Sustainability and Environment
Respect and reverence for the natural world is a fundamental principle of Steiner education and is modelled in the way we live our daily lives.
As a member of Resource Smart Schools, FWCSS is building sustainable practice in how we manage waste, use energy and water, conserve and nurture biodiversity, and conduct our core business. Students participate actively in this work.
FWCSS is a sanctuary for our local flora and fauna. The children are immersed in this natural world. They experience and explore natural environments, including local adventures in the “Magic Woods”, wetlands conservation, and the “River Detectives” program in Class 6. They support Rewilding Freshwater Creek and Planet Ark with tree planting days.
By living and working with the natural environment, and the seasons, FWCSS students develop a sense of respect, responsibility, resilience, courage and an understanding of the constancy that lies beneath change. Through sustainable practices, use of natural materials, practising “old skills”, and bonding to “special places” they connect profoundly to the natural world that sustains them. Our 24-acre site is a beautiful, natural and sacred space for our children from Playgroup to Class.
Cultural and Nature Trail
The Cultural and Nature Trail project started when we acquired our new land in 2021. Land regeneration, outdoor experience, indigenous curriculum, and honouring First Nations people and traditional ownership, informed the final design . A substantial grant from the Planting Trees for the Queens Jubilee program kick started the work.
In 2023 school families contributed to rabbit-proof fencing the tree planting site, creating a yarning circle and shaping an outdoor amphitheatre and paths for the children and visitors to play, gather and learn on Wadawurrung Country.
Together, the school community has planted over 1,100 indigenous trees and shrubs , carefully selected to recreate the original woodland. Now the process of choosing a final name and launch date is underway! Over time, the Cultural and Nature Trail will link with other wildlife corridors and revegetation sites within the Thompson’s Creek Catchment.
This special place will reflect the value and stories of the past, nurture the present, and set the scene for many stories yet to be told. The legacy of tree plantings will help to increase biodiversity and mitigate the impacts of climate change, consistent with our ethos of environmental responsibility and connection to the natural world.
We acknowledge and respect the Wadawurrung people, the traditional owners of this land. We value their support and collaboration on the Cultural and Nature Trail project. We seek reconciliation and friendship for our children and our community.
