There’s something special happening in Ballarat, and we think it’s worth celebrating.

Three local businesses – Hotel Vera, Ballarat Wildlife Park (BWP) and us here at Fifteen Trees – have come together with a shared goal – to invite visitors to Ballarat to do something meaningful while they’re here. Not just to see the sights and enjoy the food and wine, but to leave something behind. Something that will still be growing long after they’ve headed home.

Here’s how it works. Guests staying at Hotel Vera will be introduced to the story of local forest restoration projects. From there, guests will be invited to become members of A Subscription for the Planet, which is one of Fifteen Trees’ planting programs that encourages individuals to purchase trees for community groups to plant.

Ballarat Wildlife Park brings an important dimension to the partnership. Guests at Hotel Vera will be also be encouraged to visit the Park to spent time with the koalas, kangaroos, echidnas, possums and other native animals. For those who want to get a little closer, the park offers a very special koala encounter where visitors can pat and take photos with one of the park’s resident koalas.

Every native tree planted in the Ballarat district helps restore and extend wildlife habitat, create biodiversity corridors that have been fragmented over generations, and give native animals safe passage through the landscape. This ecosystem restoration is happening right on Ballarat’s doorstep, driven by passionate local landcare groups such as Enfield/Napoleans Landcare Network.

This partnership between Hotel Vera, Ballarat Wildlife Park and Fifteen Trees is about more than tourism. It’s also showing visitors that Ballarat is a community that genuinely cares about the planet and that we invite them to be part of our story, no matter where they call home.

If you’re visiting Ballarat soon, keep an eye out for more details at Hotel Vera and Ballarat Wildlife Park.

Writer: Colleen B. Filippa

With a background in Environmental Science from Melbourne University, Colleen is the Founding Director of Fifteen Trees. In 2009, after 20 years in secondary and tertiary education institutions, Colleen left the classroom to start the company. Fifteen Trees is a social enterprise assisting individuals and companies to reduce their carbon footprint by supporting community groups such as Landcare, and environmental networks.