By Romy Stephens
A group of residents from the Moora Moora community gathered in Lilydale on 5 November to hang a banner that raised awareness towards climate change.
The group of 10 – made up of people aged 17 to 70 – dropped the banner from a pedestrian bridge for about two hours.
Rebecca Urie is a clinical psychologist that helped organise the banner. She said the group specifically timed the event to follow the Melbourne Cup.
“We chose this time as we know many people might be returning home after enjoying the beautiful Yarra Valley,” she said.
“Melbourne Cup might be the race that stops a nation, but we are also worried about the race to extinction that’s happening right now.”
Moora Moora is a co-operative residential community located on Mount Toolebewong.
The community declared a climate emergency at their monthly meeting on 6 July this year and as a result, developed a climate emergency working group.
Some of the working group’s members have been involved in Extinction Rebellion.
Ms Urie said the group is looking at ways to reduce the community’s environmental footprint and also push governments to act urgently.
“I’ve been aware of the science for a long time, but have often felt helpless about how to act,” she said.
“As a psychologist I know we are at our best when we can find the middle ground between avoiding and numbing ourselves to problems and getting emotionally overwhelmed by them.
“Focusing on what I can do, and working with others has been a way for me to do this.”
The Moora Morra community was established in 1974 and consists of about 50 adults and 20 children.
There are about 15 members of the community involved in the climate emergency working group.
