Ange Barry has alerted us to their current funding round – now open until June 25:

“The Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation is going full steam ahead with a total of 138 schools, or around 14,000 primary school age children growing, harvesting, preparing and sharing fresh, seasonal food each week across Australia.  We have now opened our 3rd round of grants in our National Program, and for the first time, all non-government schools with a primary enrolment that are classed as a SMARTER school with low socio economic status under the School Communities National Partnership can also apply for these grants, in addition to Government schools with a primary enrolment, and special schools with a primary curriculum.  We encourage interested schools to contact their State\Territory SAKGF Project Officer if they have any queries or need any assistance with the application process”.

The link to our website is as follows:

http://www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au/grants-national.shtml

Note: Ange also tell us that “In our last group of schools to join the Stephanie
Alexander Kitchen Garden National Program, we welcomed Coober Pedy,
Burke and Driver PS (NT) to the Kitchen Garden Community”  - schools more remotely located, so if you have a school community that can support the program, you may want to look into applying for the current round, Anthea.

Are you having problems accepting an invitation to join  the RIG CDEP Gardens Discussion Group? or the Schools & Life Skills Gardens Discussion Group?

If so, its probably because you need to have a Google account to allow Google Groups to be able to recognise you and the email address you work from. Go to www.google.com.au and create an account, using the email address that you received your invitation on as the email address when they ask for your email address. Then create the account as per instructions. Go back to the email inviting you to join up and click on the ‘accept invitation’ link at the bottom of that email.

If you still can’t join up (or have lost the email with original invitation!) please email me at rig@remoteindigenousgardens.net and I’ll sign you up! Thanks – Anthea

Landscaping and Horticulture Program

An Aboriginal Corporation in remote QLD runs a residential work and training camp for Aboriginal people. The camp accommodates up to 60 people (including staff) and the Corporation has recently commenced extensive upgrades of their accommodation, training workshop area, and kitchen and administration facilities. The Corporation would like a volunteer/s to coordinate and train local people in a number of horticulture and landscape gardening activities on the site relating to this upgrade.

The volunteer/s will be required to work closely with staff and external consultants to expand and establish sustainable management practices for the following: • existing vegetable gardens and fruit orchard, • establish a sustainable composting system on the site and where possible assist, • mentor and train local Aboriginal people in related activities including the development of sustainable land management practices, • assisting with the coordination of ongoing research projects and • assist in the development of plans and strategies for the rehabilitation of natural vegetation of local sites degraded by construction/mining activities.
If you are interested in becoming an ICV volunteer you can start by lodging an application. If you are already an ICV volunteer and you’re interested in this project please email Jeanette  Bruce(jbruce@icv.com.au) with project number . Alternatively you can call Jeanette on 1800 819 542.

ICV volunteer positions listed at: http://www.icv.com.au/volunteers/opportunities/#394

Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance NT (AMSANT) Fresh Food Summit is on in May!

The Fresh Food Summit—part of a valuable AMSANT tradition—is designed to get all the players together: community members, health professionals, community stores and groups such as Outback Stores and ALPA, government and NGOs to chart new directions in the crucial task of boosting supplies of fresh food to our people.

The AMSANT Fresh Food Summit will include:

• Case studies of small scale community horticulture projects
• Large scale initiatives such as those proposed by Centrefarm
• Initiatives from the Northern Territory fishing industry
• Projects from the Fred Hollows Foundation
• Projects from the Jimmy Little Foundation
• The role of community stores and store groups such as Outback, ALPA and Mai Wiru [NPY lands]
• The relationship between stores and the Comprehensive Primary Health Care sector
• Recent initiatives by the Australian Government such as the Stores Infrastructure Project
• Approaches to food and/or freight subsidies
• The need for an independent monitoring of stores
• Getting cooking right for your health

Tennant Creek Showground

5-6 May 2010

The April RIG Newsletter is online and available here: RIG News #6 April 2010

And you can view past RIG News newsletters by visitting Useful Resources section.

Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health (CRCATSIH) – Inaugural Congress Lowitja, March 23-24, 2010, Sydney.  To be held at the Aboriginal Health College, Little Bay, La Perouse, Sydney, to enable stakeholders to have input into shaping the research agenda of the CRCATSIH and celebrate the learnings to date. Further information: admin@crcah.org.au, www.crcah.org.au.

NATSINSAP and PHAA Symposium, “The Way Forward for Indigenous Health: A Focus on Food and Nutrition”, April 22, 2010, Canberra. The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nutrition Strategy and Action Plan (NATSINSAP) Symposium. Information and to register – see www.phaa.net.au or contact Katherine Cullerton, Senior Project Officer for NATSINSAP on katherine.cullerton@heartfoundation.org.au

Nursery and Garden Industry National Conference, Darwin, April 19-22, 2010. More information visit -www.ngia.com.au

Tenth Australasian Permaculture Convergence – Cairns, September 24-27, 2010.  The Convergence theme is preparedness for Climate Change and Peak Oil.  If you’d like to know more, visit www.permaculture.cairns.org.au or contact Permaculture Cairns on ph: 0407 243 298.

Applied Research Projects – 2010.  We are currently scoping some exciting applied research projects that address resource needs and enterprise opportunities in remote communities. If you’d like to know more or get involved please email us at rig@remoteindigenousgardens.net

Targeted email discussion groups. We are setting up some targeted, email based, discussion groups to help connect people who are experts, program developers,  educators and participants involved in various types of food garden projects and/or enterprises that each face different challenges and opportunities. To kick things off we’ll be establishing:

- A CDEP Garden Group;

- A Horticulture and Permaculture Experts Group;

- A School Gardens Group; and

- A Community Programs Gardens group.

Let us know if you’d like to be included in any of the above discussion groups and if you’d like to suggest specific topics/issues you’d like to addressed through group discussion and information sharing. Email us at rig@remoteindigenousgardens.net

RIG Network at the CDEP Workshop and Trade Show  - Darwin, March 17-18, 2010. RIG Network will participate in a ‘trade show’ that will coincide with a CDEP Workshop that will be held at the Darwin Convention Centre, Darwin, 17-18 March 2010.

See  new resources Selecting food plants, Building community participation in food gardens, and Snapshots – Successful community garden projects and RIG Network Surveys – Summary Findings now added to Useful Resources on this site.

“Club Veg” is a gardening club established and facilitated by the Cooktown District Community Centre. Members meet monthly to share ideas, tips, cuttings and seeds. Club Veg also runs a seed bank and is helping set up a number of gardens at local venues including the Aged Care Centre. Its a great network for people in Queensland’s tropical top end to gain practical advice and support. Get in touch with David Cass if you’d like to know more (his contact details in the links below). David forwarded the ‘Club Veg Cooktown Veg Planting Guide’ and ‘What We Do at Club Veg’ to RIG Network to share with people in and around Hope Vale and Wujal Wujal after our workshops there late last year. Check them out!

http://www.remoteindigenousgardens.net/wp-content/uploads/club-veg-poster-2-2.pdf

http://www.remoteindigenousgardens.net/wp-content/uploads/what-we-do-at-club-veg-a3-1.pdf

Growing Food for Healthy Communities – A Workbook for Aboriginal Communities, compiled by Joshua Byrne and Martin Anda, Murdoch University.

This booklet provides practical information for communities interested in growing their own fresh fruit and vegetables for better nutrition. It’s presented as an illustrated workbook and was co-produced with a video that demonstrates the techniques in the booklet. Its a great resource.

Produced as part of an educational package with support from ATSIC and the NHMRC. Murdoch University has kindly provided approval for the material to be used by RIG Network. Many thanks to Rachel, RIG, and Yvette from Josh Byrne & Associates!

You can download the Workbook by clicking on this link:

http://www.remoteindigenousgardens.net/wp-content/uploads/growing_food_for_healthy_communities.pdf