It's hard to believe yet another week of the second leg has passed us by. I guess that's what happens when each day is jam-packed with activities. We've spent half of our time in meetings and the other half doing the usual admin and editing. It feels as though we've been to just about every suburb in Sydney; from Carringbah on Monday to the CBD on Tuesday, over to Oyster Bay on Wednesday and then Redfern on Thursday before heading back up north to Marsfield on Friday. Despite no filming this week, it's been a useful time for idea sharing, learning and networking.
We started the week meeting with Sarah-Jo from Plastic Free Sutherlandshire. She opened our eyes to waste management within this South Sydney area and gave us valuable insight into how sustainable practices within the community have evolved over the last 10 years. We met with her at an eatery called Bella Cibo on Monday evening to celebrate their being awarded a Local Champion plastic free award. What was supposed to be an hour or so turned into 4 hours of discussion on the challenges posed by sustainable choices, such as cost, time management, convenience and awareness. Being able to share ideas on efficiency, social media management and outreach strategies was incredibly useful and reminded us that we are not alone in the challenges we face with PLASTIC: Unwrapped.
It was incredibly humbling to see the amount of effort Pardip and Nathan (Bella Cibo owners) put into making their business as sustainable as possible, even in ways not overtly evident to the public. They don't have a general waste bin, everything is recycled or composted and food waste is kept to an absolute minimum. If you're in the area (or at their other venue in Jannali) we would strongly recommend checking them out. We can also vouch for the pizza! Well worth a try.
We were fortunate enough to accompany Sarah-Jo on another of these award-giving trips to a preschool called The Point in Oyster Bay on Wednesday afternoon. They too are making outstanding efforts to promote sustainable practices from a young age, paying close attention to where their materials are sourced and upcycling items such as tables and chairs wherever possible. It was a pleasure to meet such a genuine team of people who have sustainability and single-use plastic reduction at the heart of their day-to-day work.
Aside from Plastic Free Sutherlandshire, we met with one of our Indonesia contacts, Re>Pal, in preparation for our visit next month. We also chatted with local organisations such as Defy Design and Seaside Scavenge in an attempt to try and understand the broad picture of how plastic is being dealt with here in Sydney.
There’s been a lot to take in but we are continuing to document all that we find and are avidly chipping away at the videos day by day.
We could not be more grateful for the connections we are making and for the wonderful people who are looking after us each step of the way. Until next time! Here are some photos of the last week 😊
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