Join the Forests Working Group!
The Forests Working Group highlights and supports forest conservation efforts, research, as well as informing the public what is really going on with forests – continued logging and burning – despite the native forests logging moratorium.
We organise events with eminent researchers and forest activist groups, support efforts to protect forest animals, and organise field trips, for instance the highly successful Greater Glider spotlighting expedition. We meet by Zoom monthly, often with interesting speakers.
Urban forests improve our health, increase biodiversity and protect against urban heat
Our recent Urban Forests event was a full house!
Listen to Dr Greg Moore and Dr Judy Bush on saving trees here.
Urban forests blog
Check out our recent urban forests event with scientists from Melbourne University and City of Boroondara experts.
- Read our summary blog here – a great resource for anyone interested in urban trees.
- Download slide sets from Dr Greg Moore, Dr Judy Bush, Chris Spencer and Amy Shaw, and check out our Urban Forests information page.
Forest protection really matters
Trees are essential for our health, for biodiversity, and for protecting our climate.
Actions you can take right now
Consider signing the Bob Brown Foundation’s Native Forest Declaration. It’s sensible, short and timely and goes directly to the PM and the federal environment minister.
It’s the tree planting season, so why not join a Friends group. A good place to start is the KooyongKoot Alliance. Sign up for the newsletter and join a tree-planting activity along one of Boroondara’ creeks as part of the State Government’s Green Links Program.
Please support Warburton Environment in its court case against DEECA for the illegal removal of hollow-bearing trees. You can watch a 2-min trailer of the film Forest Country here and donate to support the case here.
Boroondara’s trees are under serious threat from development.
They can be better protected.
Boroondara is proposing stronger tree protections for significant trees and canopy trees in the form of an Environmental Significance Overlay and a Significant Landscape Overlay. You can check on the community consultation here and read our guide here.
Check out Boroondara’s chief arborist Chris Spencer and biodiversity lead Amy Shaw speaking at our Urban Forests event here.
Examples of action by the Forests Working Group include:
- Support for the Greater Glider Recovery Project – watch the launch video here.
- Field trips – watch a family friendly Glider Spotlighting video here.
- Organising meetings with experts such as globally renowned Prof David Lindenmayer – watch a highlights video here, download his slideset here.
- Supporting book launches on forest conservation – check out Lindenmayer’s Forest Wars video here.
- Working to support front line forests groups such as Kinglake Friends of the Forest – check out their slideset here.
- Writing blogs and information pages on forests topics, including on urban forests, Lindenmayer’s State of Play meeting and Toolangi Greater Glider spotlighting
Join the Forests Working Group here!
If you are interested in urban forests and forests conservation, and would like to contribute to protecting biodiversity and our endangered forest animals, we’d love you to join the forests working group.
Register your interest on the form below – if it doesn’t show up at first, you may have to refresh the page.
Our forests are still being logged and burned, and need our help
We are stepping up to protect our forests and neighbourhood trees.
Forests Working Group Report
Check out Ray’s latest blog to learn more about Forests working group actions, events and advocacy:
- Attending the inaugural Snow Gum Summit – learn more from Julie’s summary, and check out our submission.
- Supporting Love our National Parks event, the Bob Brown March in March, and the Gippsland Forest Dialogue.
- Advocating (letters and submissions) for forest protection through the creation of promised national parks and through participation in Great Outdoors Taskforce process – mixed results here, three national parks created but the battle for the Great Forest National Park continues – read the VNPA response here.
- Locally, as well as running the Urban Forests event, Forest working group members have successfully nominated 44 significant trees last year and continue to map and nominate them, especially in the nominated Camberwell Activity Centre area.
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