“The Empathic Civilization is emerging. A younger generation is fast extending its empathic embrace beyond religious affiliations and national identification to include the whole of humanity and the vast project of life that envelops the Earth.”
Jeremy Rifkin
Repair Cafe
We all know how easy it is to throw things away when they break. But what if we could fix them instead? That's exactly what we're doing — empowering our community to repair and reuse, rather than discard. Bring your broken items — whether it’s an old blender, a torn shirt, or a bike that needs some TLC. Our skilled volunteers will be there to help you repair, learn, and save money while reducing waste! Why attend? Free entry! Learn valuable DIY skills. Help keep useful things out of landfills. Let’s fix it together! The Repair Café is about community, sustainability, and learning — come join us July 11, 2026 and make a difference. See you there!
Rain Tote Project
The Rain Tote Project helps local households capture and reuse rainwater for gardens, trees, and landscaping. By keeping rainwater on site, the project reduces pressure on municipal water systems while building practical, long-term water resilience at the household level. The Rain Tote Project supports gradual, household-level water resilience throughout the community. Why This Project Matters Water resilience is built locally. Capturing rain where it falls: Reduces demand on treated municipal water Supports gardens, trees, and drought-resilient landscaping Helps households adapt to increasing variability in rainfall The Rain Tote Project focuses on practical action that residents can understand, participate in, and benefit from directly.
Explore Renewables
Explore how solar, storage, EVs, and future grid technologies are evolving — and what they mean for small communities like Diamond Valley.
Featured report: Bifacial Panels & Perovskite Solar – The Next Big Leap in Solar Energy.
👉 Download the Digital Energy Pack and start planning your system today.
Live Sustainably
Sustainable Landscapes
Practical ideas for creating landscapes that save water, support biodiversity, and reduce maintenance.
Explore Sustainable Landscaping →
Protect Water
Community Water
Rainwater harvesting, greywater reuse, watershed stewardship, and practical home water systems.
Sheep River Flows – View Live Data
Build a Circular Economy
Repair Cafés, resource recovery, makerspaces, and community-scale sustainability projects.
Learn New Skills
Computer Cabin
Digital literacy, practical technology, AI, and lifelong learning for a changing world.
Monitor Our Environment
Community Air Quality
Live Community Monitor
Live air quality information for Diamond Valley, supported through Sustainable Life in partnership with CRAZ. Check current conditions, learn what they mean, and explore local environmental monitoring.
What does sustainable building look like before the walls go up?
What does sustainable building look like before the walls go up?
When people hear green building, they often think about solar panels, insulation and efficient heating. But sustainability begins much earlier—with the land beneath the building, the water moving across it and the community surrounding it.
The first article in this renewed look at the LEED framework explores Site Stewardship:
- protecting soil and existing vegetation;
- limiting unnecessary site disturbance;
- controlling erosion and construction runoff;
- respecting neighbouring properties;
- considering costs and benefits over a 50-year building life.
LEED certification is not required to benefit from these principles. The framework can help homeowners, builders and municipalities ask better questions before decisions become difficult or expensive to change.
The first question is not simply, What are we going to build?
It is also:
How can we build it without damaging the systems already supporting us?
Sustainability grows when we share it.
Read More https://www.sustainablelife.biz/leed-site-stewardship/