Students and Sustainability to meet in Sydney's west
By Bronwyn Powell
SYDNEY — Students and Sustainability, the annual national student environment conference, will kick off at the University of Western Sydney's Hawkesbury campus on July 12. Conference organisers expect at least 800 students from around the country to attend the five-day gathering.
The conference will discuss strategies for saving the environment, sustainable living and environmental campaigns. The agenda also includes a full day of field trips to local sites of environmental interest.
The plenary sessions are titled: Indigenous Issues, Gender and the Environment, Making it Happen, and Community, Empowerment and Education. Seminars will be held covering nuclear issues, the debate about immigration and the environment, and solidarity with the people of East Timor and Indonesia.
Jack Mundey, Helen Caldicott, Jim Green, Dave Sweeney, Jenny Munro and Lee Rhiannon are among the many speakers at plenaries and seminars. A range of workshops will be held each afternoon.
Public protest actions are planned for most days of the conference. A rally for a free East Timor and democracy in Indonesia, to be held at the Richmond RAAF base on Thursday, July 16 will condemn the atrocities committed by the Indonesian military in these countries. Other actions will include a "critical mass" bike-ride, a protest against the Jabiluka mine and an action to oppose the bulldozing of local bushland to make way for a mushroom composting development.
To register for the conference, or for more information, phone (02) 4578 1210, or e-mail <ss99@uws.has.org.au>.