her extremely valuable insights over a number of years with her depth of knowledge in environmental management.

Finally, the whole BSFG community wishes John Lloyd and Freida Andrews a happy and successful relocation to Bendigo. John's outstanding contribution to the establishment of BSFG, and his leadership of BSFG and REB over the past approximately 14 years have previously been recognised by the conferring of a "life membership", and we feel certain that both he and Freida will soon find a cause to support in Bendigo which will add to their efforts in the Benalla community.


Peter Holmes 

​We invite you to attend our Annual General Meeting: 7.30 pm Thursday 9th June 2022 at the Benalla Uniting Church Fellowship Room

Our Guest Speaker, Dr Lisa Rasmussen, is a Mercy Health clinician and holder of an Environmental Master’s degree. Lisa’s work in reducing the carbon foot print of Mercy Health has resulted in “Caring for People and Planet, Mercy Health’s Strategic Response to Laudato Si” - see the article on page five of our May newsletter, ‘Helen Haines Meeting on Net Zero Agriculture’ where Lisa reminded the audience that achieving Net Zero will also require us to consider the Scope 3 emissions embodied in the goods and services we purchase.

Lisa has titled her talk, “How might we truly reduce our carbon emissions, leading to a fair and just society.  Laudato Si’ and Mercy Health’s approach to reducing its carbon footprint”.

​Supper will be served at the conclusion of the evening.

Judy Schwarzman Secretary

"It's not that many months since we had our previous AGM by Zoom in September, but there seems to have been a steady stream of activity on the environmental and sustainability front since then.

I do believe that the tide is finally turning with respect to worldwide action on climate change - sadly, not so much in Australia, because of the inability of the major political parties to comprehend the urgency of the problem. We can only hope that businesses will continue to modify their enterprises towards low carbon models, and that this will drag Australia in the right direction.
​
Climate scientists have been telling us for some time that this is the critical decade in tackling climate change, so BSFG needs to ensure that this message is heard by our community and its leaders. To this end, we organised the Climate Science talks in late February, with Dr Leanne Webb (CSIRO), Dr Lynette Bettio (BOM), Dr Helen Haines (Independent MHR, Indi), and Cr Jenny O'Connor (Mayor of Indigo Shire) as guest speakers. Approximately 130 people attended, including Benalla Mayor, Danny Claridge and Councillors O'Brien and Gunaratne, as well as the Benalla P-12 College student leaders. These student leaders have subsequently participated in the BSFG presentation to Benalla Council in March, as well as leading last Friday's Student Climate Action rally at the Ceramic Mural, with approximately 80 people taking part. This has been really encouraging for me personally, that finally there has been some engagement with our youth, and a real willingness on their part to become informed and take action.  I have requested a meeting with the P-12 College Administration to discuss the level of school engagement on the issues of climate change and sustainability. The other aspect of this engagement, I believe, is that the student's involvement has possibly influenced a shift in attitude of our local Councillors towards climate change - we will know more in the coming weeks when Council deliberates on whether to declare a climate emergency - an action that would require Council to focus its planning more acutely on sustainability issues.

Since resuming our meeting schedule after Covid, in November we screened the movie "Kiss the Ground", highlighting land restoration projects from around the world, and in March, we watched the Bob Brown Foundation documentary, "Forest Defenders", followed by a talk from Bert Lobert, giving us an update on the Strathbogie State Forest situation.

Renewable Energy Benalla continues to work towards its goal of making Benalla into a net zero carbon emissions town. It has reverted to being an action group of BSFG again, but as convenor, John Lloyd says in his report, they need more people to come on board to help in their endeavours. I urge all BSFG members and supporters to consider being involved in this work, as transforming our energy systems and becoming more energy efficient, are the major ways in which we can reduce our emissions and help avert the worst effects of climate change. Congratulations to REB for securing the funding to complete their first project of solar panels at Munro Ave Kindergarten.
I am extremely proud of Christine Holmes' work over the past ten years in planning, setting up, and coordinating the operations of the Benalla Food Co-operative. Christine, along with the people who have helped in the planning and operation of the Co-op, have through countless hours of volunteer time, established an organisation that has provided the community with choice, an opportunity to meet new friends, and of course to reduce food packaging and food miles, and support local producers where possible. Having successfully negotiated their way through the Covid problems of 2020, the Co-op can now look forward to expanding its membership base, and help spread the message of sustainable use of our resources more widely in the community. I wish Susanne Bennett all the best as she takes over Christine's role as coordinator.

I would also like to commend Larissa Montgomery for the many years she spent as the Environmental Officer of Benalla Rural City and thank her for the support and advice she gave to BSFG over that time. In recent times, Larissa worked extensively with REB to help them formulate their vision and action plans. We wish her well in her new position with DELWP.

Finally, I again wish to thank, and congratulate a number of members who have contributed greatly to the work of BSFG this past year. Thankyou to all committee members for your open and frank discussions in organising events, formulating submissions, and in keeping records, handling finances, sending out messages. Thanks to Ian Herbert for again editing and publishing our newsletter (and to all who have contributed articles), and we also thank Ian for his efforts in putting together the program for the Swanpool Environmental Film Festival (Sat 19th June) which we all eagerly anticipate, after the disruption of 2020.

In this era, no organisation could successfully reach out to its community without the assistance of technology, and we owe a great deal of gratitude over the past 6 years to Bev Lee and Peter Maddock especially, and more recently to Heath Whiley, Kim Lukey and Karen Nankervis, for the marvellous BSFG and REB websites, where events are publicised, interesting articles are posted and reports archived."
 
Peter Holmes
​Thursday 27 May 2021

Dear BSFG Members and Supporters,

We would like to invite you to attend our AGM, with guest speaker Dr Lisa Farnsworth, Winton Wetlands Restoration Ecologist.

The meeting is at 7:30pm Thursday 27th May in the Benalla Uniting Church Fellowship Room. Supper will be served at the conclusion of the evening.

For any of our supporters considering joining BSFG, please come along; you can join up at the meeting and would be most welcome. 

BSFG financial members are encouraged to consider nominating to join the committee. If you would like more information about joining the committee, either as a committee member or in any of the executive roles, please contact the current president, Peter Holmes on 0438 625 638.

Nomination forms (attached) can be scanned and emailed to [email protected], or contact Peter and bring a hard copy to the AGM.

We hope to see you there.


Judy Schwarzman
Secretary BSFG 

The Benalla Food Co-op currently has just over 70 members and 118 different products. All products are chosen very carefully with environmental and ethical considerations, along with supporting local and 
With the advent of COVID 19 it became a priority to have and encourage the preferred digital method of online payment. Each member who operates the computer system has been trained up to do this. I would like to thank Tanya Walker and Peter Holmes for overseeing this transition.

A number of weeks ago I put a number of options to the committee as to how we could continue running the coop in the advent of worsening outbreaks of COVID. Each committee member contributed thoughtful and suggestive responses ranging from how we currently manage to the use of online ordering and the use of paper-bags. The majority of committee members were happy with the current procedures as long as COVID numbers remained low in Regional Victoria.

I would like to acknowledge there have been a few general members who have chosen not to shop at the food co-op during this time. Other than that, during the COVID restrictions, the food co-op has been busier than the same period of time last year, and we have had fourteen new members join the co-op, which is quite astonishing.

​If you would like to check financial statements refer to the treasurer's report (BSFG Annual Reports, when published).

I would like to thank all the duty managers and computer operators who do a wonderful job carrying out extra responsibilities. We have had a number of new members take this on.

I would like to thank Julie McPherson who has the relentless job of organising the roster, Rhona Rose who keeps you up to date on a weekly basis, Loren who sometimes takes delivery of our orders along with Sonia who takes delivery of special items such as Tradewinds and dried fruits from Mildura.

Lastly, I would like to thank all our amazing dedicated committee members, who are committed to the well being of the food co-op and for me personally are a truly wonderful group of people who offer support, make suggestions and are prepared to work through any arising issues. I am profoundly grateful to be working with you all.

Due to Covid 19 restrictions the committee has decided to conduct our AGM online this year.  The Zoom meeting will be held at 7.30pm on Thursday September 24th.

The AGM will be limited to the basic requirements of ratifying any reports and electing the new committee.  Reports will be circulated to members by email prior to the meeting.

Prior to the election of the new committee all positions will be declared vacant.  Positions available are President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary, plus four committee members.  Nominations for the new committee should be submitted to me by email by 5pm on Tuesday 22nd September. 

We will email the link for the Zoom meeting on Sunday 20th, and again after 5pm on Tuesday 22nd, listing the nominations for the committee.

We expect the AGM could be conducted withing the 40 minutes available on our Basic Zoom plan.  However, should extra time be required our meeting may be resumed by using the same Zoom link to continue the meeting again for another 40 minutes, perhaps after a short break for coffee.

Yesterday we received advice for Consumer Affairs that we need to send a Proxy form with this notice of the AGM.  We have also decided to send a Nomination form to assist with the election of Office Bearers and Committee.  We need to receive Proxy forms at least 24 hours before the meeting. These forms were attached to the email sent to members and can be sent on application if necessary.  

Last week I sent a reminder to some members about renewing their membership for 2020/21.  Only financial members can vote at the AGM.

We look forward to seeing you online for our 2020 AGM.

Peter Maddock
Secretary
0418 135 330

"Dear BSFG members and supporters

Last Thursday, BSFG conducted its 2019 AGM, at which our new committee was elected. I am both honoured and challenged by members accepting my nomination as President for the
coming year, and extremely grateful to the other incoming members who have accepted positions on the committee.

At the AGM, I read an extract from Richard Flanagan's speech to the large crowd at the Canberra climate rally on Sunday 5th May. You can read his full speech by accessing the Guardian website*, and if you do so, I hope it might inspire you to tackle the climate emergency head on!

Briefly, three comments Flanagan made stand out in my mind.

​"After May 18th it matters even more to press whoever wins to recognise this crisis is not an issue. It is THE issue".

"I am here today to say that there is hope. That the Franklin River flows free and Adani will be
stopped. These things happen, because at a certain point enough people say there are things that matter more than the politics of money."

"There is no power on this earth that can resist an idea whose time has come.  It is a time to act and it is for us to act. Because there is no-one else and there is no other time."

Every day in the news, I read about the arrogance of the politicians who think they have been given a mandate to implement their climate-wrecking policies and open up new coal mines, put renewable energy projects on the back burner in favour of the fossil fuel corporations that bought them victory, and condemn our children to a world with a bleak future.

And then, I remember Flanagan's words, and it makes me more determined to do something. So I write a letter to the paper, or I have a serious head-to-head discussion with a friend who is a
conservative voter. On my own, I might reach out to a few people, but with your collective help, we can do so much more. Politicians will listen to a group with several hundred members, because that is significant.

If you are one of our long time members, I thank you for your ongoing support, and encourage you to come along to our bi-monthly meetings (4th Thursday of July, September, November, March and May). If you are on our contact list, please consider becoming a member - $25 per year - and also coming along to our meetings, where we try to arrange a varied array of guest speakers or films on environmental/sustainability issues.

Please check out our website (www.bsfg.org.au) where you will find information about our action groups, and other articles of environmental importance. There are details on the website about how you can join BSFG, and I look forward to your support as we try to influence the political debate in Australia around the climate emergency.

Sincerely


Peter Holmes (President)

Our AGM on Thursday 23 May went very well with all positions being filled at the elections conducted by Mayor Scott Upston.  Thank you to John Lloyd for chairing the meeting prior to the elections.

We welcome the new committee of management and thank two new members Kay and Richard for accepting nomination, Peter Holmes for accepting the President Role and Wendy for becoming the Treasurer.  And thank you to James Webster for accepting, in absentia for the position of Vice President.

President: Peter Holmes
Secretary: Peter Maddock
Treasurer: Wendy Baker
Vice President: James Webster
Committee members:  
Bulk Food Coop representative Christine Holmes and Kevin Smith, David Blore, Kay Blore, and Richard Felton.

Peter Holmes spoke about how reading an article in The Guardian by Richard Flanagan influenced his decision to nominate for President, https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/may/05/im-willing-to-go-to-jail-to-stop-adani-and-save-our-beloved-country-will-you-stand-with-me.

Our guest speaker Lance Lloyd, Restoration Scientist (Aquatic Ecology), Winton Wetlands Committee of Management, gave us a good insight into efforts at Winton Wetlands to bring about the ecological regeneration of the catchment.

A reminder again that we are planning for a Newsletter in June so could you send articles to me by the end of May. 


Peter Maddock
Secretary

The 2019 Benalla Sustainable Future Group AGM will be held on Thursday May 23rd, 2019 at 7.30pm in the Meeting Room, Benalla Uniting Church, Carrier Street Benalla, opposite the Coles Car park.

Benalla Rural City Mayor Scott Upston will conduct the election of President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary and at least four Committee Members.

Our guest speaker is Lance Lloyd, Restoration Scientist (Aquatic Ecology), Winton Wetlands Committee of Management who will speak to us about the Ecological Renewal of the Winton Wetlands Reserve.

The ecological renewal of the 8,750-hectare Reserve is a project of national scientific, cultural and environmental significance. Located in north east Victoria, between the regional cities of Benalla and Wangaratta, the Reserve is a mix of wetlands, grasslands, woodlands and forest.  The project is aiming to connect people to nature through its ecological renewal, as well as with education and tourism programs onsite. The project has many aspects contributing to the establishment of a site of ecological, cultural, social and economic importance.  This ecological renewal work is not a short-term project, but will take decades to be fully realised, and is aimed to enhance natural processes to ensure the restoration is sustainable in the long term.

Lance will discuss the ecological renewal aspects of the project which is built upon the Restoration and Monitoring Strategic Plan (Barlow 2011). The current science team has developed a range of specific management and monitoring plans that have been developed for fish and other fauna, waterbirds, water quality, aquatic plants, revegetation and feral animals and weeds.

The science program has undertaken multiple projects which contribute to the onsite ecological renewal of the site, and, more generally, contribute to the knowledge about wetland and woodland function and restoration.

Lance is also an Honorary Research Fellow at Federation University and has over 30 years experience in consulting, government, and university research into aquatic ecosystems and their management. Lance has a long history at the site, working there in the 1990’s with the predecessor of DELWP and the RWC (as Principal Water Quality Scientist) on the algal problems and the restoration of Lake Mokoan. He oversees the science and sustainability programs at Winton Wetlands, working with the science panel, ranger, staff and volunteers to achieve ecological renewal of the site.

Lance will speak after the business of our AGM including the election of office bearers and committee.  A light supper will be available at the end of the meeting.

I encourage you to come along to our AGM and hear about this important wetland restoration project, https://wintonwetlands.org.au

Peter Maddock (0418 135 330)
Secretary

The Annual General Meeting of Benalla Sustainable Future Group will be held at 7.30pm on Thursday 28th June at the Benalla Uniting Church, Carrier Street Benalla, opposite the Coles car park.

After accepting the minutes of the previous AGM and presentation of reports all elected positions will be declared open and there will be an election of President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary plus a minimum of four committee members and a nominated member from the Food Co-Op.

This year John Lloyd will not be accepting nominations for President nor the Committee as his work with Renewable Energy Benalla is occupying him fully.  So please give consideration to nominating for an Office Bearer or Committee position.  Contact me if you require further information about standing for a position.

Our guest speaker for the meeting is Leigh Ewbank who is the current Act on Climate coordinator for Friends of the Earth. He has also worked on the Yes 2 Renewables campaign and was very much involved with campaigning against the anti-wind farm lobby. Yes 2 Renewables was the driving force behind the campaign to restore fair wind farm laws in Victoria, and spearheaded the case for a Victorian Renewable Energy Target. Leigh has a Bachelor of Social Science (Honours) from RMIT University, Melbourne. He has been engaged in climate and energy debates for years and more recently has lectured in the Urban Planning and Energy and Energy Policy and Management courses at RMIT University.

We look forward to seeing you at our 2018 AGM. 
Regards,
Peter Maddock
Secretary
0418 135 330

The BSFG AGM will be held on June 22nd, 2017 at 7.30pm in the Meeting Room, Uniting Church, Carrier Street Benalla, opposite the Coles Car park.
After accepting the minutes of the previous AGM and presentation of reports all elected positions will be declared open and there will be an election of President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary plus four committee members including a nominated member from the Food Co-Op.
Instead of a Guest speaker for the AGM this year we will be showing the 30-minute documentary Guarding the Galilee, a film about the epic fight to stop Adani’s Carmichael coal mine.  Presented by Queensland born actor Michael Caton, Guarding the Galilee is a documentary on the battle to stop the biggest coal mine in Australian history, Adani’s Carmichael project. The film features farmers, dive instructors and boat operators all concerned about the impacts that Adani’s mine would have on water resources, climate and the reef.
The award-winning documentary team capture the raw beauty of Central Queensland, where the Adani Carmichael mine threatens essential water resources.  After the screening, there will be an opportunity for discussion about what we’ve seen and what can be done to Stop Adani.
 
10 key moments so far in the fight to #stopadani
1.            February 2014, Court actions to protect the Reef
2.            May 2014, Global bank drops Adani
3.            January 2015, Voters vote for the Reef
4.            March 2015, Traditional Owners oppose Adani
5.            April 2015, Adani’s lies revealed in court
6.            August 2015, Court overturns Adani approval
7.            August 2015, Australian banks join international banks, say ‘no’ to Adani
8.            November 2015, Limits placed on dredge dumping and port expansions
9.            June 2016, Controversy over public loan and protests during Gautam Adani visit
10.          March 2017, 90 prominent Australians oppose Adani mine, delegation visits India
11.          May 2017, Queensland Government refuses to facilitate public money for Adani
 
The meeting has an opportunity to begin a local action.
3 suggested ways to take action to Stop Adani.

1. Join, start or grow a Stop Adani group in your community
2. Don’t give $1B of public money to Adani! Organise an action at your MP’s office
3. Adopt your local Westpac branch: make sure they don’t loan money to Adani. (Achieved)

On 28 April Westpac announced a new climate policy which effectively rules out financing the Adani Group's giant coal mine in Queensland's Galilee Basin.
We look forward to seeing you at the 2017 Benalla Sustainable Future Group AGM and our screening of Guarding the Galilee which is presented as part of the StopAdani campaign;

 Download Flyer                      .

The 2016 Annual General Meeting of BSFG will be held on Thursday 25th August at 7:30 pm in the Uniting Church, Carrier Street, Benalla.

Our guest speaker is John Liddell from Beyond Zero Emissions who will be speaking about BZE's Renewable Energy Super Power Report which has been produced as part of BZE's Zero Carbon Australia plan and outlines Australia’s potential to be a global renewable energy superpower of the future. Australia's economic renewable energy resources are greater than its coal, oil, gas and uranium resources combined.

The report highlights the fact that the world is transitioning to renewables and that the industrial leaders of the renewable energy era will be those countries with massive inexpensive renewable energy resources like Australia.

There will be the normal business of our Annual General Meeting before our guest speaker.  The Agenda, Minutes, Annual Report and Financial Statement will be attached to upcoming emails to members.
​
After the AGM we will send Membership Renewal reminders for 2016-17, however memberships may be renewed at the AGM.

The AGM will be followed by a light supper.  .

Peter Maddock
​Secretary