Growing a sustainable community

The Facebook group Growing a Sustainable Community – Kingsley and Surrounds was established in 2018 by passionate community member and Kingsley local, Sharon Pengelly. The group has since grown to over 1,600 like-minded community members from across the City of Joondalup suburbs, where the local community share ideas about sustainable living, gardening, recycling and all things environmental!

Building an online community

Sharon has always been passionate about learning and sharing ideas with others, especially about the environment and sustainable living. When she established the Facebook group, her aim was to create a discussion forum for like-minded community members to share ideas and discuss sustainability in a positive, constructive way.

When Sharon started the group, her goal was to have a small group of people who could help with basic guidance regarding sustainable living. Sharon said she would have been happy with just 50 community members, but it has now grown to a community of over 1,600 members from all over the Northern suburbs, and some members are even from overseas.

“It’s wonderful to see so many people wanting to join and see what our community is about. Hopefully, joining our group inspires them to recreate something similar in their own local community,” says Sharon.

Sharon has always wanted to leave a light environmental footprint on the planet. She is a self-identified “mad keen gardener” with a beautiful vegetable garden to show for it. Sharon has attended courses in sustainable living, such as the Earth Carers course led by Peg Davies, where she learned about protecting the environment through reducing, reusing and recycling waste. She also attended a Sustainable Living course held by Kath Moller of Duncraig Edible Garden, which focused on regenerative living, community, environment, gardening and household. Sharon shares her knowledge within her Facebook group.

Sharon’s Facebook group grew fast, and it wasn’t long before Liz Bennett began helping Sharon manage and ‘admin’ the group. Like Sharon, Liz is an avid gardener and could be entirely self-sufficient with her fruit and vegetable production. Liz also attended the Greenwood Sustainable Living course. Together with the other group members, they have all made the group the wonderful community that it is today.

Grow Free Carts

Liz established the Greenwood Grow Free cart in 2022. Grow Free Carts provides a central place for the community to swap and share excess homegrown produce, preserves, cuttings, potted edible plants, and other items related to sustainable gardening. Community members can do direct swaps or leave something they are gifting. Sharon’s Facebook group allows Liz and other community members to post what is on offer so that nothing goes to waste!

Community, kindness, and sustainability

'Growing a Sustainable Community – Kingsley and surrounds’ is an inclusive online space to discuss sustainable living. The group ranges from beginner community members to experts and community groups who have a wealth of knowledge and a wide range of experience to support anyone on their sustainable journey.

The group has held and supported several workshops for its members, such as a Worm Farming workshop, Clothes Swaps, Waste facility tours, and an ‘All you need to know about growing citrus and edibles’ workshop. Sharon and Liz are excited for the year ahead, with the 2024 event calendar being full of amazing activities and workshops for the group. Future workshops for group members include cheese making, sourdough bread making, gardening, shopping without plastic and more!

Many friendships have been formed through the ‘Growing a sustainable community – Kingsley and surrounds’ Facebook group, and for Sharon that is the most rewarding part of it all. The community’s like-mindedness and aspirations for wanting to do their bit for the planet demonstrate this group’s wonderful asset to the community.

The page regularly receives positive comments from group members, such as “you do a great job of connecting us throughout the year and inspiring us” and “this is such a happy, inclusive, informative and uplifting page,” which makes all her amazing work coordinating the group worth it.

The group enjoys supporting local community groups and sustainable businesses through its Facebook page. Some of the fantastic local groups and businesses that have helped this group are:

• Duncraig Edible Garden
• Friends of Yellagonga Regional Park
• St Nic’s Recycling Hub
• The Worm Shed
• Weigh n Pay
• Friends of Erindale Road Bushland

Staying connected during COVID-19

During COVID-19, lockdowns and isolation requirements meant that the group was an invaluable asset for keeping the community connected. Not only was the group a social outlet for those in isolation, but it helped grow community spirit and connection. Many individuals made themselves available to others who needed help running errands, dropping off produce or even shopping for strangers who needed a helping hand. While for some communities, COVID-19 resulted in unfortunate community breakdown, Sharon’s virtual group helped people maintain connections to the local community.

Sharon’s six sustainability suggestions

Join Growing a sustainable community – Kingsley and surrounds and become part of Sharon’s sustainable community. Here are some of her suggestions to help get you started on your journey.

1. Reduce waste

Following the waste hierarchy of avoiding waste, reducing your waste, reusing what you can’t reduce, and recycling as a last resort is the most basic way you can make a difference at home and lessen your impact on the environment.

Reducing waste should be your priority. Check the packaging that comes with your supermarket purchases, select the cardboard packaging option, and BYO your own containers and produce bags to lessen your impact on the environment.

2. Reuse and repurpose waste

When reducing waste is not possible, reuse and repurpose what you have. Take your old containers and produce bags to your local shop, use the old coffee jar as a storage container, and find other creative ways to reuse or repurpose your waste. You can also repurpose your waste by joining your local ‘Buy Nothing’ group on Facebook to pay it forward or find something you need rather than purchasing new.

3. Recycle waste

Where waste can’t be reduced, reused or repurposed, as a last resort, try to recycle. Check out what can be recycled in your yellow lid recycling bin, and check out your local recycling hub for materials that can’t go in your bin. Marion Green’s St Nic’s Recycling Hub collects and recycles some items that can’t go directly into your yellow lid bin! You can also recycle waste by placing any food scraps or garden waste into a compost or worm farm at home.

4. Grow into gardening

Plant your own little patch of paradise and try your shot at gardening. Whether you use raised beds or create a container garden to grow your own produce or transform your garden into a biodiverse paradise full of native plants, each small change has a huge impact. Creating your very own ecosystem in your backyard is incredibly rewarding, and you will be supporting local wildlife!

5. Lifestyle choices

Living sustainably is a lifestyle. Start small, and you will eventually change your habits over time, and each new habit will eventually make a large impact. Trying to do too much at once will set you up to fail. There is an abundance of people in Sharon’s group who are ready to help you get started. Before you know it, you will be reducing your very own environmental footprint in your community and helping others get started, too.

6. Join the sustainable community

Come and join the community, bring an open mind and a bucket full of kindness. From little things, big things will grow.

As we move into a future where we need to reduce our environmental impact, we all need to focus our journey towards a more regenerative lifestyle in our community, environment, garden, workplace and household. Sustainable living practices are necessary to meet our needs without compromising a healthy planet for future generations and our natural environment.

Other tips and resources:

• Start a ReWild Garden at your home, create a personal profile and your own garden action plan to track your progress Starting a ReWild Garden.
• Join or register a Friends Group.
• View our new interactive map to discover your soil type.
• Grow a Waterwise verge garden.
• Tips to reduce your energy, visit Reducing energy use page.
• Tips for reducing waste, visit the Waste initiatives page. 
• Tips for saving water.
• Learn about common weeds by visiting Weed control page.
• Learn about common garden escapees by reading the Being WEEDwise eBook.
• Apply for a free street tree to cool your neighbourhood and provide a habitat for wildlife.