Successful environment grants
Council's Environment grants support groups that benefit the environment and community through projects focused on: environmental improvement; sustainability education, and; awareness-raising and the promotion of sustainable living as a way of life.
2024 Annual Grants
These projects are being implemented across two-years, throughout 2024-2026.
Ashfield Public School Parents and Citizens Association
- Project: Sustainable Water Tanks and Garden at Ashfield Public School
- Funding: $10,000
The project aims to regenerate the school’s two disused rainwater tanks and install irrigation to allow them to water an adjacent native garden and vegetable patch that will be revitalised. The school plans to increase biodiversity with plantings of endangered native plant species and Australian native bushfoods, including those that will encourage pollinators such as butterflies and native bees.
The Bower Re-use and Repair Centre Co-operative
- Project: Community Repair Workshop
- Funding: $10,000
The Bower at Summer Hill is fully equipped with an interactive workshop where people can either attend a repair workshop or bring their own items to be repaired. The Bower provides a unique service to repair valued items saving them from becoming part of the waste stream, ensuring a circular economy. The Bower’s technicians and skilled craftspeople can undertake and train people in a range of repairs including furniture, electrical items, bicycles, musical instruments, and clothing. The project aims to expand to mobile phones, iPads and other electronic devices.
Circle Paints Limited
- Project: Paint Reuse Promotion and Community Paint Vouchers
- Funding: $10,000
Circle Paints seeks to increase awareness about how to purchase paint saved from landfill and promote uptake of reused paint through a "Paint Voucher" offering. The group will visit Inner West schools and community groups to explain our products and leave information about paint vouchers to encourage the purchase of reused paint both because of its affordability and environmental benefit.
Joy of Giving Network
- Project: Educational Pre-loved Toy Workshops
- Funding: $10,000
Joy of Giving aims to introduce pre-loved toy workshops to schools and community organisations in the Inner West to educate participants about sustainability, resource sharing through toys, and waste reduction. Children and parents will gain practical knowledge on sustainable practices and identifying reusable toys. The workshops will include educational sessions, storytelling, hands-on toy preparation, and toy swapping.
Solar Citizens Australia
- Project: Electrify Inner West Events
- Funding: $10,000
This project will deliver a series of ‘Electrify Inner West’ community information session events to empower local residents with information and advice on rooftop solar, home batteries, affordable electric vehicles and vehicle-to-grid and the benefits of cheaper, cleaner energy.
Whites Creek Community Garden Inc.
- Project: Whites Creek Community Garden Improvement Project
- Funding: $10,000
The improvement project aims to; upgrade the aged tool shed with a purpose-built garden equipment shed, install a seed raising bench, and replace most of the north garden bed borders. It will also reconfigure the layout to provide both team and community member individual/household garden beds, improve stormwater drainage, improve safe access to garden beds by straightening borders, and constructing and installing a food pantry for our gardeners to share excess produce with the local community.
Inner West Branch of WIRES
- Project: Building Community Capacity to Protect and Increase Biodiversity in the Inner West
- Funding: $9,928
This project will enable Inner West WIRES volunteers to carry out the successful rescue and rehabilitation of different species of native wildlife in different environments, including waterways, by funding specific types of equipment that are vital to achieve greater numbers of surviving native wildlife within the Inner West.
Plastics Maker Space (The Village Project Summer Hill Co-Operative)
- Project: Turning Plastic Waste into Community Designs
- Funding: $8,471
Plastics Maker Space's mission is to remake household plastic waste into new, functional, and long-life designs. The project will set up a workshop with machines such as a plastic shredder and an extrusion machine at the Inner West Sustainability Hub. Working with community groups such as schools, small businesses like cafes, and households, Plastics Maker Space will facilitate sustainability education awareness of the circular economy.
Birchgrove Public School Parents and Citizens Association
- Project: Birchgrove Public School Parents and Citizens Gardens Project
- Funding: $5,100
The Birchgrove Public School Parents & Citizens Association's gardens project will benefit the school community through development of a kitchen garden, native garden and Indigenous garden trail through the school grounds. A second composter will also be installed to compost green waste from working bees for use across the school gardens.
Rozelle Public School Parents and Citizens Association
- Project: Rozelle Public School Sustainable Learning Area
- Funding: $5,000
The Rozelle Public School P&C propose to create a sustainable and visually appealing outdoor learning space with an Indigenous Garden, water management areas including rainwater tanks, taps and the use of recycled materials. The proposed upgrade will include Indigenous gardens with native trees and bush tucker planting; a yarning circle with sandstone block seats; a pollination station to help flora and contribute to the ecosystem and encourage biodiversity; a rainwater tank to conserve water and reduce wastage.
The Village Project Summer Hill Co-Operative Limited
- Project: Re Fashioned – Textiles, Circular Economy, and Recycling
- Funding: $5,000
The project provides a reliable, transparent, and efficient process to responsibly divert textiles from landfill as well as innovative ways for community members to partake in the circular economy. Activities include dropping off and sorting unwanted or damaged textiles/clothing, purchasing reused clothing and products made from circular materials, and education. The project expects to combat textile waste whilst increasing community engagement in collectively tackling the textile waste problem.
Summer Hill Community Garden
- Project: Summer Hill Community Garden Bush Tucker Area
- Funding: $2,450
Summer Hill Community Gardeners have been growing vegetables, fruits, and herbs in Summer Hill since 2010. This project will establish a bush tucker garden. It will include co-design with bush tucker experts, installing raised beds, identifying, and planting the most appropriate native bush tucker plants for the area, and providing community education on local bush tucker through signage, working bees and workshops.
2022 Annual Grants
These projects are being implemented throughout 2023-2024
What Can I Do? Australia Inc.
- Project: What Can I Do? Inner West 10 week challenge
- Funding: $10,000
A free 10-Week Online ‘Climate Action Challenge’
course run with the Inner West Community and a number of in person events to
compliment the course and build a sense of community connection. The course
takes participants through 10 different climate actions as well as sharing
well-being skills.
KU Crusader Preschool
- Project: Water is Life
- Funding: $10,000
The project aims to support children’s growing
ecological awareness and stewardship of the environment by installing a
rainwater tank in the preschool to conserve potable water for our garden and
local wildlife, along with creating a natural habitat within the garden
environment to support the local frog population.
Balmain Public School P&C Association
- Project: Ms Pauline's Garden: a sustainable green space and passive play area
- Funding: $9950
Refurbishment of existing green space in Balmain Public School's playground to create a sustainable learning space. The garden will support biodiversity, waste reduction and facilitation of teaching sustainable practices to members of the school community.
Planting Seeds
- Project: Inner West B&B Highway
- Funding: $10,000
This project connects and engages school communities in Sydney's Inner West through establishing 'B&Bs' - Bed and Breakfasts for Biodiversity ' at schools to form regenerative corridors. Plantings and habitats are established and students and families learn about biodiversity, local pollinators, flora and citizen science.
Sydney Wildlife
- Project: Rehabilitation and releasing wildlife in Inner West Sydney
- Funding: $4942
Rescuing and rehabilitating flying foxes, possums, birds and reptiles across the Inner West area.
Ashfield Park Community Garden
- Project: Upgrade and automation of the watering system for Ashfield Park Community Garden
- Funding: $9458.85
This project will maximise effectiveness and efficiency of watering and better respond to the effects of climate change through implementation of an automated, sustainable watering system which is more sensitive to soil moisture needs.
Dulwich Hill Public School P&C Association
- Project: Building Early Childhood Ecological Literacy
- Funding: $9000
This project involves launching an educational program for local preschool children to develop practical skills in gardening, plant biology, biodiversity, healthy eating and sustainability. The program will promote gardening within the community, raise awareness of sustainable gardening practices and inspire children to reduce food waste and grow produce at home.
Inner West Tool Library Sydney
- Project: Power tool workshops for IWTL members, empowering and upskilling adults and their children
- Funding: $3105
The skill workshops involve an introduction to power tools and how to use them effectively to complete both creative and practical DIY projects. These practical workshops will teach members of the IWTL (from Inner West community) and their children how to use tools safely and skilfully.
Renew Sydney Central Branch
- Project: Sustainable Living Information Nights
- Funding: $9413
This project involves organising and hosting monthly information sessions open to the general public in Council venues and as online webinars. The information sessions are on a range of topics that cover sustainable living and renewable energy.
Tempe Public School P&C Association
- Project: Cooling Tempe: Increasing Shade and Water Retention at Tempe Public School
- Funding: $8654.48
This project will decrease hard surface water runoff at Tempe Public School, increase shade in currently unshaded areas, improve water retention and increase biodiversity on the school grounds. The school community will learn about water retention strategies through participation and will be able to relax and play in the new area.
Reverse Garbage
- Project: Increasing awareness of reuse in Inner West businesses
- Funding: $7500
As the experts in creative reuse, Reverse Garbage will run workshop presentations to educate Inner West businesses on how landfill can be the last resort for resources. This will include tips on avoiding waste (consumption and production), as well as reuse, repair and share.
Pocket City Farms
- Project: Pocket City Farms Urban Food Forest Volunteer Program 2022-2024
- Funding: $9400
This project will enable PCF to develop the Urban Forest volunteer education and engagement sessions over two years. Local residents can visit PCF through this regular volunteer program to learn about urban greening practices while building community connections.
2020 Annual Grants
These projects were implemented throughout 2020-2022
Gunawirra Ltd
- Project: Recreating a self-sustaining Native Garden by replicating a traditional Aboriginal permaculture and harvesting natural environment.
- Funding: $9,650
Gunawirra will install a rainwater tank to irrigate gardens that nurture Aboriginal native plants. After an educational workshop for the Aboriginal mothers and a Yarning Circle for the general public, the second year will culminate in a Recipe eBook and local jams made by the mothers from the permaculture gardens.
The Salvation Army (NSW) Property Trust
- Project: Good Egg Garden
- Funding: $10,000
An environmental and eco-educational chicken and sustainable garden project; engaging children experiencing trauma of family violence in sensory and grounding structured play involving chickens, fruit and vegetable gardening and indigenous culture. Program 'lessons' will cover climate change, eco-friendly informed choices, healthy eating, caring for animals / raising hens and maintaining a chicken coup.
Sydney Community College Ltd
- Project: Teaching Garden and Horticultural Training Space
- Funding: $10,000
This project is designed to assist in the achievement of Council's Strategic Direction 1: An ecologically sustainable Inner West. It will involve the design and construction of a horticultural teaching space including redevelopment of existing garden area, and design of environmental education programs. This will support the delivery of horticultural/environmental education and training programs.
Fort St High School Parents & Citizens Association
- Project: Fort Street High School Kitchen Garden
- Funding: $5,695
The Fort Street High School Kitchen Garden is a collaborative student and teacher project. By introducing a composting program to the school and growing edible and native plants, the project will enhance Food Technology lessons and teach sustainability to the school community.
Friends of White Creek Valley Park Inc.
- Project: Establishment and Consolidation of the Understory of Whites Creek Valley Park Community Orchard (Food Forest)
- Funding: $10,000
This project will enable the completion of the understory layers of the Food Forest, an orchard maintained using permaculture principles unique to the municipality, so that all three sections have the 3 basic layers: Canopy - fruiting trees; Mid-story - smaller shrubs, high grasses; Lower Story - herbs, low grasses. This will work towards increasing long term sustainability.
Kegworth Public School P&C Association
- Project: Kegworth Sustainable Learning Garden
- Funding: $9,690
The Kegworth Sustainable Learning Garden (KSLG) builds upon a well-developed and embedded sustainability program within the school. The KSLG would improve the physical school environment, provide multi-faceted layers of sustainability education (bees, pollinator beds, fresh produce) throughout Stages 1-3, and increase Kegworth's connection to the community to aid sustainable living.
Dulwich Hill Public School (DHPS) P&C Association
- Project: Community Composting
- Funding: $1,308
The DHPS Community Composting project will reduce food waste and improve the arability of DHPS garden and local gardens. It will raise awareness of sustainable gardening practices and build capacity of both the DHPS children and local community to take positive steps towards environmental outcomes.
Socially Plastic (auspiced by Makerspace & Co Foundation Ltd)
- Project: Re:make - Turning Recycled Plastic Waste into New Furniture & Resource Sheets
- Funding: $6,305
Re:make is a community project which collects recyclable plastic lids and turns them into plastic furniture like table-tops, shelves and sheets with the use of a heated sheet press machine. The plastic lids are collected from community sources like cafes through a self-initiated program called the Local Loop.
Mort Bay Community Garden Inc.
- Project: Community Composting, Accessibility Upgrades and Native Food Plants
- Funding: $9,966
This project will divert 12 m3 of community green waste from landfill per year; increase neighbourhood involvement; demonstrate best-practice models and gardening techniques; provide a sustainable supply of compost and vermicast for the garden; and significantly improve the accessibility of the composting system and other areas of the site.
Pocket City Farms
- Project: Pocket City Farm Compost and Vermicompost Program
- Funding: $10,000
Food waste is an issue for the environment. Our project will enhance on-farm composting of local food/garden waste while strengthening our connection to the community. We can turn food waste into healthy compost and improve soils in urban agriculture. This project has potential to continue self-funding the program.
St Pius Primary School Enmore Parents & Friends Association
- Project: Indigenous Garden/Gathering Place
- Funding: $9,091
We plan to create an indigenous garden/gathering place along the front of the school using native plants to encourage wildlife, introduce a wormery and fish pond, and install a rainwater tank.
Bridge Housing Ltd
- Project: Balmain West Community Garden Project
- Funding: $4,305
A sustainable community garden project for residents in Elliot Street/Laggan avenue, Balmain. The project will deliver free quality environmental resources and education to residents, reintroduce natives, boost the natural ecosystem and, promote pro-environmental behaviours within the community. Royal Botanic Gardens Community Greening (RBG) and Water Ups are project partners.
Bower Reuse and Repair Centre
- Project: Reuse Guru: Promoting Reuse, Upcycling & Repair
- Funding: $6,900
Reuse Guru is a new addition to The Bower’s ongoing information campaign designed to engage the community and raise awareness around waste avoidance issues. Messaging will focus on the benefits of buying second hand and promoting sustainable behaviours such as reuse, repair, refurbishment, and up-cycling.
Cooks River Valley Association Inc.
- Project: Rewilding with the Mudcrabs: How caring for our Cooks River reconnects us with nature
- Funding: $5,000
A podcast episode will be created with the theme of reconnecting with our local natural environment, through the stories of the Mudcrabs. The podcast will inspire residents of the inner west and beyond to connect with the Cooks River, engage with caring for its health and protect the biodiversity of its environments.
2019 Annual Grants
These projects are being implemented throughout 2019-2020.
WIRES Inner West
- Project: Flight Aviary - Improving the Chances of Survival for Native Birds in Care
- Funding: $5,479
WIRES Inner West will build a flight aviary within Wilkins Green Community Gardens in Marrickville to rehabilitate native birds that have been in care before release. The aviary will provide them with the essential exercise/building of muscles to develop flight fitness for adult birds prior to release.
St. Anthony's Family Care
- Project: Supporting Children to Achieve Their Potential Through Gardening
- Funding: $4,315
St Anthony's Family Care are creating a gardening program to ensure those who may not normally have access to growing their own food, get growing, whilst also receiving all the benefits of therapeutic horticulture. The gardening program goal is to achieve environmental and educational outcomes.
Urban Beekeepers of the Inner West
- Project: Increasing and Promoting the Inner West Public Awareness of Urban Beekeeping
- Funding: $4,208
To enable Urban Beekeepers of the Inner West Inc to develop educational programs designed to promote the practice of urban beekeeping. A previous grant was received for 2019 for which a variation for use has been allowed to prepare a new apiary. Those funds will be expended prior to 2020.
River Canoe Club of NSW
- Project: Cooks River Clean (inc. Paddle Against Plastic) 2020
- Funding: $3,555
Cooks River Clean Up (including Paddle Against Plastic) Community Event.
KLEAN Residents Group
- Project: KLEAN - Local Residents Improving Mulqueeny and Regent Lanes, Newtown
- Funding: $1,025
KLEAN is a group of residents living on Probert Street, Newtown who want to improve the appearance and conditions of Regent and Mulqueeny Lanes (onto which their properties back) through community planting of native plants, herbs and vegetables to create community gardens and corridors of biodiversity.
Ashfield Baptist Care
- Project: Aerobin 200L Compost Bin
- Funding: $695
Ashfield Baptist Childcare plans to purchase an Aerobin 200L Composter in order to recycle our centre’s kitchen and garden waste. This would add to our efforts in being a sustainable early Childhood Centre.
2018 Annual Grants
These projects are being implemented throughout 2018-2019.
Defy Design
- Project: Defy Plastic Waste
- Funding: $7,500
Defy Plastic Waste focuses on experiential education by involving the community in crafting functional objects from plastic waste with small scale recycling machines. It aims to engage the community in a process of learning about, collecting and recycling plastic waste to reduce and eliminate our use of virgin plastic.
Inner West Boomerang Bags
The Boomerang Bag Inner West members will continue to raise awareness about the environmental damage caused by single use plastic bags. We will expand our reach by - holding more Sewing Bees - conducting more skills workshops - working with across additional neighbourhoods in the Inner West - providing training to our volunteers.
Inner West WIRES
- Project: Improving Survival Rates of Native Wildlife in an Urban Context
- Funding: $6,740
Wires Inner West branch volunteers rescue and care for Marsupials (e.g. Brushtail Possums / Ringtail Possums) and Birds (e.g. Lorikeets, Ibis, Owls, Magpies, Figbirds etc). This project will provide of 100 nest boxes and 3 bird incubators to improve the survival rates of orphaned and injured wildlife.
Inner West Beekeepers
- Project: Increasing the Inner West Public Awareness of Urban Beekeeping
- Funding: $5,919
To equip and enable the Inner West Beekeepers to conduct educational field days and exhibitions, which members of the Inner West Community will be encouraged to attend. The purpose of these field days is to promote the environmental and social benefits beekeeping brings to the Inner West.
Australian Foundation for Disability
- Project: Creating Native Garden to Attract Wildlife Back into the Community
- Funding: $5,400
After being successful last year with a sustainable Garden Bed and recycling project, our many clients with disabilities who attend the Ashfield Community Participation Day Program were extremely keen to be involved in another sustainable environmental project. This Australian Foundation for Disability project will create a native garden including a bird bath or frog pond.
Tempe Public School P&C
- Project: Abbey's Garden - Green Corridor
- Funding: $4,300
To revitalise the community and school memorial garden for Abbey- a school student killed in Bali in 2002. Community members and the Tempe Public School will be able to come to the school to relax and remember aspects of our school's history and the impact each life has on others.
Participate Australia
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Project: Everyone Can Save Environment
- Funding: $2,900
This project aims to motivate people with intellectual disability to take an active role in protecting our environment. The project includes developing resources in plain English, workshops and activities to promote the concept of environmental protection to the participants and to deliver environmental benefits.
Unwaste
- Project: Padding Out
- Funding: $2,190
Padding Out by unwaste is an accessible series of free and inclusive workshops designed to teach people who menstruate how to sew their own resusable menstrual pads with repurposed fabrics they have in their homes.Padding Out de-stigmatises menstruation and creates inclusive spaces for people interested in reducing their impact on the environment.
2017 Annual Grants
These projects for up to $7,500 were implemented throughout 2017-2018.
Cooks River Valley Association - Mudcrabs
Project: Crab walking
The project, lead by Mudcrabs, will reduce the amount of litter polluting the Cooks River by collecting litter from streets draining into the river. It will build a network of local volunteers who each collect litter in their chosen street on a regular basis, and raise local awareness.
Marrickville West Community Garden
Project: Australian Native Garden And Beehive Supporting Environmental Biodiversity
The project at Marrickville West Community Garden strengthens local environmental biodiversity by establishing habitat and refuge for local wildlife. The stingless bee hive provides an educational resource for the school students and gives the residents and community a local space to appreciate nature. The bee's pollinate flowering plants in the communities organic garden.
Inner West Tool Library
Project: Inner West Tool Library
The Inner West Tool Library is a place that provides residents low-cost access to tools, information and skills, making it easier for home-owners with limited resources to work on projects and maintain their homes, providing positive environmental and social impacts.
Wilkins Green School and Community Garden
Project: Community Composting
The project will set up infrastructure, training and networks for a new communal composting program integrated into existing programs at the Wilkins Green School and Community Garden.The project will educate the local community about the issues with food wastage, how to reduce food waste and make good quality compost.
Marrickville High School P&C
Project: Indigenous Garden - Community Garden, Learning through Experience
This project aims to assist in the creation of an Indigenous garden as a major element in the Marrickville High School Community Garden. This space will be enjoyed by Marrickville High School students as well as local community, and provide a cultural learning and creative space.
Boomerang Bags Inner West
Project: Establishing Boomerang Bags
This start up grant will kick start the Boomerang Bags Inner West project, allowing more people to join us and for us to reach our target of 2400 bags created in 2018. Our primary need is for equipment and support for promotion.
Addison Road Community Centre
Project: Inner West Children's Book 'Urban Habitats'
Addison Road Community Centre will develop and publish a picture book that fosters awareness of the importance of urban habitats - and the ways every day people can contribute to its preservation and enhancement - among school aged children, their families and the wider community in the Inner West Council area.
Macquarie University
Project: Lead Concentrations in Backyard Chickens
This project seeks to determine the potential and extent of metal(loid) migration from soil in the Inner West into the food-chain through the use of traditional and emerging techniques to analyse soil, chicken-feed, eggs and chickens. This will be the first project in Australia to profile backyard chicken metal exposures.
Australian Foundation for Disability
Project: Sustainable Raised Vegetable Gardens & Recycling for Ashfield Disability Program
To purchase vertical vegetable gardens and worm farms and composting for sustainable living program for clients with disabilities and high support needs, many with life long disabilities who attend the Ashfield Community Participation Day Program to encourage healthy living and sustainable living lifestyle choices.
Climate Change Balmain-Rozelle
Project: Climate in the Pub
A series of 6 bi-monthly meetings, run by Climate Change Balmain-Rozelle, held over the course of 2018 designed to bring together local residents and members of the various groups and organisations involved in the many aspects of action on climate change. Meetings will typically feature one or more invited speakers from guest groups or organisations who will give a presentation on a specific topic followed by questions and general discussion.
Glovers Garden Inc
Project: Establishment of an accessible herb garden for the local community
The project created a new herb garden accessible to the whole community along the fencelines of Glovers Garden. The garden abuts onto the playing fields at the bottom of Glover St, Lilyfield, which are used by sports clubs [soccer/baseball], walkers and dog walkers, resulting in a constant passing parade of community members, many showing interest in the garden. The project has encouraged passersbys to pick fresh herbs grown along the outside of the perimeter fencing, offering access to some of the benefits of the garden without the need for membership. It also encourages an interest in the production of home grown produce and the health benefits of using fresh food, along with a greater sense of ownership of the garden by the community.
The creation of border herb garden beds planted out with herb themes including mints, origanum, basils, insecticidal herbs, chillies, rosemary types and lavenders has been a great success, as well as installation of drip line irrigation for efficient watering. A public tour took place at the Garden Open Day on 13 October 2018. In addition, the construction of chook viewing area and newly installed park bench seat for the public have been welcomed by the community.
