Who We Are | The Otesha Project (Australia): Cycling for Sustainability

Salutations and Hi-fives

It is with massive passion, drive, and energy that we are making grassroot movements to help build The Otesha Project (Australia) to help empower, be empowered, and create a world that is just, fair, ethical, and truly sustainable. It is with all the groovy vibes that we are creating that help us build this grassroot movement and truly "be the change we want to see [and are] being in the world."

Our inspiration comes from The Otesha Project, in Canada, which was developed in 2003, and has since expanded their projects to include many bicycle tours around Canada inspiring young Canadians with their hilarious sustainable message. It is with this friendship and sharing that we are building something that is unique and centred around the issues that we face here in Australia.

Organic Goodness Behind the Scenes

Sustainabots Unite!

Angela Jones, Co-Director of The Otesha Project (Australia), is true Melbournite and rode with Cycle for Sustainability on their 2006 tour from Sydney to Hobart with giggles and warm hearted love along the way. She brings her amazing networking skills, drive, passion for youth involvement, strong beliefs in sustainability, and amazing talent at recruiting heaps of people into projects. Angela rocks up on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to fun day (she doesn’t call it work). Angela brings heaps of smiles, laughter and love to the job too which everyone in the office appreciates. “Everything should be fun! I want to enjoy what I’m doing or it’s not worth doing.”

And we wouldn't be anything without...

The loving, amazing, generous, spontaneous, and ever-giving help from our Management Committee (renamed unofficially by the crew here to Committee of Coolness).

Long Rides on the Beach	Tim Scott considers himself a recovering consumer and some-time bike addict. He has just found a keen interest in permaculture - organic food garden design - and has got all sorts of ideas for the front & back yards at his new place. At the moment Tim's singin' lessons are complementing his new found acting skills (if you haven't seen the Hour of Choices skit Tim reckons you should - we might just have to let you in on a dress rehearsal)! In his spare time Tim is studying Science (physiology/geography) & Law at Monash University!
March of the Penguins	Since growing up on penguin infested Phillip Island Kate Patkin has had a keen interest in wildlife conservation and left her close knit town of 500 people and headed up to Monash University to learn more. Kate's experience has lead her to being a ranger in a Marine National Park, living and working in Japan, and volunteering on a turtle research project in Malaysia. Now back in Oz, Kate is working for an environmental consultancy company.
Is this the face of the revolution?	Nick Towle's formal training is in medicine and through his endeavours he strives to contribute to a socially just and ecologically sustainable future. Nick's involvement started with the evolution of the revolution in 2000 when he connected with first Australian Cycle for Sustainability (C4S) crew and later resulted in him organising several epic tours. His interests are diverse and ever expanding: Permaculture design, sustainable transport, nutrition and health to name a few. Predictably many revolve around his passion for living sustainably and sharing this with others.
You might remember her from such shows as...	Holly Creenaune hails from Smogney, where she is pretending to be a fifth year Journalism and Law student but spends her time organising with young people for a just and sustainable future. Holly has been a National Convenor of the Australian Student Environment Network, founded Friends of the Earth Sydney, and co-authored an extensive report Opportunities to Waste: Australian Universities and the Nuclear Industry. Holly has also been a bike bandit, a piano prodigy, an ardent alliterator, and particpates in community action that challenges root causes of climate change - creating futures that are people-powered, not coal-powered.
Freedom from The Corporation	Sophie McCarroll’s gas a great deal of energy to spare for bike adventures and fun. At home Soph adds a little gardening to the mix; Vegies, Vegies and more Vegies (and we have sampled these amazing beauties plenty of times). Soph cycled with Otesha Project (Australia) for 4 weeks in 2006 and loved it! Her new interests are in Permaculture and making a massive shift to change her career from an engineer to something new.
Saving the planet one solar panel & light bulb at a time...	Maurice is interested in all aspects of sustainability in everyday life, from cycling and hitch hiking for transport, reuse of materials to energy efficiency and renewable energy in the home. Maurice's (and Holly's) home was displayed in Sustainable House Day 2006. Coordinator of the Nunnery Bicycle Workshop and co-founder of the Sydney Energy Cooperative, Maurice is dedicated to sustainability projects in the communities.
Goodness! It’s growing	Annie’s love for the environment was born in the veggie patch of her family’s suburban Melbourne backyard, way back in the days when it rained and gumboots were cool. Now an Adelaide agent, Annie works in SA as a conservationist and threatened plant ecologist while studying to be a high school maths and science teacher. In 2007, Annie joined the Canadian Otesha Project touring the Maritimes by bicycle.