Learning teams support bushfire recovery
Education Centre Gippsland
The Bunyip Ridge Bushfire Recovery Project engaged people deemed to have few skills and has tapped into a method that helps them learn quickly.Thirty job seekers whose livelihood had been affected by the bushfires spent six months restoring and improving community and private infrastructure lost during the Black Saturday bushfires.The teams assisted bushfire survivors who are elderly or have a disability, and can’t physically undertake the restoration themselves.
After less than two weeks into the project the team handed over a garden to the community with native, drought tolerant plants. Along with a former bike shed that was converted into a chicken coop.
It was the renewal of the school grounds that won over the school principal, Tristan Mether. He said, ‘I was amazed that in just eight or nine days, this incredible work has been done by the team and the grounds look wonderful because of it.’
Jess Grayden from Labertouche was one of the team members. She said, ‘I enjoyed the work because it opened my eyes up to what other people have gone through and the damage of the bushfire. It has also given me a chance to put back into the community.’
The students participating in the project completed a certificate in horticulture, business administration, training and assessment and/or information technology.