Harbour Trust tenants and partners pioneering positive environmental change (blog)

As Earth Day (22 April) approaches, we are putting a spotlight on Harbour Trust tenants who have a shared vision for positive impact on the environment.

Frenchy's Café in Georges Heights, Headland Park

One of the advantages of visiting or living in Sydney is access to the magnificent harbour and bushlands, Frenchy's Café is a lovely place to appreciate this from. To celebrate Earth Day, Frenchy's will offer a 10% coffee discount for anyone that brings in their own reusable coffee cup between 17 to 23 April. The cafe recycles all used coffee grounds, you'll see the neatly presented bags out front for people to take home, use in gardens as fertiliser or make a homemade body exfoliant scrub! To date, Frenchy's has recycled approximately 20,000 kilos (2 tonnes) of used coffee grounds instead of sending it to landfill.

Koskela at Sub Base Platypus, North Sydney

Koskela was founded by partners Russel Koskela and Sasha Titchkosky in 2000, who are on a journey to shake things up in the furniture world. Located at new Harbourside precinct, Sub Base Platypus in North Sydney, Koskela is an inspiring and innovative Australian furniture brand, who's core purpose is 'Designing for Good', and are committed to a circular economy. Part of Koskela's transformation to circularity, Koskela as launched its own reuse platform: ReHome. Their ReHome program lets you trade in and buy refurbished pre-loved Koskela furniture at a reduced price (up to -30%), so it can be continued to be cherished for years to come.

The Sydney Institute of Marine Science (SIMS) in Chowder Bay / Gooree, Headland Park

The White's seahorse (Hippocampus whitei), usual to Australia's east coast, is currently facing significant threats from habitat loss, pollution and climate change, leading to alarming population declines. This endangered species has become the focus of a critical conservation effort known as the Sydney Seahorse Project (SSP). In 2023, the SIMS project celebrated the release of 384 'super' seahorses back into the wild at Chowder Bay. Early monitoring results have been promising, with the 6-month post-release survey accounting for an abundance of our captive-bred seahorses and demonstrating significant survivorship. Even more exciting, 20 tagged males were spotted pregnant, each expected to give birth to 150-200 seahorse fry, giving us hope for the future generations. Now that is something to celebrate this Earth Day!

Farmhouse Montessori in North Head Sanctuary in Manly

Providing hands-on experience and a tangible connection to nature, in 2022 the Harbour Trust and North Head Sanctuary Foundation organised native species including trees (blueberry ash Elaeocarpus reticulatas and Wallum Banksia Banksia aemula), shrubs and scramblers (eggs and bacon Dillwynia retorta, blue dampiera Dampiera stricta, variable bossiaea Bossiaea heterophylla, wedge Guinea flower Hibbertia diffusa, variable Guinea flower Hibbertia linearis and rusty velvet bush Lasiopetalum ferrugineum) for Farmhouse Montessoristudents to plant at North Head Sanctuary. The plants have been establishing naturally, protected by plant guards to eventually reach their full growth potential in their natural environment.

Want to learn more about how we're celebrating Earth Day, everyday? Read about our green initiatives here.