After spending the past two Saturdays in school for those workshops and spending Sundays at home, I decided that I had to get in touch with nature again and do something different this weekend. (Also I didn’t have too many assignments to work on).
I went to volunteer with the Conservation Volunteers of Australia (CVA). This is a private, non-profit (it’s somewhat of an oxymoron but it’s true in this case) organisation whose aim is to protect the environment and restore bushland, clean up the coasts etcetc. Basically it organises conservation projects. Any money that the organisation makes goes back into funding projects. There are many projects run all around Australia, 365 days a year. So you can volunteer for just a day, a week to a few months or more. The projects are very well-organised, and volunteers only have to turn up at a central meeting point and they will be brought to the project site.
Yesterday was the second time I volunteered with the CVA. I went to North Head which is a park very near the famous Manly beach in Sydney. North Head overlooks the harbour and the Pacific Ocean, and the views there are breathtaking. I was there with 7 other volunteers and a team leader who works for the CVA. We were there to do weeding. We had to remove asparagus ferns which were overtaking the habitat of the native plants. Because of this, the native animals like the bandicoots (a carnivorous marsupial) start dying out because they have nothing to feed on.
All of us had a good time as we chatted with one another. The people I met were so interesting. 1 guy who was a backpacker from England, 1 woman from England who’s on a working holiday visa, 1 German lady who’s an intern with Greenpeace, 1 Dutch guy who’s also on a working holiday visa, 1 American lady studying film in Sydney, 1 lady from Melbourne who has decided to move to Sydney for awhile, 1 lady who’s born and bred in Sydney and lastly me from Singapore. And of course there was the team leader who was originally from New Zealand but has been living in Sydney since he was 10.
Such an interesting mix of people and every one from different backgrounds. There was a lot of good conversation. For our morning tea break (we have to bring our own food & drink), we walked down to this small strip of beach not far from where we were weeding. Lo and behold, there was a tiny waterfall by the side of the rocks! It was ssooooo lovely just sitting there and enjoying the gifts of nature. We saw a cockatoo drinking water from the waterfall.
Sydney is absolutely gorgeous and the people here are so lucky. There are so many lovely pockets of greenery and scenic spots near the city. It’s almost unbelievable that such lovely spots of nature are found within such close range of the city centre. We had lunch at a nice spot overlooking the harbour and the Pacific Ocean. With the warm sunshine and cool breeze, it was like heaven on earth!
This morning, I also went to work on another CVA project. This time, instead of pulling out weeds, I got to do some planting! We did some micro-burning at first. The native plant seeds need fire to help them to germinate, so micro-burning might help in getting them to germinate. In micro-burning, newspaper is placed below a small pile of twigs and ignited. A small fire burns for a short while under supervision. After micro-burning, we started planting tuffs of grass in the bare land. I had a lot of fun and I learnt more things about the Australian flora.
I really enjoy doing these conservation projects. I get to go to all these nice spots which I would never have known otherwise. Knowing that I’m making a small contribution to society and to the environment makes me feel good too. Also, I love getting in touch with nature and getting to meet like-minded people on these projects. I mean, I know I’ll never see these people again, but just a day of casual conversation with someone new makes me feel like I’m connecting with people and it’s such a great feeling when everyone’s working together for a common cause. The team leaders are also very encouraging, always saying that everyone can make a difference and always remembering to thank the volunteers for their efforts.
What I really admire about the people who are in charge of these projects is the commitment and enthusiasm they have towards conserving their environment. They are so willing to share their vast knowledge. The team leaders are usually graduates in environmental science or some form of environmental studies. The CVA does projects in conjunction with other conservation organisations so we do get to meet other rangers and experts from those organisations. I have learnt a lot about Australia’s flora and fauna from these people and it’s just absolutely amazing for me.
From now on, I shall make an effort to finish my work during the weekdays so that I have time to do such things over the weekend. I regret not starting on this earlier! But nevermind, from now on I shall make an effort to do this as often as possible!
Oh, I feel so alive now after being in the sun and in touch with nature! 🙂