DATTA Vic is the professional association for teachers of Design & Technologies in Victoria. The Design & Technologies learning area seeks to empower young people to develop solutions for a sustainable future.
At the 2023 conference Tomorrow’s Innovators, they will be exploring how schools can create environments where young individuals are encouraged to think critically, challenge conventions, and pursue their passions. It is only in Design & Technologies and related VCE subjects that students get to combine creative thinking skills in making and cutting-edge technologies which prepare them to become future leaders, problem solvers, and sustainable innovators.
To thank our amazing presenters, we are planting a tree for each of you. We know you already make the world a better place through your work, so we hope this is a fitting gift that embodies the positive impact you have on the planet.
Thank you also to Fifteen Trees! We can’t wait to work with you again.
Laura Murphy | Executive Education Officer | DATTA VIC
Most speakers at a conference will receive a gift such as a bottle of wine, a big bunch of flowers, which are very sweet gestures for their time. But we are loving new requests from organisations and companies, who instead ask us to organise the gift of trees planted on behalf of their presenters.
One such company is Datta Victoria (Design and Technology Teachers Association, who have committed to funding the planting of 30 trees for their upcoming teacher’s conference in Melbourne this December.
Datta is a member-based organisation who provide advice and support for teachers through:
Whilst a bottle of wine or flowers is a lovely gesture, we love the idea of giving a gift of native trees planted by our local volunteer planting groups. A gift for the future.
Raakajlim is a 490ha conservation property in the Mallee of northwest Victoria. Raakajlim borders Hattah-Kulkyne National Park and is the land of the Latji Latji people. It was there that we organised the planting of 30 trees on the behalf of DATTA VIC.
Some of the species planted included; Slender Cypress Pine, Sugarwood, Cattlebush, Umbrella Wattle, Gumbi Gumbi, Pimelea Daisy-bush, Slender-leaf Mallee, Red Mallee, Elegant Wattle, Silver Hakea, Mallee Teatree, and Common Emubush.
The Slender Cypress Pine is a key food plant for the Pink Cockatoo. This beautiful bird was listed as endangered under the federal EPBC Act in March 2023. The decline of Pink Cockatoos is closely linked to the decline of native Pine in Victoria. As well as being a food plant, Cockatoos nest in hollows of Pine trees that are at least 100 years old. This revegetation project is investing in the future for this bird.
Thank you to the supporters of Fifteen Trees. With your contribution, Mallee Conservation can restore habitat for the beautiful, endangered Pink Cockatoo. It also supports Traditional Owner self- determination for our local mob and inspires school students to love our beautiful Mallee landscape.
Yep, tree planting, really can do all that!
Fiona Murdoch | Secretary | Friends of Mallee Conservation
If you would like to know more running sustainable conferences and events, read our blogpost on this very topic where we give you 15 suggestions and ideas.
Writer – Lou Ridsdale
Lou a green thumb, Earth Lover, big-hearted nature freak, plus a savvy media and horticulture expert, who passionately believe that everyone can lead a more nourishing and sustainable life. Lou founded Food Is Free Inc., a unique grassroots food security platform specialising in food security education. She fell in love with trees after reading The Magic Faraway Tree as a child. You can find Lou here
Restoring Australian ecosystems. Supporting communities with their revegetation projects for a greener and healthier planet.
Fifteen Trees acknowledges Indigenous Australians as the traditional custodians of the lands on which we work, live and play.
We recognise that Indigenous Australians have cared for and lived in harmony with this land for millennia, and their knowledge and wisdom of the land endures.
We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging and stand in solidarity as Indigenous Australians seek a fairer and more sustainable future for the land and its people.