This week’s post is a little late because today I have some really exciting news!

And it’s got to do with people like you and me…people who are looking for clear pathways to sustainability.

You see, so many of us want to do the right thing.  We want to live and work sustainably.

And sometimes laws and regulations aim to force us in that direction. 😐

But we’re really busy.

And it can be really hard working out what to do first…or if it’s going to make a real difference anyway.

And even if we get past that hurdle, it can be hard knowing how to do the things we need to do to live more sustainably.

How to work more sustainably.

And how to model sustainable practices so our children and grandchildren learn about them…so that sustainable behaviour becomes automatic for them…

Because we want to give them the best possible start in life.

And that’s where my exciting news comes into play.

Australian governments recently established a National Quality Framework for early childhood education and care.

The National Quality Framework aims to raise the quality and consistency of Australian education and care services.  This will benefit all children and their families who use approved education and care services…and the wider community.

It means that most long day care, family day care, preschool or kindergarten, and outside schools hours care services now have to meet certain levels of safety and quality so children get the best possible start in life.

Sooooo, you’re thinking, what does that have to do with living and working sustainably?

Well, what you probably didn’t know – and I didn’t know until recently – is that one of area that the National Quality Framework focuses on is Physical Environment.

And one of the standards that early childhood education and care services need to meet relates to sustainability of the physical environment.

In particular the services need to show that they are:

• taking an active role in caring for their environment, and
• contributing to a sustainable future.

This means that they need to have sustainable practices embedded in their operations.

And they need to support the children in their care to become environmentally responsible and show respect for the environment.  🙂

Sounds a lot like what you and I are trying to do, doesn’t it?

But I know that, for most of people, this isn’t their ‘core business’.  (Is it yours?)  It’s sort of an add-on.

That doesn’t mean that they don’t want to do it.  (Or maybe, like the early childhood education and care centres, they have to do it.)

It just means that’s not their area of expertise.  Yet. 😉

And that’s where people like me come in.

I cut through confusion and overwhelm to provide clear and effective ways to help people live and work more sustainably.

My colleagues at Sustainable Directions do too.  They have developed Small Green Steps, an on-line program to help early childhood education and care services meet the sustainability requirements of the National Quality Framework.

It’s great that these services can work through the program when and where it suits them.  They will be able to use the online program to embed sustainable practices into their operations at their own pace and convenience.

But we all know that some of us prefer face-to-face learning…and some like that little bit of extra help.

And that’s where I come in.

I am now an authorised agent for Small Green Steps.

I am really excited that I can now work with early childhood education and care services in the Canberra region to follow up the Small Green Steps program.

I will be tailoring workshops and any other services to help these services meet – and if possible exceed – the sustainability requirements for accreditation under the National Quality Framework.

If you’d like me to help you or your business improve your sustainability, just contact me…or send me a voice message by clicking on the tab on the right.

Till next time…be gentle to yourself and our world!