WELCOME!
We've had a steady stream of new users sign up to the SustainaBundy discussion list and website - I'd like to welcome all of you and thank you for your interest in a sustainable Bundaberg. If you read the front page of the site you know that our overall goal is relocalisation: reducing consumption and producing and sourcing daily needs as locally as possible as a response to fossil fuel depletion and climate change. Please see our blogs, forums, news and events to participate in discussions or to start one of your own. We discuss issues related to education, food, energy, transport, waste, economy and SustainaBundy publicity. You can read about our planned activities and subgroups here. If you have any questions about how to use the website, don't hesitate to contact me!

INTRODUCTIONS
I'd appreciate it if our subscribers could introduce themselves - tell us a little about yourself, how you found out about us, where your sustainability interests lie, and anything else you care to share. To jump in, simply hit "reply" to this email, or if you're reading this online, you can click "add comment" in this thread. Collectively we can accomplish a lot if we put our heads together and all participate!

EMAIL MANAGEMENT
As our numbers grow, the daily volume of emails will also grow - but if it gets to be too much, you don't have to unsubscribe! You can click on my subscription in the upper right of the website to switch to digest, which should send you one email each day containing all of the discussions from the day. If even that is too much, you can also choose "web only" - that means you'll still be subscribed but you won't receive discussion emails - you'll have to remember to read the discussions online. You will still receive special email notices from me. (**NOTE: if you don't see these options, it's because you chose the "Always send email notifications" option when you set up your account. You can change this by going to "my account" in the User Menu on the right and clicking on the "edit" tab. Then scroll down to the "Organic groups settings" and choose "Selectively send email notification based on the checkbox for each of my group's My Subscription page.")

Please if you reply to an email, remove the unnecessary previous text before you hit "send". This helps ensure the conversations are readable on the website! Also, please don't post one or two word responses or extranneous, offtopic wordiness. We're all very busy and the discussion needs to be relevant and useful.

MEMBERSHIP
As anyone can sign up and participate in these discussions, it is important to remember that website users are not SustainaBundy members - click here to learn about the benefits of membership in SustainaBundy and how to join.

INVOLVEMENT
Talk is cheap! We hope that by coming to our discussion list, you are armed with good ideas for relocalising the Bundaberg region that you yourself are willing to implement. We already have a long list of goals and activities that we're gradually implementing, and we're a small group - so we're up to our elbows in busy! If you have an idea for someone that we should talk to or something we should do, the best way you can help is by getting the ball rolling. Make that call on our behalf, or lay the groundwork for the idea in advance. Take responsibility, get involved and commit yourself to making it happen!

CONDUCT
All members, please remember that this is a public forum and any number of important people are reading it at any time, subscribed or not, vocal or not - this includes councilors, professionals, business owners, young people, older people, supporters, detractors, experts, amateurs and everyone in between. Each is important, each has something to contribute, and most are very busy. Treat one another with diplomacy, politeness and respect. State your case intelligently. Those behaving inappropriately will be warned or removed from the group.

Thanks in advance for your cooperation and participation, and again, welcome all to the SustainaBundy discussion list!