We are taking Monday and Tuesday off, but are looking forward to getting some more programming up and running in the next few weeks. Here’s what’s on the cards from our discussions this week:

• Japanese playgroup is returning onsite … it will be lovely to see Maimi and the families and especially to see how much the children have grown!

• Matthew is resuming guitar lessons onsite on Monday and Wednesday evenings.

• We are welcoming a new counsellor to ACC. Martina who has recently moved to the neighbourhood will be here one afternoon/evening a week.

• Our Wednesday daytime book club is going to meet in person in November.

• And finally we are looking to resume our Women in the Shed program in a couple of weeks - hooray! Maylei will be taking both classes and Kalimna has been in contact with everyone that was booked in in Term 4 (and 3 I think) to see who would like to get cracking before the end of the year.

It is pretty nice to start doing things in person again, and we are looking forward to a slow and steady resumption of activity.

If you are part of a group that has a plan and haven’t chatted to us yet just give us a call or send an email …

Some of the great kids who come along weekly to Japanese playgroups …

If you are part of a local sports club or other community not-for-profit group in Yarra, did you know that you can tap into Council’s ongoing community training courses?

The next one is all about social media. It is on Tuesday 14 September, from 6-8.30pm. You can register here.

---

Building Community with Social Media

Social media and online activities are now part of the way we communicate at work and play. For community organisations they provide a great opportunity to reduce workload and create efficient communication, the challenge however, is to decide which platform will have the greatest impact to support goals.

This interactive session will provide a basic overview of the most popular social media platforms used in Australia and insights on the best way they can be used effectively. This session will be most beneficial to organisations new to promoting their organisations through social media channels. Topics include:

• The pros and cons of some social media and online platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter)

• Understanding target audience / selecting platforms

• Having creative ideas for content

• Communicating the right messages

• Preparing a social media plan

Date: Tuesday 14 September 2021

Time: 6.00pm – 8.30pm (2.5 hours)

Method: Online 

Register: HERE.

A nice picture of Elly (who is part of the Community Development - Capacity Building team at Yarra) from when she came along to our morning tea on the corner.

Other upcoming workshops include:

• Governance Training for Community Groups - 7 October 

• Evaluating Project and Programs - 9 November

National Science Week ran from 14-22 August. And we had a fabulous eco-dyeing weekend workshop on offer here at ACC with local textile artist Rose Kulak. She does the most amazing prints and we were VERY excited about it.

This week however, we came to the sad conclusion that it is unlikely that we’ll be able to go ahead with this workshop in person anytime soon, and so instead we’ve been exploring how we can offer an eco-dyeing experience at home.

Rose is helping us put together a couple of different take home kits that include all the materials and instructions you will need to undertake a project using things like eucalyptus leaves, onion skins or oxalis (sour grass that is now in bloom all over the neighbourhood).

Eco-dyeing 101 kit

a dye bath in action … looks pretty cool huh?

So if you’d like to learn a new skill and/or you are keen to explore the science of eco-dyeing and eco-printing … and to find out more about natural fibres, mordants and fixatives, the impact of pressure and heat, and pH levels … then email us here and nominate your preference for the:

1. Eco-printing 101 kit (learn how to use pressure and steam for printing) or

2. Eco-dyeing 101 kit (learn how to make a natural dye bath)

When you register we’ll get back to you re. collection times over the next few days. And then … we hope you have lots of fun … and send us a photo or two of your amazingly interesting (and fingers-crossed, beautiful) results!

Note, this activity is designed for adults, and will also be really interesting for children - but supervision is strongly recommended and actually really necessary.