The newly elected president of the Phillip Island Conservation Society
learned activism from some of the best.
learned activism from some of the best.
Greg and his late wife, Marg, who was PICS secretary for 20 years. Post: How did you become involved with PICS? Was it a particular issue?
Greg Johnson: While searching the coast for an affordable holiday shack in the days when that was feasible, we found one at Ventnor, not so far away from home [in Eltham]. It was a bit of a wreck, but I was keen for somewhere accessible to enjoy my sailing dinghy. I’ll never forget celebrating our first day as holiday-home owners with a long beach walk and seeing our first Sea Eagle gliding parallel with the coast in the on-shore wind.
We were bird enthusiasts; my partner Marg had done a bushwalking course; I’d become a native plant gardener in Eltham, and we had often enjoyed the wildly beautiful Wilsons Prom with our children. We loved nature and that day we breathed in the coastal beauty of our new Island ‘home’. We were sure we’d find a local conservation group we could join.
Greg Johnson: While searching the coast for an affordable holiday shack in the days when that was feasible, we found one at Ventnor, not so far away from home [in Eltham]. It was a bit of a wreck, but I was keen for somewhere accessible to enjoy my sailing dinghy. I’ll never forget celebrating our first day as holiday-home owners with a long beach walk and seeing our first Sea Eagle gliding parallel with the coast in the on-shore wind.
We were bird enthusiasts; my partner Marg had done a bushwalking course; I’d become a native plant gardener in Eltham, and we had often enjoyed the wildly beautiful Wilsons Prom with our children. We loved nature and that day we breathed in the coastal beauty of our new Island ‘home’. We were sure we’d find a local conservation group we could join.
At that time penguins were struggling to survive against cars, foxes, feral cats and other hazards so the Summerland Peninsula buy-back proposal was up for consideration. Clearly the peninsula needed to be managed as a reserve. It became our first foray into submission writing and our first modest step into Island conservation. We volunteered for the PICS committee, Marg becoming its secretary. She held the position for 20 years.
Post: Are you living full time on the island now (in that little cottage in Ventnor?) or are you still dividing your time with Nillumbik?
Greg: I’m spending as much time as I can on the Island and when I’m not there I keep in touch with emails and phone calls. For the time being I have family and involvements which require me to be in Nillumbik regularly.
Post: Why do you believe PICS has been so effective?
Greg: By the time we joined PICS in 1986 there had been 18 years of hard-won conservation achievements, as recorded by Christine Grayden in An Island Worth Conserving. With Margaret Hancock in the chair meeting procedure was always observed, agenda items fully considered and accurate minutes kept. The background knowledge of key committee members impressed us. This professionalism and orderly management of issues helps to explain the record of achievement over the years. Knowledge of the planning system was assumed and I soon realised this was the key to effective engagement with the development approval process.
Margaret Hancock had a motto often heard: “Get the planning right and the rest will follow”. It was all about the citizen’s right to “have their say” on planning applications - to be heard in the approval process. It was significant new knowledge for me and consequential for my later activism. I learned the value of adding “I wish to be heard” at the bottom of submissions.
Being on the committee with Ailsa Swann we learned all about planning panel participation and what “going to VCAT” meant. Long-standing PICS members have a solid knowledge of natural systems and the Island’s history and are able to access facts when needed.
Programs of planting and weeding in reserves by growing numbers of volunteers engages supporters and demonstrates a commitment to good environmental outcomes. As a result, PICS has gained broad community respect.
Post: How do you get more young people involved in PICS? Or do you just have to wait for them to get older?
Greg: I am sure PICS is not alone in finding the recruitment of young people a challenge. It was suggested that we should make more use of social media. Our committee resolved to try bridging the gap by more regularly integrating social media into our communications. No doubt we might need to consider additional strategies.
Post: What have you gained from being involved in grassroots campaigning?
Greg: In the 1980s Island conservationists were often regarded with some suspicion, even resentment. Development proposals were seen by many as a sign of community progress regardless of negative impacts. PICS, while sure of its mission, was accustomed to being a voice in the wilderness, unpopular in some quarters. Planning successes had been hard won by a few leading members through advocacy at legalistic panel hearings or tribunals.
The 1988 Ventnor canal proposal saw a more political response - a public campaign to convince councillors to abandon the plan. The overwhelming community support we received had the desired effect. This public endorsement boosted our standing and facilitated negotiations toward a final resolution for all the Saltwater Creek land at Ventnor, but it took a further five years of dealing with a difficult council. Our success hinged on the flood of written objections to the original canal plan and reliable advice from stalwart PICS members.
We learned that stepping forward for the right cause, however tentatively, is likely to be rewarded with community support. It was a lesson in political influence.
Post: Are you living full time on the island now (in that little cottage in Ventnor?) or are you still dividing your time with Nillumbik?
Greg: I’m spending as much time as I can on the Island and when I’m not there I keep in touch with emails and phone calls. For the time being I have family and involvements which require me to be in Nillumbik regularly.
Post: Why do you believe PICS has been so effective?
Greg: By the time we joined PICS in 1986 there had been 18 years of hard-won conservation achievements, as recorded by Christine Grayden in An Island Worth Conserving. With Margaret Hancock in the chair meeting procedure was always observed, agenda items fully considered and accurate minutes kept. The background knowledge of key committee members impressed us. This professionalism and orderly management of issues helps to explain the record of achievement over the years. Knowledge of the planning system was assumed and I soon realised this was the key to effective engagement with the development approval process.
Margaret Hancock had a motto often heard: “Get the planning right and the rest will follow”. It was all about the citizen’s right to “have their say” on planning applications - to be heard in the approval process. It was significant new knowledge for me and consequential for my later activism. I learned the value of adding “I wish to be heard” at the bottom of submissions.
Being on the committee with Ailsa Swann we learned all about planning panel participation and what “going to VCAT” meant. Long-standing PICS members have a solid knowledge of natural systems and the Island’s history and are able to access facts when needed.
Programs of planting and weeding in reserves by growing numbers of volunteers engages supporters and demonstrates a commitment to good environmental outcomes. As a result, PICS has gained broad community respect.
Post: How do you get more young people involved in PICS? Or do you just have to wait for them to get older?
Greg: I am sure PICS is not alone in finding the recruitment of young people a challenge. It was suggested that we should make more use of social media. Our committee resolved to try bridging the gap by more regularly integrating social media into our communications. No doubt we might need to consider additional strategies.
Post: What have you gained from being involved in grassroots campaigning?
Greg: In the 1980s Island conservationists were often regarded with some suspicion, even resentment. Development proposals were seen by many as a sign of community progress regardless of negative impacts. PICS, while sure of its mission, was accustomed to being a voice in the wilderness, unpopular in some quarters. Planning successes had been hard won by a few leading members through advocacy at legalistic panel hearings or tribunals.
The 1988 Ventnor canal proposal saw a more political response - a public campaign to convince councillors to abandon the plan. The overwhelming community support we received had the desired effect. This public endorsement boosted our standing and facilitated negotiations toward a final resolution for all the Saltwater Creek land at Ventnor, but it took a further five years of dealing with a difficult council. Our success hinged on the flood of written objections to the original canal plan and reliable advice from stalwart PICS members.
We learned that stepping forward for the right cause, however tentatively, is likely to be rewarded with community support. It was a lesson in political influence.
2013 reunion of the PICS team involved in the Saltwater Creek campaign of 1988, which resulted in the permanent “green wedge” separation between Cowes and Ventnor.
Post: Furthermore …?
Greg: While the pressure on Phillip Island’s finite environment has not abated in the past 30 years, conservation is no longer a marginal consideration for planning authorities at every level. The recent Federal Government recognition of Western Port’s extensive Ramsar wetlands is a case in point. For the Island, defined township boundaries are a promising sign that subdivision incursion into the Island’s farmland will be restrained in the interests of preserving landscape character in the long term, but will the final Bass Coast Distinctive Areas and Landscapes authority back them up?
The Island’s current population density signals a need for State intervention to restrain further urbanisation. The significance of wildlife, landscapes and natural resources in the Island’s economy is now given policy recognition by tourism authorities, but council is yet to properly manage threats to endangered wildlife from unrestrained domestic pets.
Greg: While the pressure on Phillip Island’s finite environment has not abated in the past 30 years, conservation is no longer a marginal consideration for planning authorities at every level. The recent Federal Government recognition of Western Port’s extensive Ramsar wetlands is a case in point. For the Island, defined township boundaries are a promising sign that subdivision incursion into the Island’s farmland will be restrained in the interests of preserving landscape character in the long term, but will the final Bass Coast Distinctive Areas and Landscapes authority back them up?
The Island’s current population density signals a need for State intervention to restrain further urbanisation. The significance of wildlife, landscapes and natural resources in the Island’s economy is now given policy recognition by tourism authorities, but council is yet to properly manage threats to endangered wildlife from unrestrained domestic pets.