Not every love story is about a person. Some of our deepest and most enduring relationships are with places.

To mark its 60th anniversary, the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) is inviting Australians to celebrate those relationships by writing love letters to nature — messages dedicated to the natural places that have shaped, supported, or healed them over the years. 

These letters are being pinned on an interactive national map, creating a growing tapestry of affection, memory and environmental connection.

Jane Gardner, ACF’s Engagement Director, said the project is a joyful antidote to the negativity that often fills our digital feeds.

“We’re collecting love letters to the places that have always been there for you: the beach, the creek, the tree, the ambling echidna and bounding kangaroo, the sunset that stopped you in your tracks” Jane Gardner said.

“This project is designed as an antidote to the ugliness in our social media feeds. Go and take a look at the map, read what your fellow nature lovers have written, add your own – I guarantee you’ll feel better.”

“Since we launched this project on Valentine’s Day, 215 people have already written love letters to special natural places.”

Love letters from across the country

The letters pinned to the map are intimate, poetic and deeply personal. They reveal the emotional power of Country, coastlines, wildlife, forests and rivers — and how these places hold our stories:

• “I was at my worst… Nothing could have brought me back to life the way you did.” — T. Harris, Airlie Beach, Qld
• “You are a tapestry woven from the extremes of my life… You meet me wherever I am now.” — Declan, Fishermans Beach, Torquay, Vic
• “You are my sanctuary. My safe place… Peace, hope and love reside here.” — Jane, Stirling Range National Park, WA
• “I love her for her quiet dignity, her generosity… and her spiritual connections to the forest that was once here.” — Iain, Broulee, NSW

These letters sit alongside hundreds of others on ACF’s interactive “Love Letters to Nature” map — where users can browse tributes, vote for their favourites, or discover places ACF has helped protect over its six decades of environmental advocacy. 

The map also highlights featured stories such as the Kimberley’s King Leopold Ranges, described by one writer as “heaven here on earth” and a place that “washes away the chaos and noise of the city.”

Part of a broader 60‑year celebration

ACF’s 60th anniversary has been marked by nationwide events, creative installations, and invitations for people to reflect on their personal connection to the natural world. From interactive activities at Fed Square — where people could draw, write or compose music with plants — to the ever‑expanding map of love letters, the message is clear: Australia’s living places matter deeply to its people.

After 60 years of conservation wins and community action, ACF is using this milestone to spotlight the emotional and cultural value of nature — not just its ecological importance.

A growing chorus of gratitude

With every new letter, the map becomes a richer archive of Australians’ relationships with the landscapes that sustain them. From rugged ranges to quiet bays, ancient trees to bustling wetlands, people are sharing what these places mean — and why they deserve protection now more than ever.

You can explore the map, read the stories, or add your own love letter at loveletters.acf.org.au/map.

Article supplied with thanks to 96five.

Feature image: Canva

Thinking about major events within the Christian calendar, Christmas and Easter are obvious markers, but Australian Catholic University together with a number of churches globally want to introduce a ‘Feast of Creation’ into the liturgical calendar to incorporate the value of creation in our spiritual journey.

For thousands of years the liturgical calendar has drawn on inspiration from Jewish feasts and the Roman calendar to guide worshippers through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

It marks significant seasons like Advent, Pentecost and Easter offering a pathway to consider salvation and the experience of following Christ.

Something missing from the calendar observed in Western tradition is the Feast of Creation, which marks September 1 as the Day of Creation and the beginning of God’s plan for salvation.

Jacqui Remond, ecological theologian at Australian Catholic University (ACU), thinks the feast would allow for deeper contemplation of God’s act of creation and our role in caring for it.

“God’s continuous action of making the world, with you and me in it [is] a core belief of Christian faith,” Jacqui said.

“A Feast of Creation in Christ shines a light on the intrinsic value and worth of each thing.”

Recommendations for a new liturgical Feast of Creation in Christ emerged at an ecumenical conference in Assisi, Italy in March 2024 and are in line with Pope Francis’ institution of the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation in 2015.

“At the beginning of the Nicene Creed – [which marks its 1700th year of observation this year] – we acknowledge creation in a very particular way,” Jacqui said.

“We say, ‘I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is visible and invisible’.

“In lifting up this understanding of creation in a feast, we’re also acknowledging that creation is greatly suffering as a result of human action.

“A Feast of Creation is about [honouring] the gift of creation in liturgy to hear both the songs of creation [and] the cries of creation so that we can see it’s much more than just a backdrop in our lives, in our story of salvation.”

Adding a new feast into the liturgical calendar isn’t unprecedented.

In the last 100 years the Catholic Church has instituted seven new liturgical feast days, including Christ the King, the Holy Family, Baptism of the Lord, and St Joseph the Worker – but it does have “a lot of different dimensions”.

“[The proposal] is in motion, but different denominations have different processes for integrating and considering something like this,” Jacqui said.

“Globally there’s churches from across the spectrum of ecumenical Christian churches who’ve met in Italy in 2024 [and] they’re making decisions for themselves essentially, integrating it into their lectionaries and liturgical documents.”

Last year Bishops Conferences endorsed a letter that was sent to Pope Francis supporting the feast of Creation, and there’s more to follow.

“It’s pretty exciting to see the uptake that’s taking place,” Jacqui said.

“It’s a really special thing that all our churches get involved.”

Article supplied with thanks to Hope Media.

Feature image: Canva Pro

About the Author: Laura Bennett is a media professional, broadcaster and writer from Sydney, Australia.