We protect what we love

FRIDAY . 24 . 12 . 21 .

Good morning and merry Christmas Eve to all our wonderful FWP followers!

We'd love to thank everyone who has engaged with FWP this year - read our newsletters, followed us on socials, responded to polls, interacted with us, commented, signed up and/or participated in events. We are truly stoked to have such an incredible, engaged community and we are so excited for what 2022 has to offer.

At this time of year, it's common to engage in some reflective practices. Here's a little summary that we've put together about what FWP has achieved this year.

A SUMMARY OF 2021

• 9 new volunteers joined the team, taking the volunteer team to 18
• 2 new paid employees joined the team, taking our employee count to 3 (all part time)
• Had our first Traction (Trail Action) day on the Illawarra Escarpment
• Breezed through 22 hours of Board Meetings 😜
• Sent out 50 newsletters this year – this one is lucky number 50!
• Awarded a Bank Australia Community Customer Grant 🎉
• Hosted our first (but certainly not our last!) Peak Out

Peak Out on Mt Murchison, Tullah (post Takayna Trail)

• Hosted two virtual events - International Women’s Day Summit and Spring Summit
• Delayed the Pilliga Ultra, again! New date is 26th March 2022
• In August, we were welcomed into the 1% For the Planet network as a non-profit partner
• In October, we launched our Strategic Intent Document and Theory of Change – prepare to hear more about this in 2022!
• We joined Project Run Forever, with long-time friend of FWP Tom Batrouney
• We received funding from a range of Australian companies doing wonderful things, including Love Tea, Smitten Merino, Fractel and Trail Brew
• Applied for a range of grants, of which we look forward to hearing updates on in the new year
• We got into the merchandise game, with t-shirts from iO Merino and waterbottles courtesy of Trail Brew

FWP team member, Will, with an iO Merino t-shirt

• Supported a range of environmental initiatives and campaigns, including the Better Futures Australia and Blue Derby Wild’s campaign to stop native forest logging in Tasmania
• Co-Hosted four screenings of ‘Forest Defenders’ with Patagonia and the Bob Brown Foundation
• Supported Matt & Giles from Project 655 for Takayna as they fast-packed the Australian Alpine Walking Track in November - December 2021 to raise funds for the Bob Brown Foundation
• Launched Plant it Forward with Rapid Ascent for the Margaret River Ultra
• In September, we updated our logo and branding to better represent the wild places we strive to protect

and last but not least,

• We appointed new people to our Board, who will join us in 2022

🌿 PROJECTS WRAP UP 🌿

PILLIGA ULTRA

So far we have 106 Runners signed up, whom have raised just over $45,000. All of these funds are going to The Wilderness Society in their campaign to protect the Pilliga Forest against coal seam gas mining. Half of all funds raised will go to TWS, and the remaining 50% will be split between Traditional Owner groups and to support the legal case challenging the project.

We are capping numbers at 150 for the Pilliga Ultra, so there is still time to sign up! With 6km, 20k, and 50km events, there is something for everyone. Keep an eye out on socials for our 12 week training plans, dropping on New Years Day (which exactly 12 weeks before the Pilliga Ultra! 😉 )

We hosted a series of info sessions to get runners prepared for the Pilliga Ultra, covering topics such as nutrition, hydration and gear. You can catch up on these on Youtube.

One of FWP founders, Simon, in the Pilliga

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY SUMMIT

In March, we hosted four conversations with eight inspiring women about sports activism, body image, intersectionality in the outdoors, mental strength and resilience to celebrate International Women's Day.

If you'd like to catch up on the conversations,

you can check them out on our YouTube channel.

TRACTION DAY - ILLAWARRA

In February, 32 people joined Paige and Tim on the Illawarra Escarpment and spent two hours picking up rubbish on local trails. It was great to see people who usually run on these trails get excited about making a positive difference by picking up rubbish, and eager to continue the practice in their own time.

FWP are excited to grow the Take 3 for the Trail movement in 2022, which was created by Majell Backhausen in 2019. Inspired by the Take 3 for the Sea movement, @take3forthetrail believes collective, small efforts and awareness will make our planet safer and more beautiful for all. While you're out on the trails this summer, pick up 3 bits of trash and share it on your socials to spread the word and normalise tidying up our wild places! #take3forthetrail

PLANT IT FORWARD

In September we teamed up with the lovely crew at Rapid Ascent to initiative our first 'Plant it Forward' initiative. When signing up for the Margaret River Ultra, runners were given the choice between receiving a race tee, or planting a tree. We were stoked at to find 31% of participants opted to plant a tree, saving a huge 472 tees from being unnecessarily manufactured, and supporting local vegetation rehabilitation through native planting.

We look forward to bringing Plant it Forward to a range of events in 2022.

SPRING SUMMIT

Just as lockdowns lifted across NSW and VIC, we hosted the first FWP 'Spring Summit' on 23-24th October. Over two jam packed days, there were 10 sessions, hosted by a range of wonderful old and new friends. The sessions varied greatly in their content, from movement to first aid, NVDA training, allyship and an outdoor watercolour masterclass!

We received some great feedback from the event -

“I loved all of it, so interesting, varied and fun if I had to pick then the meditation with Emily and breath work with Majell were probably the standouts.”

My highlight was “the diversity of all the sessions coming together.”

A watercolour Masterclass from the Spring Summit.

Although it was disappointing we couldn't host more in person events during 2021, we are feeling very excited for the coming year and feel we have used this forced down time to lay a solid foundation from which FWP will flourish. The support and enthusiasm from our community continues to drive us, so a huge THANK YOU to every single one of you that has supported us in whatever small or large way this year.

This will be the final newsletter of 2021, as we are taking some well-deserved time off (I use this term very loosely - we're still doing a lot of behind-the-scenes planning and grant writing) over the New Year to reconnect with family, friends and nature. We hope you will be following suit.

We plan to recommence newsletters in mid January 2021, as we get ready for Project Run Forever at Manly Dam on January 21st. Until then, have a wonderful and safe festive season, and we look forward to connecting with you in the new year.

Thanks again for taking the time to follow along and be a valued part of the wonderful For Wild Places community.

🙏🏻 🙏🏼 🙏🏽 🙏🏾 🙏🏿

The For Wild Places team.

CHECK US OUT ON INSTAGRAM



We acknowledge the the First Nations people who have been custodians of land, waters and culture for tens of thousands of years. We pay respects to First Nations Elders past, present and emerging.

This newsletter was compiled on the lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora nation. To these people, we pay our respects.

Always was, always will be.

By For Wild Places

We're a group of adventurers who love to

protect wild places we run on