WEV In the Press

“It takes a village”

By Ruth Callaghan

In a small South West town, a unique housing development is creating a vibrant new community in WA’s first fully developed ecovillage.

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1. Witchy casts its spell with ecovillage

Travelling with: Fleur Bainger

Whenever I drive through Witchcliffe, Western Australia, my car slows to a dawdle and I give in to the urge to pull in. The highway-straddling hamlet is only a 10-minute drive south of Margaret River, yet for years it seemed like there was an invisible boundary line that few cross over. Fair enough: the likes of Leeuwin and Voyager estates prove strong vinaceous lures and the turn-off is before the community’s perimeter, yet those who stay the course have long identified the magic in this incy-wincy town.

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Opinion piece in the Geelong Advertiser newspaper by Jennifer Cromarty, a strategist and adviser at TandemVox.

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Jo Thierfelder introduces us to a world-class sustainable ecovillage in the hinterlands of south-west Australia. 

Witchcliffe is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it sized town, only 10 minutes south of its much-vaunted big sister, Margaret River, in WA’s spectacular South West. But times they are a-changin’. This sleepy, semi-rural hamlet is now home to a burgeoning community of diverse, eco-minded folk who are putting down roots in the Witchcliffe Ecovillage. And I’m one of them. >> READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.

https://www.7regionalwa.com.au/news/7479711-eco-village

“Margaret River pulls back its velvet curtain to reveal a surprising and inspiring commitment to eco-conscious survival – and it’s working.”

“Plenty more people are likely to move to Margaret River in the coming years, as a game-changing eco development grows. Witchcliffe Ecovillage already has two dozen residents.   >> READ MORE

Is the Witchcliffe Ecovillage one of the world’s most sustainable residential communities? It is, in the opinion of Peter Newman AO, Distinguished Professor of Sustainability at the Curtin University Sustainability Policy Institute, who said:

“I don’t know of any other development in the world that can claim to achieve energy, water and food self-sufficiency all on one site as well as being a place for real community.”   >> READ MORE

Having experienced life in diverse places and climate zones, Aron and Jodie chose an ecovillage near Margaret River to put down roots and build their small, high-performing family home.

Jodie Passmore and Aron Dyer were born and raised in Perth, and moved around the country before building their home in the Witchcliffe Ecovillage, 10 kilometres south of Margaret River.  >> READ MORE

At Witchcliffe Ecovillage in Western Australia, life cycle assessment (LCA) to ensure homes are net zero or better for both operational and embodied energy is a requirement for approval of the design. 

Ecovillage project manager Jeff Thierfelder and LCA expert and eTool CEO Richard Haynes explain their collaboration to produce a fast, easy-to-use app to help – and what it can offer to homeowners everywhere.  >> READ MORE

To kick off Cosmos Magazine’ year-long Greenlight Project – a series looking at how regional Australia is responding to climate change – Greenlight editor Marie Low checks out an ambitious ecovillage in south-west WA. 

Is it feasible to live off-grid and still enjoy the comforts of community and modern living? Nearly 30 years ago, Mike Hulme wanted to know the answer. Today, his vision – Witchcliffe Ecovillage – has just launched stage 4 of a project that could see up to 1,000 people living in a community that is 100% self-sufficient in renewable energy, water and organic fresh produce. >> READ MORE

“A 350-home ecovillage in Witchcliffe in the South West – believed to be the most sustainable development in the world – is drawing buyers from across the globe.” >> READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

Urban Development Institute of Australia (WA) interviewed Jeff Thierfelder, Planning and Architecture Manager at the Witchcliffe Ecovillage, for its quarterly member magazine, The Urbanist. >> READ MORE HERE

With the aim of facilitating a unique retirement alongside a close-knit and like-minded community, work on the Kyloring Housing Co-operative has begun near Margaret River. The community will occupy a pocket neighbourhood of 25 homes and a collection of shared facilities within the larger Witchcliffe Ecovillage – a residential co-housing community under development by Sustainable Settlements and Perron Group.
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While in the depths of winter it can be easy to forget the heat of summer, forward planning for summers to come is integral. With devastating bushfires unfortunately a reality for many parts of Australia, Curtin University Sustainability Policy Institute Professor Peter Newman warned there needed to be more thought and action around how to prevent these blazes from damaging properties and putting lives at risk. 
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Jeff Thierfelder, Planning and Architecture Manager at Sustainable Settlements, was invited to present the Witchcliffe Ecovillage project at the Planning Institute of Australia Regional Forum in Margaret River in June 2021. At just under an hour long, this is much more than simply a project overview. He opens with a brief exploration of social connection and cultural change through human evolution. The Ecovillage, he contends, proposes a shift in mindset from one of isolation to connection, scarcity to abundance and extraction to stewardship of the land. >> WATCH IT HERE

Pip and Cate from local community internet radio station, Radio Margaret River (RMR), interviewed Ecovillage Communications and Marketing Manager, Jo Thierfelder, on 4 June 2021. Click here to listen to the podcast and start the broadcast at 16:24 mins for the Ecovillage interview.

‘All The Dirt’ podcast presenter Steve Wood spoke to Witchcliffe Ecovillage staff members Jo Thierfelder (Communications and Marketing Manager) and Mark Tupman (Horticulture Manager) on 27 May 2021.
>> LISTEN TO THE FULL BROADCAST

The world is beating a path to the door of Cottesloe ideas man Mike Hulme. His idea, now becoming a reality, was to create a unique, friendly village that was self sufficient in renewable energy, water and fresh food from community gardens. >> Download the full article

Witchcliffe Ecovillage will con­tinue to grow after councillors last week unanimously backed measures proposed on the grounds of affordable housing. >> READ THE FULL ARTICLE

WA Afternoons presenter with Christine Layton interviews Curtin University’s Professor of Sustainability, Peter Newman on ABC Radio Perth on 9 April 2021. Click here to listen to the full broadcast.

Urban planner and designer Mike Day has touted Witchcliffe’s Ecovillage as the way of the future for the South West. With housing affordability and supply issues impacting many residents within the region, Mr Day said the Ecovillage was a great example of what should be done more often with new housing developments. >> READ MORE