In the November issue of Liquid Life & Leisure Magazine online, you can find some real ways to help communities doing it tough in rural areas around Australia. The current drought has been named as the worst on record for the Murray Darling Basin, Australia’s biggest river system. In some places drought conditions have been affecting them for more than 3 years. I think sometimes we take for granted where the food in our supermarkets comes from and only pay attention when prices go up and we find out the reasons why.
All of us can be making a difference though, including when we are travelling by making sure we STOP, SHOP & SUPPORT small towns throughout Australia. The November issue of Liquid Life & Leisure Magazine is dedicated to what we can do to help out even in what seems a small way.
I’ve written an article on simple things we can do when travelling, caravanning and camping that can let these towns and communities know that we do know about their plight and do want to support them in a practical way if possible.
Even when at home we can think about where our food is coming from, buying local and donating to causes that will help farmers directly. Below are a few organisations that are making a real impact in helping rural families in drought affected areas. Just a visit to their websites for starters will give you all the facts and figures and real stories of what impact the drought is having in Australia. There are various options given to you from donating cash to fundraising ideas and even how you can volunteer to help out. Online shoppers aren’t forgotten either with an instagram site you can follow called Buy from the bush (buyfromthebush) which showcases a whole range of different products to buy from businesses and artisans in rural communities facing drought.
http://www.droughtangels.org.au/
http://www.aussiehelpers.org.au/
With a long hot summer ahead of us lets all try to put drought affected areas in the forefront of our minds.
Cheers
Glenys
A message that can’t be conveyed enough. Walk the towns, spend a few bucks, make sure they know you care. Our little caravan club used to track how much we as a group spent in a town at each muster, it would run in the thousands when we tallied up fuel, meals at pubs and clubs, winery visits, meat and groceries, newspapers and magazines and all the rest.
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That’s fantastic and yes it’s not really hard for the dollars to add up, much better to spend it where it’s really needed. You can’t beat a country bakery or butcher either. This time of year I’ll be looking for unique Christmas gifts too.
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We tend to buy our meat on the road as the butchers in the bush are better than in our local area.
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Agreed and nice to have food wrapped in paper not plastic trays.
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Oh don’t you hate the ridiculous situation of no plastic bags yet everything is wrapped and sealed in plastic.
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Drives me nuts! The fruit and veg area is the worst, nature does a pretty good job of packaging perfectly but still you see bananas and corn on plastic trays and wrapped in plastic. Give me a farmers market any day.
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Great post Glenys. I love that slogan – stop, shop and support. It seems such a small thing to do when we are out and about in regional and rural Australia, but every little bit helps.
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Thanks Karen, I think it sums it up well! If we just stop in small towns and spend a bit of money it may just make a difference.
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[…] Stop Shop & Support — Caravan Correspondent […]
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Is it okay if I re-blog your post?
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Oh sure that would be fine! Thanks.
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Such an important issue and one we all need to be aware of. This drought seems relentless and any small thing we can do to support farmers helps. Great post Glenys.
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Thanks Miriam, I think we can feel pretty useless sometimes when it comes to helping out but there are little ways to try and make some difference.
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Great post Glenys, this drought is frightening, lets hope it ends soon.
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Thank you and yes here’s hoping.
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This is great Glenys. Drought is a serious thing. Makes me so sad.
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Certainly is sad, we are used to this to some degree in Australia but this one seems relentless and long term doesn’t look too hopeful for rain either unfortunately.
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😢😢
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I think we’ve all become more aware of supporting local businesses. I hope people in cities don’t think that the drought is over after this recent rainfall. Much more is needed.
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I think it’s good that there is so much media attention shining a light on the problems at the moment to keep reminding us.
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