Living Smart Festival 2013

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Sat 28 Sep 2013

The world we live in is an amazing place and most of us hope that it will remain that way. Over recent decades environmental awareness has become increasingly mainstream throughout Australia and practices that were once limited to a small extreme fringe element of society are now espoused by typical suburban families all around the country. However, there is so much more that we can all do to make our lives more environmentally sustainable and therefore ensure that the natural beauty and abundance we benefit from today can be appreciated by future generations.



Although it sometimes seems impossible for us to transform our deeply-entrenched lifestyle practices into those which are kinder to the planet, these days we're fortunate that many workshops, community events and even children's programs are being held regularly throughout the country to point us in the right direction.



This weekend Speers Point Park is playing host to a free and fabulous community festival with a focus on educating the wider community about all things green. Beginning at 8.00am and continuing until 2.00pm, the Living Smart Festival will be a big bold celebration of enviro-friendly living, and will feature the Lake Macquarie Farmers Market, stalls promoting environmentally sustainable products and services, live family-friendly entertainment and loads of workshops showing you how to live a greener, healthier lifestyle. Lake Macquarie Council will also be holding a native plant giveaway, so if you have an interest in water-wise gardening you may want to take advantage of this terrific offer.

In keeping with trends in environmental education, the Living Smart Festival also aims at encouraging environmental awareness amongst children, and there will be special activities and games just for them. The Star and Herald Kids Zone will be presenting several fabulous kid-orientated workshops on nature craft, gardening and drama. The Wetland on Wheels Show will also make an appearance, educating children about the natural world as well as entertaining them. Doctor Seuss' loveable character, The Lorax is also scheduled to make an appearance to further enhance the festive mood.

For adults who want to incorporate earth-friendly practices into their lives, the NBN Workshop Zone will hold a range of workshops about organic gardening, reducing plastic pollution and much, much more. There will also be an Ask an Expert Zone where you can ask all your big sustainability questions to folks who have been practicing a sustainable lifestyle for many years. Topics include growing from seed, water tanks, solar electricity, community gardens, plastic pollution, cooking, naturopathy and sustainable living and food.

Throughout the day the festival's Main Stage and Entertainment Zone will hold a dazzling plethora of cool performances including live bands, The Lorax stage show, African drumming, 50's dancing, a Tai Chi demonstration and the incredible Balancing Lady Bugs, so there will be no excuse for boredom. Other all-day fun will be an Oakdale Farm display, camel rides, face-painting, pedal-powered TV, Reverse Recycle and cultural talks on Solar Sailor. The Lake Macquarie City Council and Art Gallery will also be providing some fun activities so be sure to check those out as well.

An important element of environmental living is the reduction of our carbon imprint upon the planet, and therefore a special feature of this year's Living Smart Festival is free public transport to and from the venue. Not only will there be special buses scheduled from Swansea, Charlestown, Morisset and Toronto, there will also be ferry transport provided from Toronto, Belmont and Valentine. These days ferry travel on Lake Macquarie is extremely rare, so why not take advantage of this fabulous offer and make a day of it?

Another form of eco-friendly transport is the humble bicycle, so if you live close to Speers Point, perhaps you can cycle there. There will be plenty of parking available for your precious bike.

In a nutshell, the Living Smart Festival is amping up to be a fabulous and fun day for the entire family. From the youngest children to the oldest matriarch, there will be plenty to see and do, and best of all, apart from any purchases you make, it's all free. For more information about this year's Living Smart Festival take a look at the City of Lake Macquarie website or keep updated on their Facebook page.

#speers_point
#school_holidays
#near_newcastle
#learn_something
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#family_attractions
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#child_friendly
!date 28/09/2013 -- 28/09/2013
%wnnewcastle