Sustainable Learning 'Education for life'

An initiative of:

Massereene Trading Company Pty Ltd

What is the “Sustainable Learning” Program?

The “Sustainable Learning” program has been developed by Massereene Trading Company with the aim of providing school age students with the opportunity to gain a greater understanding of not only food and the food chain, but how healthy eating can lead to a healthier lifestyle.

The program is delivered within the school environment and provides the students with the knowledge and skills necessary to become self-sufficient in growing fruit and vegetables for their own consumption, while at the same time providing an educational process that is both practical and lots of fun for the participant.

Once learned, the skills and techniques provided in the program will stay with the student for life, and over time will not only lead to a greater understanding of the food they eat and where it comes from, but will also provide the participant with greater choices in both nutrition and the lifestyle they lead.

Why is the “Sustainable Learning” program important?

When quizzed about where the food they consume on a daily basis comes from the average student, particularly city based students, will reply – Woolworths, Coles or another major retailer. However, when quizzed further as to who supplies it and how it is grown the student usually has absolutely no idea.

The art and pleasure of growing food at home has been lost to an entire generation, and increasingly families are moving away from natural healthy foods towards processed or frozen foods as their core source of nutrition.

As childhood obesity continues to rise, and food security and production becomes a greater problem on a global scale the time has never been better to introduce our children to the lost art of self-production.

Teaching younger generations the skills necessary to produce fresh, chemical free produce in their own backyard may well be one of the greatest learning experiences that we can provide them with, and as food costs continue to rise it may also be one of the greatest gifts that we can pass on to them.

Who is eligible to participate in the program?

The “Sustainable Learning” program is available to all schools Australia wide and by its nature is suitable for students of all ages from kinder through to year 12.

The program is both practical and hands-on and is designed to get the student out of the classroom, thus providing a change of environment, and working cooperatively with the rest of the students in the group. The program is also ideal for special needs students as it helps develop practical skills and provides a true sense of achievement.

“Sustainable Learning” is neither age nor gender specific and can be delivered using a mix of age ranges should the participating school desire.

How does the program work?

Once the school has made the decision to participate in the program, an area within the school grounds is nominated as the garden block and the school conducts its own selection process to decide which classes or individual students will participate in the program.

As each individual garden block within a school can be large or small depending on available space, the school can choose to run either small multiple blocks for each participating group or a large communal block with each group assigned to a different food group over the life of the project.

Once the students have completed the initial ground preparation work required to make the block ready for planting, Massereene Trading Company provides the school, free of charge, with enough soil conditioner, liquid fertiliser and seeds to establish a sustainable and environmentally friendly garden plot.

Each product provided is 100% natural and comes with its own instructions to ensure that the students not only know how to use the products economically and efficiently, but that they also understand how the product works and what part each product plays in the overall production cycle. A full set of MSDS sheets are also provided for each product.

Once the garden block has been prepared and planted the group undertakes regular maintenance until the plants are fully grown and ready for harvesting. Once the fully grown crop is harvested it is suggested that the school conducts a healthy living day where participants and other students from within the school get to eat and enjoy the benefits of their work.

With a view to generating greater fun for the participants and creating a slightly competitive edge to the program schools may also wish to run small challenges within the block (most tomatoes grown – largest lettuce etc) to allow the students to pit their growing skills base against each other.

Who is the driving force behind the program?

In as much as the participating students will take responsibility for the day to day maintenance and up-keep of the garden block, ideally the program is embraced and presented as an initiative of the school P & C group as this allows the school and its students to engage with all parents and delivers the healthy eating message direct to the home.

The program also contains a second element called “Home Grow” which provides the opportunity for the P & C to further extend the “Sustainable Learning” program directly into the home of every student in the school.

What is “Home Grow” and how does it work?

Each year P & C groups all over Australia run fund raising activities aimed at generating funds that can be used to better support the teachers and students who attend their respective schools.

Many of these activities promote the sale of lollies, donuts, cakes and a range of other products which, although handy as a fund-raising tool, do little to promote good health or better nutritional habits for the students or parents involved.

“Home Grow” gives each P & C association the opportunity to extend the “Sustainable Learning” program direct into the home by providing a grow kit, similar to the one given to the school, to every parent and home in the school.

This is not only a very effective fundraising tool but also has the dual advantage of both promoting healthier living and engaging parents and students in a fun program that they can undertake in their own home regardless of their garden size.

Funds raised from the Home Grow program can also be used to support the extension of the “Sustainable Learning” program in the school thus ensuring that each and every student within the school has an equal opportunity for participation.

Who are Massereene Trading Company?

Massereene Trading Company is a 100% Australian owned company who specialize in providing solutions to a range of production and environmental problems in the fields of agriculture, horticulture and environmental management.

As part of its company charter, Massereene Trading Company directs a percentage of its annual income into developing programs aimed at providing businesses, schools and individuals with the opportunity learn about the every-day use of natural products.

The company has production facilities in NSW and Victoria with its main sales and administration office located at Robina on Queensland’s Gold Coast.

How does my school get involved in the “Sustainable Learning” program?

Participation in the “Sustainable Learning” program is available to all Australian schools and all initial enquires should be directed to either:

Michael Campbell – Program Director on 0488-147109

OR via e-mail – schools@natural-solutions.com.au