The Lane Cove Sustainability Action Group (LCSAG) is an incorporated community group committed to improving the local area in the face of climate change. The group has grown out of a movement spreading across Sydney where local people feel compelled to take personal action against the growing threat of climate change. While governments dawdle and councils are most often preoccupied with ‘business as usual’, residents can feel isolated in their belief that a more sustainable society is possible.

In June 2008, the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) held a series of workshops in Lane Cove on sustainable living: presentations on sustainable home design, local food production, natural cleaning products among others were enthusiastically received. Also, individuals from Sydney community sustainability groups spoke about their experiences. At that point local people thought, if they can do it, why can’t we?! From that event like-minded individuals identified each other and LCSAG was born!

In the two years since, LCSAG have had great success in various projects the most successful of which was perhaps the lobbying of council and large and small Lane Cove retailers to commit to a ‘Plastic Bag Free Day’ in October 2010. On that day there were very few plastic bags in the local village as reusable canvas and polypropolene bags were supplied. This initiative continues in BagShare Lane Cove, still in pilot stage, involving local schools collecting reusable bags and these being used by shoppers instead of plastic bags.

LCSAG is a watchdog for local sustainability issues: bush biodiversity, public transport, healthy lifestyles, general minimizing of consumption and recycling among others. We lobby Lane Cove Council on a variety of issues. We are connected with all the sustainability groups of the district including Permaculture North, Lane Cove Bushland and Conservation Society and other local community groups.