John Büsst the Bingil Bay Bastard of Ninney Rise - OG of Save the Barrier ReefSaturday, 10 December 2022
by Toni Pankaluic

​Did you know that the Great Barrier reef was almost mined for its coral as lime fertiliser for cane farmers?

Are you aware of an unsung hero John Büsst who was the architect in the activism campaigns to ‘Save the Reef” and proved the reef was alive…   counter to prevailing beliefs that the reef was just dead coral.

For a deep dive…
Ninney Rise is the base from which John Büsst organised the 'Save the Reef' and rainforest campaigns decades ago. Set in rainforest by the Coral Sea, it was a meeting place for the campaigners and scientists including Prime Minister Harold Holt, poet Judith Wright, and scientists Len Webb & Geoff Tracey.

Two notable books on the Great Barrier Reef one may find interesting - 'Coral Battleground' by Judith Wright and 'The Reef - A Passionate History' by Iain McCalman

The Australian Marine Conservation Society - AMCS (founded as Queensland Littoral Society) is one of the oldest conservation groups in Australia, and the only conservation group dedicated solely to protecting Australia’s amazing oceans and marine wildlife.

Did you know the first bumper sticker used in Australia was ’Save the Barrier Reef’?
Toni Pankaluic.

Cassowaries the Formidable Giant of Queensland's Wet Tropics Monday, 2 January 2023
by Toni Pankaluic

Cassowaries… gentle giant of the Wet Tropics rainforest.  

How are they faring with human encroachment on their habitat? How do we live with them?
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For a deep dive…
Visit Mission Beach Cassowaries for an aggregate of all kinds of relevant Southern Cassowary info and follow them on Facebook. The Australian Museum's Southern Cassowary page is also a good source on getting a primer on this magnificent bird. Check out the IUCN Red Listing for the Southern Cassowary. The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN Red Listing) is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity. The IUCN Red Listing is far more than a list of species and their status, it's a powerful tool used to inform and catalyse action for biodiversity conservation and policy change. 

The Cassowary Recovery Team is a group of organisations working together to implement the Recovery Plan for the Southern Cassowary and ‘protect cassowaries, habitats and corridors from threats through better planning, monitoring and community involvement'.

Literally get your hands dirty by volunteering to revegetate rainforest habitat for cassowaries in Mission Beach with the Brettacorp non-profit.

...and finally, sign the petition to Oppose the Mission Beach Helicopter Facility which will further degrade the established rainforest corridors and tranquility of the cassowaries' environment.
Toni Pankaluic

Please note; Publication of any articles submitted for consideration is solely at the discretion of the Friends of Ninney Rise  management committee

A life of outstanding service to country and community
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The Ninney Rise verandas have been alive with activity over past few weeks. 
 
The Cassowary Coast Regional Council is partnering with the Friends of Ninney Rise  and Mission Beach Cassowaries to create large Cassowary Coast Creature sculptures as part of the Queens Baton relay welcome at Mission Beach on March 17th 2018.

The  artworks are being created at a series of workshops  under the tutelage of well known art and drama  teacher Jan Davies.  Children and adults have been working together on their projects with help from local artists  Sally Moroney, Nina Dawson, Penny Bell and Liz Gallie.   

​The creations will be displayed again at the 2018 Mission Beach Community Cassowary Festival's 'Drumming of Cassowaries' parade on 30th June. They will make a  vibrant addition to the  spectacular  cassowary sculptures made with a RADF grant for last years event, also under Jan's guidance.

See the process and more photos here.

While on a family trip to NSW, Friends of Ninney Rise (FoNR) secretary Sandal Hayes took the opportunity to visit Canberra where she met with Rowena McDonald, who is in charge of curating  the new permanent Reef exhibition being planned for the National Museum.

While there, Sandal also caught up with  Virginia Edlington who donated  the collection of photos  and miscellaneous personal effects of  Alison Busst. (See  the collection of photos here).

It  is  of great excitement to FoNR that Virginia generously donated another valuable contribution to our collection  for  heritage listed Ninney Rise.

Virginia is shown here holding the painting of  Bedarra Island by John Busst complete with his signature style bamboo frame.

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