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On the last Sunday of March 2024 the car park at Springwood Train Station was transformed into a vibrant community space with food stalls, art opportunities and live music. Tamsyn McGrouther reports on the event.

For over 45 years the Springwood Neighbourhood Centre has been providing much needed community resources, advice and facilities to the people of the Blue Mountains. Tonje Akerholt and the other staff at the Centre work tirelessly to ensure that the space continues as somewhere everyone can feel welcome and connected.

With the lack of available options for many unwanted pets and farmyard animals in the area, there is a need to think about how we as a community can help reduce the numbers of animals being dumped or left uncared for in the Blue Mountains. Sun Valley residents, the Sidarous family, opened their home and hearts to many creatures great and small, who might otherwise have struggled to find appropriate and loving care.

As our climate changes, bringing unseasonable weather events, we're more likely to find wildlife, like snakes, in unlikely places, including our home. Many greet snakes with fear, repulsion and sometimes violence. Local professional snake removalist Troy Hovenden wants to change the way we view these magnificent creatures, to help protect both human and snake residents of the Blue Mountains.

Jessie Burke, the current President of Springwood Bushwalking Club, is a strong and positive advocate for nature and the natural world, using her position in one of the Mountain’s oldest clubs to open up the joys of bush walking and bush care to a whole new generation of locals.

The Edible Garden Trail is on again in 2024, and local gardener and permaculture enthusiast Amanda Argent will open the gates of the Urban Farmer Blue Mountains to welcome the community into a garden designed around sustainability, community and creativity. 

Micro-recycling options are accessible and feasible for anyone, offering profound and important opportunities for us all to be part of creating a more sustainable and less wasteful world.

If you are looking for somewhere to escape the heat, Cool Mountains has you covered with our list of air-conditioned and naturally cooler spaces open to anyone.

For many families looking forward to Christmas, the cost of living, as well as sustainability, have been at the forefront of their minds. Two families in the Springwood area share how they’re creating fun and affordable ‘new’ traditions.

Food wastage is one of the biggest problems in the developed world, contributing to landfill, climate change and food insecurity, but in the Lower Blue Mountains a number of organisations are finding ways to reduce food waste while helping locals access delicious fresh food and slash their grocery bills.