GreenWay corridor to burst into colour

The inner west’s energetic cultural scene is set to be enhanced even further, with the inaugural GreenWay Festival to take place in mid-October reflecting the area’s vibrancy.

The GreenWay, which connects the Cooks River Cycleway with the Iron Cove Bay Run, links the council areas of Canterbury, Marrickville, Ashfield and Leichhardt. Encompassing environmental, cultural and sustainable transport aspects, it is home to a wide array of wildlife, from reptiles and birds to bats, possums, frogs and bandicoots. But between October 10 and 17, it’s also going to play host to a program of activities, ranging from bike tours to biodiversity workshops, bushcare working bees, an art exhibition, and art and drawing classes.

Lauren McIver is Project Manager for the GreenWay sustainability project, which is presenting the Festival as one of its events. She said the Festival represented an opportunity for local residents to take in the positive results of the community’s vision for the corridor. “It was put down as one of the major activities for the grant project, as a way to celebrate and showcase the GreenWay,” she said. “We’re envisaging a lot of community support, and we’re working with a number of community groups to bring the event to life.”

McIver said that in contrast to a number of other ‘eco-festivals’, which focused on water and energy efficiency, the GreenWay Festival’s focus would be on the core themes of biodiversity and ‘active transport’. “The GreenWay is an urban green corridor, and it’s quite rare to have that ‘green link’ for plants and animals in this area – we’re trying to educate the community about the value of that space,” she said.

Part of that education includes introducing people to the GreenWay’s numerous sites of historical importance and biological diversity via guided walking tours, facilitated by GreenWay local resident and historical expert Nick Chapman, and Landcare Supervisor Sue Stevens.

“I think the GreenWay is about connections,” said Chapman, who first took an interest in the GreenWay a decade ago, when his children started at Kegworth Public School in Leichhardt. “There are some delightful, tranquil places along the GreenWay which I hope people will come and see – the Festival’s really all about getting out in your local area.”

Although the GreenWay project as it now exists is a recent development, Chapman says that, in one sense, it harks back to the growth of the inner west at the beginning of the 20th century. “Suburbs like Haberfield, Petersham, Lewisham and Summer Hill, on the western rail line, were all pedestrian areas connected by the train – and in a sense, the light rail represents something of a return to that notion,” he said. “People will be able to move through the inner west more easily without getting in a car, which is the ultimate goal.”

Although all events throughout the Festival are free, those interested in activities such as the sketch clubs, bike runs, working bees, history and biodiversity tours, and the GreenWay Arts Exhibition, are encouraged to book places early.

The week kicks off with the Cooks River Eco Festival on Sunday, October 10, between 10am and 2pm, at Ewen Park, on Tennant Parade, Hurlstone Park.