Women getting together to combat climate change.

Recipe for change.

by NATALIE ISAACS

From global women leaders like our international champion Mary Robinson, to members all around Australia, the defining characteristic of 1 Million Women is a passion for living better for us, the planet and future generations.

Sometimes this comes as truly transformative visions for the future, while at other times it can be the most simple of changes in our daily lives, like backyard chooks and easy-to-whip-up leftover menus, and there’s everything in between.

Whether grand or micro, these are ‘recipes for change’, and we’ve been gathering them informally ever since 1 Million Women first launched in mid-2009.

Now, with about 77,000 members and a thriving Facebook community, it’s time to turn them into a women’s handbook for a better world, which we’re calling Recipe for Change.

Over one big weekend in November, from Friday the 16^th to Sunday the 18^th, we’re asking the women and girls of Australia to ‘get together’ to create their recipes for change, and to share them with women everywhere.

Our target is 1000 or more ‘girls get-togethers’, all feeding in their ideas, questions and solutions for saving energy and cutting waste and pollution, across our food, our transport, our fashion and all the things we do and buy.

1 Million Women will pull all of the recipes for change together and publish them as a free e-book for International Women’s Day in March next year, and we’ll use Recipe for Change to engage women around the world.

Mary Robinson – one of the founding members of The Elders inspired by Nelson Mandela, the former head of the UN Commission for Human Rights, and the first woman President of Ireland – helped us to launch Recipe for Change at a special 1 Million Women event in Sydney.

Recipe for change.

Her recipe is the power of women to see the need for change, and to drive it, coupled with the amazing opportunities we have to live differently. ‘It’s women who have to create the urgency because we are resourceful and intergenerational,’ Mrs. Robinson told our audience, ‘Water is the oil of the 21^st century and waste is the gold, because we can turn it into energy.’

Recipe for Change is drawing support from women leaders across society, from Prime Minister Julia Gillard and NSW Environment Minister Robyn Parker, to popular singer-songwriter and new mum Melinda Schneider, much-loved actor Noni Hazlehurst, original Master Chef winner Julie Goodwin, surfing legend Layne Beachley, young community leader Samah Hadid, science broadcast journalist Bernie Hobbs, celebrated film-maker Rachel Perkins and many more.

To register to host a get-together with your girlfriends – it can be a cuppa, a meal, a drink or anything you like, at home, in your workplace or in your local community – just go to www.recipeforchange.com.au and follow the prompts.

When girls get together we can change the world.

Natalie Isaacs (1MW founder and CEO) - 'The big change unfolding in my household over the past few years - 6 people, 4 kids, 2 dogs - is summed up by more shared experiences and less stuff. I think most people get uncomfortable with all of the stuff we buy then soon becomes junk that we have to get rid of. Our mantra now is to enrich our family memory anchors, which we can keep forever.'

Melinda Schneider - singer songwriter 'I've just become a mum at 40, so there are new things to think about. eg. Cloth versus disposable nappies. Though I do use disposable, the least I can do is avoid baby wipes. So I use cloth wipes that I can wash & reuse.'

Bernie Hobbs - ABC science presenter - 'Get the kids to earn their pocket money. Give them $2 to check the tyre pressure when you fill up - properly inflated tyres will save you over $100 fuel in a year.'

Bernie Hobbs - 'Have your own masterchef style mystery box - your fridge. Dont stop at the shops - challenge yourself or whoever is cooking to onlt use things already in the fridge and pantry. If you eat half the food you normally end up chucking out you'll save oer $500 per year.'

Julie Goodwin - Australia's first master chef 'There’s nothing more satisfying than eating food we’ve grown ourselves. We’re novice gardeners but improving each year. The chooks get all the scraps and we love knowing that our food waste is being converted into the freshest, most beautiful eggs. We buy food that is in season and local wherever possible.'

Layne Beachly -7 times surfing champion. 'Being a surfer I live in the environment and I've seen the impact humans have on it in a really negative destructive way We have to start to make change now. We have to take responsibility and accountability for our actions.'

Recipe for Change is happening 16 – 18 November 2012. Follow us on Twitter – @1millionwomen. Join us on Facebook – facebook.com/1millionwomen

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