We protect what we love

FRIDAY . 25 . 06 . 21 .

Good morning and happy Friday 😊

How did we go from 4 February to 25 June in like, two sleeps?

This year is flying by!

This week we're bringing you a "short but sweet" read, focusing on inspirational Australian-based activists. Pat Farmer demonstrates how to leverage his love of running to create positive impact in the lives of people, Noel Butler is an Indigenous Elder who draws on his culture to educate future generations about sustainable practices and Dr. Emma Johnston is an absolute boss lady in STEMM, with incredible contributions in the field of marine biology and human-induced impacts vulnerable marine ecosystems.

PAT FARMER

Ultra marathon runner, humanitarian, Australian of the Year and current “1000 miles to light” participant.

Pat Farmer completing The Middle East Peace Run.

Pat Farmer has been awarded the Order of Australia, AM for his contribution to ultra marathon running and charitable works. During his 30 year running career, Pat has raised millions of dollars for causes such as Lifeline, Cancer Council, The Red Cross, Diabetes Australia and the Nanhi Kali foundation. He is best known as the only man who has run continuously from the North Pole to the South Pole, and has also run around (and across) Australia, New Zealand, India, Vietnam and North America.

In 2019, Pat’s relay team completed 500kms in 5 days from ‘south to north’ Uganda for the Love Mercy Foundation. They raised $100,000 for the Foundations ‘Seeds Program’ which empowers women to provide for their families through seed loans.

In 2016, Pat completed the Spirit of India run to raise awareness of the beauty of India, its people and culture, and to raise funds for the Nanhi Kali foundation, which supports the education of girls.

Pat’s 2014 ‘The Middle East Peace Run’ sought to create awareness of the desire for peace in these nations by “uniting all people through my footsteps, and to encourage as many people as possible to run with me, drawing on our commonality of love of running and humanity.” The endurance run crossed Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Palestine, was approximately 1450 kms and took 19 days to complete.

I love that Pat conflates his love of running with important humanitarian issues, which is a personal (and future) goal of mine. He demonstrates the power that one person can play in making a difference.

NOEL BUTLER

Indigenous Elder, Conservationist, Educator and Sustainability Advocate

Noel leading a "Bush Food & Cultural Knowledge Walk"

Noel Butler, Budawang Elder from the Yuin Nation, is a qualified teacher, educator, mentor, horticulturist, chef and historian. Noel and his wife Trish run nura gunyu - an indigenous education and cultural teachings organisation. They have been teaching, delivering programs and working with Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal adults and children for over 35 years.

Indigenous Australian’s are the “Ancient people of this land - we listen to the land and the ancient spirits - and this land is etched deep within our hearts.” Noah and Trish provide a series of programs, such as bush food walks, cultural camps and tours, workshops, enrichment programs, performance and speaking engagements. Through these, they share their knowledge and skills, taken from real life experiences. In doing so they seek to connect you to their culture, and enhance your understanding of their lands.

In April 2021, Noel and Trish, in collaboration with Sailors Grave Brewing, produced the "Honey Bush Braggot Beer”. The unique toffee, caramel beer base with a deep floral character gets its unique flavour from Banksia Serrata honey, which is used during production. This beer has been inspired by a nutritious drink made by First Nations People, which used traditional methods of gathering and soaking the Banksia Serrata blossoms in water.

*Programs include bush food walks, cultural camps and tours, workshops, enrichment programs, performance and speaking engagements.

DR. EMMA JOHNSTON

Marine biologist, co-presenter of Coast Australia and Dean of Science at UNSW

Hosting a conversation with Christiana Figueres about the need for a mindset of stubborn optimism and radical regeneration to tackle the Climate Emergency

Dr. Emma Johnston is not only one of Australia’s most impactful biologists, but also a world-renowned leading authority in marine ecology.

Emma has won several awards for her work, including the 2018 Clarke Medal for her contributions to marine ecology, and the 2014 Nancy Willis Medal for Women in Science. Noting that women only make up about 16% of all Australian’s in STEMM (science, technology, engineering, medicine and mathematics), these are tremendous achievements. By including Emma in this week's newsletter, we seek to highlight impactful women in STEMM, and celebrate her environmental work.

As director of the Sydney Harbour Research Program, Emma’s work has shed light on human-induced impacts on marine life, how to manage Australian marine biodiversity and the vulnerable state of Antarctic marine communities.

If that’s not enough, she is also head of the Applied Marine and Estuarine Ecology Lab at UNSW, which has seen her lead major projects for industry, government, the Australian Research Council and the Australian Antarctic Science Program.

PILLIGA ULTRA UPDATE

Our inaugural event, the Pilliga Ultra, is just over a month away and we have been absolutely blown away by the enthusiasm and support of everyone taking part, from runners to volunteers and event partners. We are just a few legends shy of hitting 80 runners, whom collectively have raised over $40,000 so far to help protect the wild and wonderful Pilliga Forest from being carved up for the Narrabri Gas Project.

Last week, we hosted a runners briefing, with Race Lead Majell talking us through some of the rugged, epic scenery runners will traverse in the 6k, 20km and 50km events. If you need any extra motivation to sign up, check out the race maps here to get an idea of what goodness awaits. If you're otherwise engaged on 31st July, you can support The Wilderness Society by donating to a PU runner here. In the meantime, happy training for those taking part and can't wait to see you up / down / over in the Pilliga in a few weeks!

Have a wonderful weekend folks.

And as always, thank you for taking the time for wild places

Elanor & the For Wild Places crew.

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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. We acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, the lands where this newsletter was written.

Always was, always will be.

By For Wild Places

We're a group of adventurers who love to

protect wild places we run on