Food Connect - Coming soon to the Eco-Library

Last week we met the lovely Julian of Food Connect, who stopped by to talk to us about his social enterprise. Here's what he had to say;

"Food Connect Sydney aims to make ethically grown food from local farmers accessible to any household in Sydney. Food Connect Sydney buys direct from local organic and chemical free farmers and packs it into three sized boxes — $35–$65. 

These are then delivered to a local host or "City Cousin" where subscribers come once a week to pick up their pre-paid box.

Fruit and Veg from Food Connect supports farming and local communities as it is:

Fair : 40c in every dollar goes back to the farmer
Organic : 100% of the produce is certified organic or chemical free
Local : average food miles of around 250km
Direct : over 90% of the produce is bought direct from the farmer
Community driven : Local communities come together at their City Cousin

Food Connect Sydney is based on award winning Food Connect Brisbane who have been trading for over six years. Food Connect Sydney’s Enterprise Coordinator was recently recognised as the Sydney Social Entrepreneur of the Year. "



Food Connect Sydney also offers a wholesale service, and supply our good friends over at Alfalfa House. Alfalfa are as excited as we are for The Bower to be extending the number of resources and services available to residents interested in living locally and minimising their environmental impact.

Starting Wednesday 11th May 1-7pm, you'll be able to pick up your pre-paid boxes of produce from our Eco-Library.

Alfalfa House recently loaned their collection of cookbooks to the Eco-Library, so you'll find a host of convenient references to help you decide on tasty recipes for your fresh produce each week. Before long you'll find our Eco-Library has a wealth of information on related topics, including living locally, organic and chemical free gardening and much, much more.

Our hope is that before long, you won't just drop in to pick up your vegies, but stay for a cuppa and a chat with some of the other like minded subscribers.

SO! Checkout  http://www.foodconnect.com.au to find the answers to any lingering questions, sign up to test out the service and organise your subscription payment.

Reuse Repair and Recycle Furniture Course

Workshops, workshops workshops!

We've been hard at work trying to figure out how we can give you what you want!
The second part of the solution involves cloning ourselves, so we'll leave that (and the ethics discussion) for another post, but the first part of the solution is Bower staff getting skilled up in timber repair and finishing ourselves!

To achieve that, and meet some of our other objectives including community education of reuse and repair, we've buddied up with our new best friends - TAFE Outreach.

Outreach at ultimo are dedicated to tailoring courses specifically to meet community needs, providing pathways into social enterprises for people from all walks of life. They're also working with PLACE, a 2 year program concerned with people learning skills towards social enterprises - giving people pathways to employment and financial independence as well as opportunities to socialise and learn new skills.

Over the coming weeks, The Bower staff will be working with TAFE and a TAFE appointed tutor, learning new skills and working with other participants, learning about teaching, mentoring and community engagement.

The aim is for participants to have a taste of furniture restoration and timber work, and for the group to produce a number of pieces that exhibit their new skills, their creativity and passion - all through items donated by The Bower. We hope that some student will discover a true passion for furniture restoration, and that our staff will discover a passion for teaching!

We can't wait for class to resume after the easter holidays, and to show you some of our work in progress.

Once we're skilled up we'll be able to increase the range of workshops we offer to you!

The Bower Upcycle Challenge

We're full of secret plans and clever tricks here at The Bower, and we know you are too. We're putting out the call to handy, arty crafty farty types to show Sydney what you've got.

We're asking you to upcycle found, preloved, salvaged goods into new and exciting things of a totally different function. Show us the hidden potential in items and materials that seem like rubbish at first glance.

We want your washing machines turned into barbecues, your barbecues turned planting trollies and your kayak coffee table. We want something great made out of a toaster, a TV, a stack of CDs.

The winner will be determined by popular vote and will receive a $100 Bower store voucher and a 12 month subscription to Renew, G or Green Magazine.

Not 'handy'? Come on down during the exhibition period (30th April - 8th May), vote for your favourite and get inspired to try your hand at something new.


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Download the entry form, terms and conditions
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The low down  (terms & conditions);

Entries Must;
    1.    Feature goods & materials that have been reclaimed/reused/repurposed for a new function
We'll host a refurbishment challenge another time, but this challenge is all about finding the potential in pre-loved goods and materials.
Think turning bike wheels into a coffee table, or a fridge into a book case... visit our Reuse Gallery in the Eco-Library for more inspiration.

    2.    Be the unique work of the entrant
There are plenty of original ideas out there, and plenty of ways to spin an old one, this challenge is all about getting creative and inspiring other to see the potential in salvaged goods

    3.    Limit 1 entry per participant.

    4.    Staff are encouraged to display items but are not eligible to win prizes.

Safety
    1.    Item must be safe
    •    No broken glass, sharp edges, super pointy protrusions etc.
    •    No toxic or hazardous materials.

    2.    Electrical items must be tagged and tested by a qualified person to be displayed 'in action'.
    •    The Bower electrician may provide this service at a fee of $5/item no later than Wednesday 27th  April 2011.
    •    The Bower takes no responsibility for electrical goods found to be unsafe and these items will not be displayed 'in action'

Size
    1.    The entry MUST fit inside a hypothetical box measuring 100cmx100cmx150cm high.

Or, if the item is too large/unmovable/precious,

    2.    Pictures, explanation and diagrams of the project must fit on one a2 board or the equivalent (2xA3 or 4X A4)
    •    Items need to be mounted on card or similar (check out Reverse Garbage for reuse options) for proper display.

Voting
    1.    All visitors to The Bower during the display period will be encouraged to vote.
    2.  Paper and pens for voting will be provided at the sales counter.
    2.    Votes will be added to the ballot box behind the counter by Bower Staff and tallied at the end of the display period.

Due Date
    1.    Entry Forms are due before midnight on Sunday the 25th of April to secure your position in the display (download the form at the bottom of this post or pick one up in store)

    2.    Actual item/presentation to be delivered 29th-30th April
    •    10am-5pm or Saturday 9-11am.

Reasons to get in on the action;
    1.    Sharing your reuse ideas is an awesome way to get others excited about reuse and repair

    2.    You might get famous - select items will be featured on The Bower website, blog and facebook and emailed (with your permission) to a number of local media sources.

    3.    You stand to win $100 Bower Voucher and a 12 month subscription to a magazine of your choice (choose from G magazine, Renew or Green)
    •    Entries will be displayed 30th April - 8th May in The Bower to delight and inspire our members and customers.

April News

Hi All!
This month we're asking you to get involved! Donate, upcycle, email, chat to us in store tell us about your sustainable achievements and goals.
Members, we're asking even more of you - we would love for you to take 5 minutes and answer 10 questions to help us serve you, the community and the environment better. So please click here to complete the member survey- we'll be your best friends...

March News

March, March, March...MARCH!

Oh what big plans we embrace. This month, we're asking you to get involved;

* Add us on facebook and tell us what you love about The Bower.

* Tell someone else what you love about the Bower.

* Sign up to tell everyone about your passion as part of Bowerography - want to know more? 

READ ON!

Upholstery in the Eco-Library

We're going to try something a little bit different. We hope you're going to like it. It's bound to be a little bit hap hazard but we think we're on to a good idea.

 Please email to register your interest in the group below. If the first session goes well and we have enough interest we'll be able to run regularly, and we'll keep you posted.

Upholstery in the Eco-Library @ The Bower

1st Session Wednesday 9th March

(Future sessions to be advised)

6:30 - 9:00 PM

4 participants MAX - bookings essential

Cost; $25/session + $5 Materials/chair*

Book: gm@bower.org.au/95686280

An evening in the Eco-Library to help you kick start that chair you've been meaning to resurrect for ages. Bring along your own curbside find from hard rubbish day, or those dining chairs you've always wanted to zhush up a little bit.

We'll show you the basics of upholstery using salvaged industrial offcuts and 'end of run' fabrics.

All you need to bring:

1. Your chair/project - Ideal projects include dining chairs, occasional chairs, simple armchairs. Be advised you'll have to be able to carry your chair upstairs to our Eco-library.

We won't be covering machine sewing and pattern making due to space constraints so please;

- try to avoid chairs with piping, or more than 1 loose cushion per chair as these items definitely require a sewing machine and sewing experience

- Avoid buttoned back chairs - Buttoning is long, painful and frustrating, we can work up to it in later sessions if you're still keen.

2.Chosen fabric if desired - Make sure you leave enough allowance in the fabric - email pics gm@bower.org.au for more help on estimating fabric if required.

3. Staple gun & staples - These are available from hardware stores, Kmart/Big W, Spotlight etc - a regular duty gun will do, around $15-$30. Bringing your own means you won't have to share - and you'll want one to finish your project (or start the next one) when you get home!

*Material cost includes foam, hessian, webbing and other padding materials for 1 chair.

All proceeds contribute to the running of The Bower Reuse & Repair Centre

(An environmental charity)

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Feb News

We're still on the hunt for a Customer Liaison. We've enlisted the help of our friends over at Ethicaljobs.com.au - the best place to go if you're looking to work for a meaningful organisation.

 For more about what's going on at The Bower right now, check out our newsletter below.