We aim to tell the interesting and important stories of your neighbourhoods, to keep residents informed about the events, activities and important issues happening in your area.
We want to share information, celebrate talent and achievements, stimulate discussion and report on the many things that affect your everyday life.
Let us know your thoughts or submit a contribution by emailing us at eastsidernews1@gmail.com. We will always acknowledge that we have received your contribution. If you don’t receive an acknowledgment within two to three days, please contact us.
Advertising with Eastsider News
We encourage local businesses and organisations to advertise with us. Check out our rates here. We’re sure you’ll agree they are very reasonable.
We also encourage our readers and supporters to check out the businesses and organisations that advertise with us. They are an essential part of our local economy and contribute to the growth and prosperity of our region.
Click here to open the latest edition of Eastsider News
You can then choose to read it immediately or to download and save it to your device so you can read it later at your leisure
Stop Press
We have discovered there is a problem with some of the hyperlinks in this edition of Eastsider News, on a particular brand of tablet. If you find a missing link, then click here to find the correct address.
For example, on page 46, we have published part of an article by Malcolm Cameron with a link to the full article on our website. We have become aware that these links do not work on some devices. We don’t want you to miss the chance to read the complete article Strange Things about Particles, so click here to take you to the full bit. Go here for the link to this year’s Boyer Lectures by Prof Michelle Simmons.
We have tested the links on several PCs, mobile phones and other brands of tablets and they all function correctly. If you have any thoughts about the cause of the problem, we’d appreciate you letting us know at eastsidernews1@gmail.com
Send us your contributions and comments
Eastsider News is made up mainly of content supplied by the people who live, work or play in our local region. Without those contributions, we would not exist. We continue to be delighted by the quality, diversity and depth of the material our local friends and supporters send us for each edition.
You can read our writing guidelines on the dropdown menu under the Home Page tab. If you’re not in the mood for writing a longer article, maybe you could write a Letter to the Editor? No more than 250 words and please, be polite, positive and helpful. The editorial team is made up of a small group of volunteers and we are delighted by the supportive comments we receive. Send your contributions to eastsidernews1@gmail.com.
Science is everybody’s business
Are you someone who is curious about the world around you, stands in wonder or bemusement watching and listening to what is happening in nature? Then you have the makings of a scientist, a person who is looking to discover how this beautiful world works.
Over time Eastsider News has published articles on scientific matters. We have brought together these articles as a post on our Eastsider Extra blog here.
Whitehorse Easy Ride Routes
A WATAG survey so YOU can have your say
Whitehorse Active Transport Advocacy Group wants to find out what you know about Whitehorse Council’s Easy Ride Routes (ERRs)
- Have you heard about them or seen them?
- Do you know what they are for?
- What are your views about them?
No matter how you choose to travel about in Whitehorse, we’d like to know your views. To complete the survey, click this link https://tinyurl.com/35yrwy9n or use this QR Code for instant access. 
The survey closes on 15 December 2023 when the prizes will be drawn. Winners notified by email. To reward you for taking the time to respond to our survey, we’ve arranged with some local traders to offer a range of prizes which we’ll randomly award to some lucky survey participants.
Check this link https://tinyurl.com/yrckw5nu for some of the great prizes you could win simply by participating. You can find out more about WATAG at http://watag.org.
Rotary Hawthorn’s Annual Service to Senior’s Award
Call for Nominations
Rotary Hawthorn recognises the contribution of those who provide outstanding service in a voluntary capacity to older members of our Boroondara community.
We invite you to nominate someone for our Annual Service to Senior’s Award
The Nominee needs to be:
- An adult living and/or working in Boroondara.
- Show commitment to making a difference for a senior by using empathy, respect, knowledge, training and experience.
- Be a role model for volunteers working with seniors.
- Be available to receive award and share their story at the Rotary Hawthorn Presentation Event at 12.30 pm on Tuesday, 19 March 2024 at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club.
Nominations need to be received by 5 pm Friday, 16 February 2024. The Nomination form can be downloaded from https://www.hawthornrotary.org.au/
Can you help?
The Eastsider News team is always looking for people to join its team. We can’t pay you but we can offer you lots of interesting experiences, and loads of opportunities to use your particular skills. If you are interested in volunteering with us, please contact us at eastsidernews1@gmail.com.
An urgent call from the Eastsider News team
At the moment, we urgently need volunteers to fill the position of Advertising Manager.
Your main task as Advertising Manager will be to contact local businesses and local politicians who may be interested in advertising with us. The person doing this job will be a valued member of our team as we rely on advertising revenue to cover our costs and maintain our longevity.
Key requirements include an interest in meeting and working with a diverse array of people, time to make connections with potential advertisers, and an understanding of the important part local business plays within a community.
Please put up your hand so that we can keep Eastsider News operating. You will be included in our editorial team who meet about once a month. Email us at eastsidernews1@gmail.com and we will be happy to discuss the job and answer any questions.
Support our local community groups
We continue to be surprised by the number of community groups that exist in our catchment area. we are very fortunate that so many people actively and voluntarily participate in enriching our community in so many different ways.
There are the many service and support groups who provide such a range of high quality services to support many in our community who need a bit of help when life gets difficult. It is important to remember that these groups rely on the generosity of their community to provide these services.
Our region has many vibrant sporting clubs that contribute much to our local communities. Let us help publicise what is happening with your local club.
Our Community Links page provides information and links for you to investigate some of these groups. They cover:
- Community Services
- Community Action Groups
- Support Groups
- Environmental Groups
- Service Organisations
- Educational resources
- English Conversation Classes
- Sharing your interests and developing your skills
- Getting active
- Music, movies and other marvelous entertainments
- Getting to know your local area
Recent additions to our Community Links page include:
- Mont Albert Probus where you can make new friends, listen to interesting guest speakers, learn a new skill, explore new interests and hobbies.
Your opportunity to have your say about what is happening in your local government area
Local government is an important layer of Australia’s democracy. We encourage you to participate in the work of your local council by responding to their calls for submissions on matters they have under consideration. Listed here are links to the engagement sites for Whitehorse, Boroondara, Manningham and Maroondah. Other ways to participate include attending regular council meetings and making contact with your local councillor. Details are readily available on the website for each council.
The Voice to Parliament
It is with deep sadness that we accept the result of the Voice Referendum. We thank the people who wrote articles on this issue for publication in Eastsider News. They were well argued and heartfelt calls for Australia to accept the generous and gracious offer given by Indigenous people in the Uluru Statement of the Heart.
Before the nation moves on to more everyday matters, we ask that all Australians take the time to think about what has happened and the lessons to be learnt from this exercise. In particular, why does this outcome seem so out of tune with the much lauded ‘Australian values’ of kindness, decency, generosity, open heartedness, courage and equality of opportunity? The outcome suggests that this may be simply a myth we tell ourselves to be reassured we are bonza blokes and sheilas.
We have collected together the articles we published in Eastsider News on the Voice to Parliament as a post in our Eastsider Extra blog here.
Celebrating our neighbourhoods
Eastsider News covers many strong and interesting neighbourhoods in the eastern areas of Melbourne with which people have strong connections over time. We want to celebrate these neighbourhoods and to help people get to know them better. For articles on Whitehorse heritage and the Faces of Greythorn, click here.
Whitehorse Heritage
One of our contributors, Hasan Hassan has established a very interesting website called Whitehorse Heritage. Hasan’s website is a wonderful source of information on all things to do with the history and heritage matters in the City of Whitehorse. It is the ideal place to start if you want to know how the area has changed over time and gives important leads on what to do if you have concerns about threats to this heritage.
Surrey Hill Reminiscences
One of our correspondents, Gillian Bell has written several interesting articles about life in Surrey Hills, a pleasant and community minded suburb in our region. Please go here to read her meditations on life as a child, changing times and her story of Hector.
Art Students at Box Hill High School re-imagine Australia’s most famous art exhibition.
Did you know that Box Hill is the birth place of Australian Impressionism? It all started in 1886 when Tom Roberts and Frederick McCubbin journeyed from their Flinders Street studios and caught the train to the last stop on the train line.
They set up camp every weekend for 2 years painting the bush around Gardiner’s Creek. It was their friend Louie Abrahams who gave them dozens of 9×5″ cigar box lids and they used them to paint the first ever Australian Impressionist paintings exhibited at Buxton Rooms in 1889.
Year 10 students from Box Hill High have visited the local artist trail (a historical walk orchestrated by the City of Whitehorse) to paint the suburban sprawl that has since replaced the rugged bush lands of times gone by. Artworks can be viewed online at the Box Hill High School Art Instagram account after 5 September.
To read more, go here.
A brochure on the artists’ trail is available here. For more about the artists’ camp, go here.
Box Hill Railway Station. Frederick McCubbin
Local Heroes
We have set up the Local Heroes page to tell the stories of people who have contributed to our communities. We would love to tell more of these stories. If you know of someone who should be acknowledged, please send us their story. But, please make sure firstly that they have given you their permission to do so.
Thank you, Max and Ruth
Our very handsome four legged correspondent, Maximillian von Schnauzer, has decided to call it a day. The August 2023 edition was his final column. Max has become a firm favourite amongst our editorial team and many of our readers.
We want to express our gratitude to Ruth, his two legged companion for keeping us updated on his perambulations with such liveliness and good humour. We will miss them both and wish them all the best for their future strolls around the neighbourhood and further afield. 
And don’t forget, if you see a good looking black and silver Schnauzer with a red collar on your walks, say hello.
Acknowledgement of Country
Independent Community News Group Inc acknowledges the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation, Traditional Owners and Custodians of the lands and waters of the Eastsider News focus area, and pays respect to their Elders past, present and emerging.
To learn more about the rich culture and traditions of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people, we encourage you to explore their website here.
Disclaimer
Eastsider News is a means by which people in Whitehorse, Boroondara and adjacent areas can share information, opinions and experiences. A spread of interests and views that reflects the diversity of people in the area is encouraged, but views expressed in Eastsider News by individual writers do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors, Independent Community News Group Incorporated, or any other organisation.
Copyright © 2022. Copyright rests equally with the named authors and Independent Community News Group Incorporated. All rights are reserved but, consistent with the community spirit of the venture, a Commons approach to reproducing material is taken on the understanding that it is accompanied by an attribution which refers to both Eastsider News and the author, and a copy of the reproduction is sent to eastsidernews1@gmail.com. Responsibility for material related to elections is taken by named authors and Independent Community News Group Incorporated. We accept advertising in good faith, but readers need to apply caveat emptor.
Thank you
We have a number of very generous regular donors who are absolutely essential to our survival. Also essential are our regular advertisers. Thank you to these beautiful people without whom we would not exist.
Go to our donation page here if you want to help us in this way. To find out about advertising with us, go here.
Two people that work hard to make Eastsider News possible are our graphic designer Greg Loveder and Robert Dark, our website host at Web Genius. Greg is the person who puts his heart into giving the newspaper that polish that our readers always comment on. Robert is always ready to help us solve any technical difficulties. Thank you Greg and Robert for your magnificent support.
We are always looking for people to help us produce the newspaper or to contribute content. Please contact us by email at eastsidernews1@gmail.com