Belltrees Public School in the Upper Hunter has reinforced its reputation for excellence in environmental education by again hosting a field day on regenerative agriculture for teachers and farmers.

The school has won an international Green Flag accreditation for environmental sustainability, and awards in the sustainability and water protection categories of the Keep Australia Beautiful competition.

Principal Shane Roberts said the day brought academic and farming experts together to speak to teachers wanting to incorporate the principles of regenerative agriculture into their school’s operation, and farmers either starting regenerative agriculture or reinforcing their existing regenerative practices.

“Our visiting experts maintained that regenerative agriculture is more than an ideal, it’s an economic necessity at the farm level and a national essential if Australia is to maintain its sustainable productivity under climate change,” he said.

“All our local farmers are more than aware of the challenges presented by repeated droughts, and Belltrees Public School is very happy to play its part helping the community share information about how to manage the changes.”

The speakers and presenters included Kate Spry, a Tamworth grazier with 21 years’ teaching experience, Dr Frances Quinn, a science teacher educator at the University of New England whose background includes plant research at the CSIRO, and Colin Seis, the owner of a 20,000-acre property producing up to 20,000kg of wool and 1500 sheep annually.

Sixty participants attended the field day, which included keynote speeches, workshops and question and answer sessions.