St Luke’s Anglican School has been awarded a grant to establish a community agriculture club in partnership with Meilene Residential Aged Care in Bundaberg.
This initiative aims to foster intergenerational connections and promote sustainable practices.
The grant was supplied through the Elders Community Giving Project, a program established to further support the needs of rural and regional communities around Australia.
This is one of two grants awarded under the People’s Choice pillar, where Elders employees voted for initiatives that resonated with them.
Matthew Cathcart, Director of Community and Service at St Luke’s Anglican School, and students from the agricultural club, shared details about the program, its benefits, and future expansion plans.
“The program is already in progress, with six out of ten garden beds now constructed,” Mr Cathcart said.
“These beds are situated at Meilene Residential Aged Care Home and one bed has already produced its first harvest of vegetables, including tomatoes and beetroot, served in the aged care kitchen.”
Mr Cathcart said all ten garden beds are expected to be completed by next term, at which point students will begin involving residents in the program.
“We’re excited to connect with the aged care residents, learn from their experiences, and give them an opportunity to engage with the land and their farming roots,” he said.
Many of the residents come from farming and agricultural backgrounds and will be able to pass on their expertise and knowledge to the next generation, aiding in the sustainability and future of Australian agriculture.
“This program is a key component of our students’ service-learning unit, designed to foster community engagement,” Mr Cathcart said.
“In this instance, it involves working with aged care residents to learn about their stories, histories, and farming skills.”
Mr Cathcart explained future iterations of the program aim to involve small animals, including bees and chickens, to enrich the learning experience of students and provide valuable lessons in animal and environmental stewardship.
“We’ve started composting by collecting food scraps from both our school and Meilene,” he said.
“We’re using a Johnson-Su Composting Bioreactor to produce fungal dominant compost with minimal manual turnover.
“We also plan to launch a YouTube channel to share educational videos about our program and encourage other schools to implement similar initiatives.”
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