About 50 Surf Coast seniors from Moriac and Lorne have given themselves and their homes a green makeover following their participation in Environment Victoria’s free eco-wise crash course.
The workshop series, Seniors Eco-Wise Action, was developed by Environment Victoria to assist people in the Surf Coast community to save money and reduce their environmental impact by making simple changes in and around their homes.
Katelyn Fryer, Environment Victoria’s project manager, said workshop participants were amazed at how much energy they could save by switching appliances off at the walls and how much water could be saved by changing to a low-flow shower head.
“The program shows that every member of the community can do their bit to help the environment. You don’t need to have a large income to make simple changes around your home. In fact, saving energy, water and reducing waste helps seniors save money” she said.
Moriac residents and program participants Beth and Des Stokes were thrilled with the workshop series and said they had not only started turning off lights and having shorter showers, but that they had also started passing their new knowledge ‘down the line’ to their friends and family.
“Conversations with our family have lead to changes in their lives too. Our son-in-law has now had solar panels installed on his home after we talked about the benefits and information from the energy and climate change workshop we attended,” Mr Stokes said.
Ms Fryer said the workshops in Lorne and Moriac were due to finish in the next few weeks, but that a new set of workshops were starting up in the Anglesea and Airey’s Inlet area on Tuesday 24 March and were open to all seniors in the community.
Surf Coast Mayor, Cr Libby Mears, said the community was facing the reality of climate change and programs like these helped them to prepare for the future.
“The Seniors Eco-Wise Action workshops gave seniors practical tips on how they can reduce their energy use, live more comfortably and reduce their bills at the same time,” Cr Mears said.
“Surf Coast Shire is pleased to get behind this innovative program that promotes sustainable living.”
Eco-Wise Action is part of Environment Victoria’s Regional Sustainable Living Program, working with communities that get missed by mainstream environmental messages. This program is funded by the Department of Sustainability and Environment and supported by the Surf Coast Shire Council.