About This Site

How it happened...

The idea for this site springs one day out of a too-busy Environment House volunteer's head. It introduces itself as Think Global: Act Local Government... Later that decade, this idea runs into an old acquaintance who is teaching computing at ECU and looking for real website projects for his final year students. Weeks later, news arrives that a team has formed to make it happen! It is clear from the first meeting in July 2005 that these students are aware that their work could make a difference!

News of the need for researchers filters out on little e-tendrils and questionnaires start arriving. At some stage along the way, the name morphs into How Green is my Council, 'Howgreen?' for short. Although the ECU students graduated in mid 2006, Dennis Tan is still providing technical support to the research team based at Environment House .

The howgreen crew over the years...

The team has been a moveable feast over the years, but the crew that got things off the ground included Brenda Conochie (who is delighted to see her old idea in action!), Nella di Marco & Simon Titley (Murdoch) Kristy Gamble & Star Eggleston (ECU) and environmental campaigners Susan Tillman, Neil Robertson, Helen Lynes, Annemarie Hindinger, Kate Boland, Rowena Skinner, Anna Nowicki, Ian Rudd, Maureen Gardner, and more.

1st update, 2007 Katherine Pike, Nella di Marco, Kristy Gamble, Zane Hill and Purusha Boelling (from Murdoch, ECU & Notre Dame unis)

2nd update, mid 2009 Launched on 9 August 2009 at Environment House II at 125 King William St Bayswater, soon after our move from Maylands.  The 2008-09 crew consisted of four originals (our brilliant and cheerful programmer Chuan/Dennis Tan, plus Nella di Marco, Jo Bower and me) - plus our 2009 Murdoch postgrad. sustainability student Nicola Mincham and the hardworking enviro/sustainability officers of 29 of Perth's 30 Councils.

3rd update, mid 2011 Launched on 31 July, hosted by the Conservation Council of WA, with councillors, council staff and members of the public in attendance. Conservation Council Deputy Pres. David Harries opened the day, followed by Brad Pettit, Mayor of Fremantle, who gave a slide show of some great local government eco-initiatives he had seen recently in the US.  Mosman Park Cr Libby Eustance and Vic Park Enviro Officer Jo Lockley then headed a useful discussion on some of the ways that green initiatives can be implemented.  The launch was covered by RTR and several local newspapers.

4th update Late 2012-early 2013 update: Work done by Murdoch University graduates Caroline Hood and Hannah Thomas with Brenda Conochie heading for a launch in Mid-February!