We acknowledge that racism continues to be a reality for many people in Victoria. This event provides an opportunity to hear from people who have explored this topic extensively with local communities, and those with lived experience.

Tackling Racism is an event to mark United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Manningham Council has partnered with Victoria University on a project mapping racism where it occurs, understanding the reporting barriers and supporting the needs of people who experience it.

Come along to hear Dr Mario Peucker, Associate Professor and Principal Research Fellow, share his findings from the report. Lingzhi Ruan, from Womens Health East, will talk about their anti-racism project Taking Action to Combat Racism with Mandarin speaking women. The event will also feature a panel consisting of local community members and the Eastern Community Legal Centre sharing their insights and experiences on tackling racism and promoting equality.

Head to Heide Museum of Modern Art for Molto Italiano! 

Heide’s two-day community festival celebrating Italian culture and showcasing the exhibition Molto Bello: Icons of Modern Italian Design. Activating the whole of the Heide site, this festival offers something for everyone. 

Molto Italiano! will have activities for all ages, from lawn bocce to art making, pop-up exhibition talks in Italian and English, an ‘Art Bambini’ program for the little ones with Heide’s art therapist, and an Italian-themed ‘Design Roadshow’ where visitors can bring an Italian design object from home for expert assessment. Authentic Italian food and drink will be on offer throughout, including pizza, pasta, gelato, spritz, and more from specialised food trucks as well as Heide Kitchen. Italian bands will add atmosphere, along with traditional Italian songs from the Veneto Club choir. 

Celebrate all things Italian this summer with Heide!

Manningham Youth Services presents All Abilities, All Stars - a basketball event for young people to celebrate inclusion and diversity, as part of Youth Fest 2025. 

With the help of Active Manningham and Doncaster All Abilities Basketball, this all abilities, all stars event will be a full day of 3 v 3 basketball, mini games, free shooting, and fun for all young people aged 12 to 25 years.

• 10am to 12.30pm -  casual shooting, stall holders, mini games and more
• 1.00pm - 4.30pm - 3 V 3 competition

Please note: Competitions will be split by age and gender:

• boys - 12 to 14 years
• girls - 12 to 14 years
• boys - 15 to 17 years
• girls - 15 to 17 years
• mixed - 18 plus years

You will be contacted after registration with a form for team sign ups.

Join a free tour to explore the Bio Gro organics facility.

Discover where Manningham’s food and garden waste is transformed into compost as part of our Food Organics Garden Organics (FOGO) service.

You can see first-hand how your food and garden waste is processed with the chance to ask questions along the way.

Important information:

• Closed-toe shoes must worn on the day.
• Participants must be 18 years or older.
• Please note that there are stairs leading to the decontamination line, which may not be suitable for individuals with limited mobility.

Where to meet:

The tour includes bus transport to and from the Bio Gro organics facility in Dandenong South.

The tour will depart and return to the Manningham Civic Centre at 699 Doncaster Road, Doncaster 3108.

Registration is essential as spots are limited.*

*Due to limited numbers, please note this event is for Manningham residents only. 

The Red Gum Café located in the Manningham Uniting Church and Community Centre, has now been accredited by Dementia Australia as being Dementia Friendly. 

The Red Gum Café has been established as an accessible and safe environment for people living with dementia, and their carers and families, with staff having successfully undertaken training to help people living with dementia to enjoy social and community connections. 

The café is open Tuesday to Friday, 9.00am to 3.30pm, and on Saturdays from 9.00am to 2.00pm.

A support group for carers assisting people living with dementia currently meets in the café on the first Friday of every month, at 1.30pm.

Please note: The Friday group is established and no new participants will be added. New additional meeting days and times will be arranged for those wanting to attend and connect. 

Please contact the Church Hub to express your interest to join a new group.

Meeting Date: 27 September 2021
Meeting Time: 8:30pm 
Location: Closed virtual meeting

Notice is given that a confidential Council meeting of the Manningham City Council will be held virtually on Monday, 27 September 2021 at 8:30pm.  

This meeting is called pursuant to sub-rule 12.1 of Manningham’s Governance Rules and the meeting will be closed to the public to consider a confidential item in accordance with sections 66(1) & 66(2)(a) of the Local Government Act 2020.

The business to be transacted at this meeting is for Council to consider a potential land acquisition.  This information is confidential Council business information, as the information would prejudice the Council’s position in commercial negotiations if prematurely released.  

Andrew Day
Chief Executive Officer

Take part in one of the largest Citizen Science projects in the world while contributing valuable information about Manningham’s biodiversity.

About the City Nature Challenge

In this worldwide BioBlitz, cities compete to observe the most species by the most people.

Manningham is collaborating with more than 25 local governments to form the Greater Melbourne project.

How to participate

During this four-day challenge, take photos of plants or animals and upload them to iNaturalist.

Your observations will be added to the Manningham iNaturalist projects (Manningham East or Manningham West) so that we can compete with participants from across Melbourne and around the world.

All data is added to Australia’s database of plants and animals, helping scientists with their research to improve outcomes for our environment.

Steps to prepare 

1. Install the iNaturalist app on your mobile phone and create an iNaturalist account.
2. Join the Melbourne City Nature Challenge 2025: Greater Melbourne Project.  
3. Start adding your observations.

Taking its name from the unofficial description of the present day epoch which has seen human activity dramatically impact the earth's climate and ecology, this exhibition is the expression of four artists' efforts to record, reflect upon and potentially enact change in how humanity views and interacts with the world.

Shifting the Anthropocene features the work of Lesley Duxbury, Ruth Johnstone, Rosie Weiss and Stephen Wickham, who have variously photographed underwater ecosystems and stunning 400 year old eucalypts, and collected and drawn remnants of plants destroyed by bushfire, amongst other creative acts.

The works are descriptions of the immediate and personal effects of climate change as the artists have witnessed them. They also pivot to celebrate instances where individuals and communities have saved endangered species or enacted changes in environment laws through collective effort, thereby giving a hopeful and positive tenor to the exhibition overall.

Installation view of artworks by Lesley Duxbury. Photo by Charlie Kinross.

Join us at Currawong Bush Park to learn about local wildlife and come face to face with local animals of Manningham.

Recommended for children aged 5 to 12 years, the Manningham Junior Ranger Program is designed to get young environmentalists out and active in our local environment.

Activities include:

• Go on a bush park discovery walk with Environment Officers as they explore why Currawong Bush Park is known as the best little wilderness in town
• Survive a live wildlife show presented by Reptile Encounters
• Experience nature as a place to play, imagine, relax and explore.

Participant information:

• Children must be supervised by a parent or guardian at all times. Please arrive 10 minutes prior to start time.
• Come prepared and dress for the weather on the day. Please wear closed-toed footwear.
• Don’t forget to bring a snack and water bottle for morning tea.
• In the event of extreme weather, this event will be cancelled.
• Currawong Bush Park is protected habitat, dogs are not permitted in the park at any time.

Take part in one of the largest Citizen Science projects in the world while contributing valuable information about Manningham’s biodiversity.

About the City Nature Challenge

The City Nature Challenge runs from Friday 25 April to Monday 28 April 2025.

In this worldwide BioBlitz, cities compete to make the most observations of the most species by the most people.

Manningham is collaborating with more than 25 local governments to form the Greater Melbourne project.

How to participate

It is free, easy and fun to get involved.

During the 4-day window of this challenge, take photos of plants or animals and upload it to iNaturalist.

Your observations will be added to the Manningham iNaturalist projects (Manningham East or Manningham West) so that we can compete with participants from across Melbourne and all over the world. 

All data gets added to Australia’s database of plants and animals, helping scientists with their research to improve outcomes for our environment.

To prepare for the challenge:

1. Install the iNaturalist app on your mobile phone and create an iNaturalist account.
2. Join the Melbourne City Nature Challenge 2025: Greater Melbourne Project.  
3. Start adding your observations.

Join now 

By improving your home's efficiency, you can lower your bills and create a more comfortable home for your family.

Interested in making your home more comfortable and energy efficient, but don’t know where to start?

Our expert presenter Lucinda has worked with hundreds of households to improve their home's comfort and energy efficiency.

Instead of focusing on how to upgrade, Lucinda will help you review the strengths and weaknesses of your own home, so that you feel confident about where to start and how to prioritise your efforts.

During the session, we’ll talk about:

• how heat moves in and out of homes, so you can identify the areas creating heat movement (loss or gain)
• home upgrades that can reduce heat movement such as draught sealing, insulation, window treatments, glazing, frames and shading 
• identify the most important upgrades for your home
• review and rank your major appliances in terms of age, efficiency and need for upgrade

There will be time for questions throughout, so you can understand what matters and why.

We will also provide a matching data collection sheet to take home, plus additional resources, so that you can gather further information and pinpoint areas you need to investigate further.

One week after this event, join an optional one hour online Q&A, where you can ask all of those questions you forgot to ask or didn't realise you needed to! 

Registrations are essential.

• This workshop is funded by Manningham Council and hosted in partnership with Ajani Neighbourhood House.

Power up a cleaner future

This event is part of our Electrify Your Life program, which supports residents to go all-electric at home, creating a brighter Manningham. Learn how to make the switch at Electrify Your Life.

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Manningham Art Gallery is excited to present Gosia Wlodarczak's A Space of Facial Deconstruction. 

Over a five-day onsite performance, Gosia will create a large-scale drawing installation spanning across the interior of Gallery One. 

The gallery environment and self-portraits submitted by Manningham residents are translated into shapes through Gosia’s senses. In a continuous process of meeting, overlapping and collision - in endless movement, the ongoing change and exchange will create a drawing installation over the period of the performance.

The result will be a stunning group portrait of the Manningham community.

View the performance

• Visit the gallery between 11.00am to 5.00pm from Tuesday 29 November to Saturday 3 December to watch Gosia's drawing performance

View the completed artwork

• Visit the gallery during regular opening hours up from Wednesday 7 December to Saturday 17 December to see the completed artwork.

During your visit to the gallery, you can also explore A Fragment of the Infinite Magnificence by Zahra Marsous in Gallery Two. 

For further information on submitting your self-portrait and getting involved, please visit Gosia Wlodarczak: A Space of Facial Deconstruction.

Photo Credit: Longin Sarnecki

The Manningham Junior Ranger Program is designed to get young environmentalists out and active in our local environment.

Go on a bush park discovery walk with Environment Officers as they explore why Currawong Bush Park is known as the best little wilderness in town.

Survive a live wildlife show presented by Wild Action, the Zoo that comes to you.

Experience nature as a place to play, imagine, relax and explore.

Important information:

• Children must be supervised by a parent or guardian at all times. Please arrive 10 minutes prior to start time.
• Come prepared and dress for the weather on the day. Please wear closed-toed footwear.
• Don’t forget to bring a snack and water bottle for morning tea.
• In the event of extreme weather, this event will be cancelled.
• Currawong Bush Park is protected habitat, dogs are not permitted in the park at any time.

Meeting place:

Currawong Bush Park, Environment Education Centre. 

This event is part our Manningham Spring Outdoors Series, where we offer a range of fun outdoor activities across Manningham.

You can also check what’s happening across other Councils by visiting the Spring Outdoors website.

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Keep up to date with our latest environment and sustainability events.

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We've installed another, brand-new exercise station at Ruffey Lake Park! Learn how to use the new equipment by trying a workout with a qualified instructor.

This station is off Cricklewood Drive, up the hill from the Church Road car park along the Hilltops Circuit path.

Every session will begin with a demonstration by a qualified instructor on how to use the outdoor fitness equipment. 

The sessions are 1 hour long and are recommended for those with a beginner to moderate fitness level. Anyone can use this outdoor gym to improve their strength, fitness, and coordination.

How to get there: This station is best accessed through the Church Road car park. From there, walk up the hill toward Cricklewood Drive.

On the day, please make sure to:

• dress in activewear
• bring a drink bottle
• wear sunscreen

Belgravia Leisure is committed to doing everything they can to keep everyone safe. Equipment will be wiped down before and after use and hand sanitizer will be available during the session. Instructors delivering these sessions are fully vaccinated. You are not required to wear a mask, however if you wish to wear one please do so. Please do not attend if you are feeling unwell.

Join Scott Hitchins as he returns to the Strathdon kitchen to create some of our, soon to be hot favourite, comfort dishes.

With a focus on low waste cooking, Scott will teach participants the techniques to create delicious winter warmers using every bit of what you grow or buy.

The focus in this session will be on using vegetables from the garden and an overview for slow style cooking that you can try at home.

You will be provided with a sample of what is cooked on the day and digital notes to try some of Scott’s recipes at home.

What to wear: Suitable clothing for getting your hands dirty in the kitchen and closed toe shoes.
What to bring: an apron (optional)
Who: Adults or teens

About Scott

Scott Hitchins has been working with sustainable, food-producing gardens for most of his life.

He has qualifications in biological science, permaculture design, education, and is a founding member of Werribee Park Heritage Orchard.

Scott has been providing popular workshops and garden-design advice to local councils, schools, and other community groups for many years.

He presents useful facts and skills in a fun and engaging manner. To quote Scott in a recent interview “Get me talking about sustainable gardening and you’ll never shut me up.”

Join local ecologist John Harris as he takes you on a journey through Warrandyte State Park’s Fourth Hill.

John will undertake a bird survey and help you identify birds found in the Warrandyte area. 

Walk rating: 3km moderate walk, includes steep and narrow sections, creek crossing, slippery sections and tripping hazards.

Food and snacks

A light breakfast will be provided at the end of the walk. 

If you have any special dietary requirements, we recommend bringing your own food and snacks. 

What to bring and wear 

Bring a water bottle, wear solid shoes, weather appropriate clothing and bring your own binoculars so you don't miss a thing!

Download the Aussie Bird Count Smartphone Application on Android and Apple before the walk and bring your smartphone on the day.

Where to meet

The meeting place will be at Gold Memorial Drive Picnic Ground. 10 minutes before the walk starts.

Please note: the nature walk could be cancelled due to extreme weather.

This event is part our Manningham Spring Outdoors Series, where we offer a range of fun outdoor activities across Manningham.

You can also check what’s happening across other Councils by visiting the Spring Outdoors website.

Subscribe to our Environment Newsletter

Keep up to date with our latest environment and sustainability events.

Subscribe now