‘Field Notes’ is a fortnightly column in which Regen Melbourne’s Lead Convenors provide on-the-ground updates and insights from their work and focus areas.

As the Swimmable Birrarung project readies to shift gears in 2024, Lead Convenor Charity Mosienyane dives into everything that’s giving her hope and energy for the year to come. 

This is my first Field Notes for the year and I cannot help but reflect on the year that was and imagine what the year ahead will look like. 

Transitions

2023 was a big year for the Swimmable Birrarung project. It was a year of consolidating two years of sensemaking and orienting and convening across six fields of actions. The fields of action provide a landscape for a broad alliance of individuals and organisations to collaborate across six thematic areas that represent the key systemic barriers and design opportunities for regeneration of the river. 

Some of you know these areas very well, but just in case you have forgotten, they are: 

1. Reconnection and storytelling

2. Legal, policy, political & governance systems

3. River Health

4. Business and capital

5. Campaigns: building a movement

6. Swimming activations. 

These fields of action were collectively identified by a diverse group of actors and stakeholders within the Birrarung ecosystem and represent the areas where collective action is required to achieve the ambitious goal of swimming in the river. 

I am humbled by the humans who have continuously shown up, shared their knowledge and expertise and have committed to walk this journey together in service to the Birrarung. We are able to transition to a phase of co-developing an emergent portfolio of transformative leverage points and projects for the Birrarung ecosystem. 

What does this look like you ask? Well, all I can tell you is that the leverage points will have to reflect a systemic approach. An example of a leverage point could look like focusing our resources and support to amplify the exciting Yarra RiverKeepers Association (YRKA) Birrarung Riverfest. What a way to reconnect to the river and celebrate her stories! (But also we like festivals…so yes!)

I will be launching the Fields of Action meetings for the year next week and this is my personal invitation to you to come along if you are curious to find out more.

Magic in the field 

Yesterday I met with Sarah Barns, Kathryn Deyell and Erin O’Donnell who are leaders in their fields (Arts & Culture Policy and the legal rights of nature). We were meeting in person for the first time to discuss a research project that explores how creative arts,culture and boats! can be used to support and amplify nature based work such as the Swimmable Birrarung project. This research work has the potential to unlock access to further research collaborations and funding. I am happy to say the meeting was a success and is the beginning of an exciting storytelling collaboration project in service to the Birrarung. 

I cannot begin to explain what it feels like to see what I can only call magic unfold as people from such diverse industries, experiences and expertise connect and start exploring the field of possibilities in service to a shared goal. As the discussion progressed I couldn’t help smiling and reflecting on the unfolding landscape of possibilities that was being shaped into something tangible for the river. All over a coffee at Mr Tulk! 

“When I started this role I thought most businesses would have an extractive approach to the river… but These organisations want the river to thrive, because they understand that a healthy, thriving river means a healthy, thriving city. "  

I may as well share another example, because there are many. Last year during a Business and Economy field of action meeting, we were exploring how businesses on / along the river could be in service to it. A representative from Envirobank gave us an overview of the soon to be launched container deposit scheme and suggested exploring ways of using the scheme as a way to support the river.  The virtual room was brimming with excitement as we all made the connection between hundreds of businesses located on / along the river donating funds to key organisations working in service to the river such as the Yarra RiverKeepers Association, the largest advocacy organisation for the Birrarung, while recycling thousands of cans and bottles. This is a simple call to action with potential to fund significant action and impact on the river. You can only imagine my utter delight a few months later seeing this call to action in the YRKA newsletter. 

What I have come to learn through convening is that often it takes one encounter to unlock the ideas and solutions that people and organisations need to activate the transformation journey. Oh, and often there are multiple benefits that are not always evident at the beginning. So here is to a year of tapping into the field of magic.

Follow the money

I vividly remember trying to understand how capital and investment flowed along the entire length of the river as part of my stakeholder and actor mapping exercise. I wanted to know how much had already been invested in improving the health of the river. As it was clear there had been significant activity over the years to protect, restore and regenerate the river and its parklands. 

I can honestly say that what I know is significant amounts of capital, labour and love have been invested in the river and no, I still don’t know what this number is or how investment flows along the river. What I do know is that the whole experience led to us at Regen Melbourne to explore what it would look like if we had a systemic approach to investing and directing resources to system transformative projects such as the Swimmable Birrarung. So it only makes sense that we have undertaken research in partnership with some really incredible global organisations (Dark Matter Labs, Climate-KIC and TransCap) around this topic. If you’re keen to learn more, you can read more about it here.

As we transition into a phase of co-developing an emergent  portfolio of leverage points and projects based on our collective knowledge, learning, experience, insights and research, systems capital will become a critical piece in the systems transformation puzzle. Finding partners within the ecosystem willing to partner on the development, design, delivery and funding of these leverage points will be a key part of the work in 2024.

Hope 

I have been asked so many times what keeps me going when there is so much complexity and the challenge seems insurmountable. The simple answer is because I am hopeful and believe that Melburnians can rise to this ambitious challenge. I have seen the power of creating spaces to bring diverse groups of people together, seen unlikely actors and stakeholders collaborate in service to a shared purpose, heard and seen the efforts and love of the Birrarung across communities. 

I have sat in meetings with the Environment Protection Authority (EPA), Melbourne Water and DEECA to talk about working together in service to a healthy and thriving river. Enthusiasm, support and Exploring how to collaborate across the ecosystem have been the response. This has been encouraging because to regenerate the river, we will need to work collectively as part of the system.

Hope is connecting to people like Annabel Sides, Founder of Green Planet Sports an organisation at the intersection of sports and regeneration.  A few months ago Annabel and I convened a roundtable with leaders from the sports world; tennis, rowing, hockey, swimming (I know I am going to forget some) to explore how sports can get involved in the Swimmable Birrarung project. Once again, there was enthusiasm and a readiness to get involved. 

I have had inspiring conversations with businesses on the river such as Arbory Afloat, PonyFish Island and Waterbikes Australia about the role businesses can play in improving the health of the river. When I started this role I thought most businesses would have an extractive approach to the river – but these conversations have proven this is simply not the case. These organisations want the river to thrive, because they understand that a healthy, thriving river means a healthy, thriving city.  

In fact, just the other day I was reading about the 10 year anniversary of making the Paramatta River swimmable again in 2025. This river now has multiple swimming locations which demonstrates that ambitious goals can become a reality with the right level of collective action. So, I will continue to choose hope – hope that we can do this for the life force that is the Birrarung/Yarra River.

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