The toll on wildlife throughout the eastern states of Australia has been high, but many small and large wildlife care organisations are trying to rescue and care for injured and orphaned wildlife with limited resources. These organisations will need help for many months to come so regular donations would be appreciated

Eco Discoverers Kids Club is run each Friday afternoon 3.30-5.30pm during term time. Email ecodiscoverers@gecko.org.au to enquire further

On the 29 October 2019, Gecko celebrates its 30th anniversary. The organisation is planning a year long calendar of celebrations to mark the occasion. Gecko is a volunteer, not-for-profit, non-party-political organisation operating on a volunteer base of approximately 100 active volunteers. The organisation is steered by a Management Committee which is elected once a year at an Annual General Meeting. There has been a lot of activity at Gecko over the past 30 years. Apart from campaigning, Gecko educates approximately a thousand of children and students annually through GeckoEd. coordinates Clean Up Australia Day on the Gold Coast, Gold Coast Green Week, Annual Environmental Awards, monthly Gecko Talks as well as participate and host numerous one-off events. We also operate a variety of field work and citizen science activities such as Elanora, Tarrabora and Nicoll Scrub bushcare groups and Clean Creeks water testing program. Gecko is in the process of starting two new citizen science projects; Cane Toad Challenge and Osprey Nesting Platform monitoring at Currumbin Creek beachfront. Gecko is also the major shareholder in Regen Australia, a regeneration company on the Gold Coast, and as such involved in the overseeing the operations of the business.

Following several letters from Gecko asking about the future of The Spit master Plan the Government finally put forward a Bill “The Implementation of The Spit Master Plan” and called for submissions from the public which closed on 16th December 2019. Gecko made a submission

Gecko is generally pleased with the result with the exception that Philip Park is still at risk of being taken over by the cruise ship terminal. Since the completion of the Master Plan the Government has committed $60 million to its implementation over 4 years and recently announced initial expenditure of $6.8 million to improve access to the Spit.

Cruise Ship Terminal – Now Called the Oceanside Terminal – the next stage In the 2019-2020 Council Budget a sum of $1.2 million was allocated to continue to gather information for various reports on the cruise terminal and an Initial

An innovative program to plant koala trees on golf courses has been developed by Helensvale Green group leader David Cuschieri. David has convinced the managers of the Arundel golf course that they can help the local koala population by planting food trees along the sides of the fairways. Golf courses are small havens of green in our city and often link remaining patches of bushland while providing safe, car free places to live, feed and breed

Birthday Parties with a difference. Let EcoDiscoverers make your child’s next birthday party an awesome adventure to share with their friends. Choose from a range of programs where they can learn, while exploring the secrets of Mother Nature. Supervised by qualified, experienced Gecko Ed staff and Suitable for children 5 – 9 years. Each Kids Party is $210 for up to 14 children. We can cater for larger groups and every child above this number incurs a fee of $15 extra per child. In inclement weather, an alternative location is available.

Are you looking for something active, loaded with educational fun and a little bit different for the children to enjoy during school holidays? Then look no further than GeckoEd’s super popular EcoDiscoverers’ school holiday program. A lifelong interest in the amazing Gold Coast environment could begin with an EcoDiscoverer adventure. Held in the sheltered Currumbin Estuary with the low cost of $10 per child per session, with small class sizes and available for children 5 – 9 years. Our programs are conducted by experienced Teachers with Blue cards in a safe, nurturing environment with lots of fun, games, stories and hands on activities. Parents may accompany their children to share in the wonderful experience that is, EcoDiscoverers. Bookings are essential. These programs often sell out quickly so don’t delay in enrolling in your course and date of choice. Programs run from 9am – 11am (unless otherwise stated) and all children are required to bring a water bottle, morning tea, hat, sunscreen and a sense of adventure. Other EcoDiscoverers’ programs include a Kids Club every Friday afternoon during the school term as well as Birthday Parties based around our EcoDiscoverers’ activities. If you would like more information email: EcoDiscoverers@gecko.org.au or phone Cheryl 0400 703 898 and one of the Team will contact you.

The public consultation period for the Coomera Connector (southern section), or M2 as some call it, will begin on Saturday 9th November, from 7am –3pm at Carrara Markets. This is the first of several opportunities for the public to see where the Coomera Connector, Stage 1, will go and to discuss its impacts with residents who live along the route and those with other concerns.