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Laughter
Laughter yoga is part of everyday life to Kim O’Meara
Serena Kirby. Laughter yoga is part of everyday life to Kim O'Meara ... Since becoming a laughter yoga facilitator Kim has guided tens of thousands of people in therapeutic laughter sessions ... her work in Rwanda is undoubtedly the most remarkable.
Housing - SA
Housing crises affects businesses
Businesses from all sectors in the Tatiara District—whether trades, diesel mechanics, car dealers, agricultural machinery and supplies, manufacturing, or engineering—with five or 500 staff are unable to grow, or in some cases operate at capacity, because there is no accommodation available to house the staff they need to attract. This is the situation facing the district, council chief executive officer Anne Champness has told The News.
Rare earths - SA
Mining battle
Proposed mining for rare earths elements in the Limestone Coast is facing opposition from local producers and residents. Many sections of the community are concerned about how mining would impact production in one of the state's key agricultural regions.
Joint Committee - SA
Climate and energy
Regional air
JEV - Vic
JEV - Qld
Worrisome mosquito-borne virus detected
There has been a confirmed case of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) in a man who visited Yelarbon in the Goondiwindi Region during the Christmas period ... Darling Downs Health is urging all community members around the Goondiwindi region to ensure they are vaccinated against JEV.
Health - Vic
Health networks: mixed reactions
News that the State Government had grouped health services into Local Health Service Networks was met with distrust and derision from members of the opposition parties, but our local health provider, Dhelkaya Health, responded positively ... The Tarrangower Times contacted Dhelkaya Health to try and understand the ways in which the changes would affect local patients and staff.
Opinion
The Nats need to cut the pork
Fast forward to the 21st century, and while the barrels may be gone, the spirit of pork-barrelling is alive and well. Enter The Nationals WA, whose 2025 election manifesto is beginning to look like a masterclass in misguided political opportunism: starting with the proposal to uproot the DPIRD from Perth and plonk it down in Northam, population 7658.
Council - Toowoomba
Council - Snowy Valleys
Eggs - SA
The Riverland’s scramble for eggs
Madison Eastmond. Riverland consumers are currently facing empty egg shelves and purchase limits as shortages continue to impact major supermarkets. Glenview Poultry Farm owner and South Australian and Tasmanian director of Egg Farmers of Australia, Darren Letton, told The Murray Pioneer the shortages are due to a range of consumer, governmental, and environmental factors.
Weather - Riverina
Weather - Upper Murray
Hit and miss
A storm front that ripped through the Upper Murray last Wednesday caused indiscriminate and varying degrees of damage, delivering rain falls of 10mm to 25mm. The Corryong SES responded to a callout to clear a fallen poplar tree at Tintandra ... More extensive damage was caused at Towong where a large tree came down ...
Organics
Organic success from wine exit
Christine Webster. Riverland West certified organic horticulturist Bruce Armstrong is creating a niche market for his produce supplying wholesalers and customers in Adelaide, Melbourne, and the region ... "It usually took about 12 to 18 months to make an income from the organic wine, and this is why we started growing the organic vegetables," Mr Armstrong said.
Opinion
Open for comment - WA DoT
Time to turn Service WA into the Cloud Service WA
Open letter to the Premier of WA. Dear Premier, I am writing to express a mixture of exasperation and incredulity at the state of Western Australia’s Department of Transport (DoT) vehicle registration and licensing system. It’s a system that forces citizens to reenact scenes from the 1985 film Brazil ...
Community
Zac says, “Thank you.”
If Yamba’s Zac Oatley could secure his dream job it would be greeting people at the door as they enter Yamba Fair – now thanks to the Rotary Club of Yamba, the Gulmarrad Rural Fire Service, Phil and the Bowlo Sports and Leisure Yamba team and the generosity of the community who raised more than $10,500 he will be more comfortable enjoying one of his favourite activities.
Australia Day 2025
Infrastructure - Renmark
Infrastructure - Hay
Aged care
Haydays under new management
Hay’s haven for senior citizens has gained two new people at the helm. Martyn Quinn is to be the new Facility Manager of Haydays Retirement Hostel, with Kim Gibbs on board as the new Assistant Facility Manager.
Wildlife
AI tool set to transform woodland bird conservation: Charles Sturt University
A new artificial intelligence (AI) tool is transforming woodland bird conservation in Australia with the help of a Charles Sturt University research team. As Australia’s woodland bird species face alarming declines, one of the biggest challenges to their conservation is simply detecting them.
Forestry and timber
France’s timber lesson
On the first anniversary of the Victorian state government’s closure of Gippsland’s native forest industry, France’s rebuilt historic Notre-Dame Cathedral has been completed in all its glory – and French timber was at the heart of this historic project. The oak hardwood timber used came from trees in French forests between 80-150 years old, with some more than 200-years-old.
Fire and insurance
World heritage
Communications
YP residents crying out for connection
Rachel Hagan. Locals say existing communications coverage problems across Yorke Peninsula have been exacerbated by the influx of tourists to the region’s busy beachside towns. In October, Telstra’s 3G coverage was turned off across Australia, leaving many YP residents unable to rely on their phones and stuck on roaming.
Law & order
Railway seeks help after theft
The Victorian Goldfields Railway (VGR) is asking the public for assistance to find stolen vintage equipment and will be sourcing funds after a devastating break-in last week. Castlemaine Police were called out to Muckleford Station after a VGR volunteer worker discovered the theft of equipment and railway fittings worth hundreds of thousands of dollars...
Cannabis
33rd Mardigrass planning meetings start
Michael Balderstone ... Thirty-three years is a long time saying the same message over and over again. Who would have believed when we started MardiGrass that weed would get legal but through a doctor and coming from Canada? It’s like a bad joke.
Water
Festival
Dale does it again – Giant pumpkin winners are grinners at Kyogle festival
He’s done it again — Dale Oliver won the giant pumpkin competition in Kyogle ... One of the festival organisers Rob Cullen estimated a crowd of about 2500 people.
Tourism
Golden delicious!
The 2025 Maldon Twilight Dinner was a dazzling event under a clear, starry sky on Saturday 18 January. Attendees glistened in a variety of outfits along a golden spectrum of glitzy glam to gleefully garish. (There was a particular trend for sparkly top-hats).
Sports tourism
Cleared for take-off?
Check the thermometer and smile, if you are a glider pilot, that is: Central Australia in summer is the world’s best place for flying without an engine. It’s Alice where world distance and speed records have been set for decades.
Energy
New clean energy resource under our feet
A new report from Geoscience Australia, in collaboration with the Geological Survey of New South Wales, has found elevated levels of natural hydrogen and helium in locations throughout New South Wales.