Page 2346 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 5 June 2013
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
health support groups. It also includes agencies supporting people with drug, alcohol and gambling issues, school breakfast programs and agencies supporting people experiencing financial hardship.
This is all done for under $1 per meal while still maintaining a high level of nutrition. This organisation runs purely on donations from the community with three refrigerated vans, five paid staff and over 40 volunteers. One of the great organisations that receives meals from this service is the Blue Door, which I have previously spoken about in this chamber. The second is the care and share program operating out of the Tuggeranong Communities@Work organisation.
Seeing first hand this food delivered was truly touching. The food is not just of economic benefit to these organisations. It also gives them the opportunity to connect with the vulnerable people in the community and to continue to support them through referrals and other forms of assistance as needed.
World Environment Day is a great time to stop and reflect on what you are doing to reduce your footprint on the environment. Food wastage is not the only thing that you can look at to change or reduce your footprint. The ACT government has set up ACTSmart to assist Canberrans in reducing their footprint with rebates and consultations available to reduce reliance on energy.
This, coupled with the ever-increasing uptake of solar hot-water systems and solar-powered systems—I can now advise the Assembly that we have up to 14,000 PV installations across the territory—is showing that Canberrans are continuously looking for ways to lower their footprint on the environment.
Smith Family VIEW clubs
MR SESELJA (Brindabella) (6.28): I would like to say a few words about the Smith Family VIEW clubs. VIEW—voice, interests and education of women—is a club which is a product of the Smith Family. I met recently with Margaret Gooch, the national councillor of VIEW clubs in the ACT and surrounding area.
Nationally the organisation has 19,600 members, and it is part of and supports the work of the Smith Family. It provides support and friendship for women throughout communities nationally. It provides networking events and a chance to get more involved in the community along with helping disadvantaged Australian children supported by the Smith Family.
In Canberra and the surrounding area there are 20 VIEW clubs with a total of 841 active members. VIEW currently supports 34 learning-for-life students in the area. There are a total of 1,607 students sponsored by the Smith Family in the area. Last year, $67,241.76 was raised by members in the area through fundraising events. VIEW nationally supports 985 disadvantaged students.
VIEW members volunteer their time and talent in a number of ways, including reading with local children to advance their literacy skills, helping children with
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video