“Dear 2072” begins the inscription that will sit beside the time capsule buried last week at Kyneton Primary School.
“This time capsule holds a snapshot of the natural treasures of the Greenhill to Black Hill biolink in 2022. We share our knowledge of this time, to help inform the future.
“It is our hope that when you open this, native animals such as koala, platypus and phascogale are thriving once again in this area.”
The time capsule is part of local environmental organisation Biolinks Alliance’s commitment to engaging the next generation to continue the legacy of their work with the Macedon Ranges community across the Greenhill to Black Hill biolink.
Earlier this year, executive director Sophie Bickford visited Kyneton Primary School and invited students to consider the value of the animals and plants around where they live. She asked them ”What do you treasure about this place?”
Their responses to this provocation, through pictures and words, are included in the time capsule, along with photographs of some of the properties across the biolink taken by Sam Slicer.
A short film, Reflections, made by Joshua Tyler, is included and highlights the plight of native species in the region with citizen historians and traditional owner interviews.
Mapping of the significant large old trees and the plan outlining the project’s vision of collaboration to halt species extinctions and ecological breakdown are also in the capsule that will be unearthed in 50 years’ time.
The capsule is topped with a sculpture created by local artist Jason Waterhouse (Greenhill Manna Gum, 2021), and was unveiled by Macedon MP Mary-Anne Thomas and local councillor Mark Ridgeway.
Ms Bickford said this intergenerational connection was indicative of the way that Biolinks Alliance saw community as a central partner in its work.
“Being embedded in community gives us more feet on the ground, more hands in the soil, more people talking about the solution and more people with a shared vision of a thriving future for people and the planet,” she said.
“We see young people as a vital part of our community, and take our responsibility of leaving a living legacy to them seriously.”
The burying of the time capsule marked the end of a fundraising campaign and community project, Treasures of this Land, which raised much-needed funds to continue the work already taking place across 3000 hectares of diverse landscape.
Biolinks Alliance has been supported by The Albert and Barbara Tucker Foundation, Kyneton Primary School, Macedon Ranges Shire Council and the Kyneton community to undertake this ambitious project.
