Meeting Brian Simpson and spending a bit of time with him on the Yarrowee River in Ballarat researching this story was both a history lesson and an inspiration. Amazing what a small but dedicated group of people can achieve.

Spending a morning at Taroona High School near Hobart made us very jealous. We were writing a story for NRM South about baseline marine monitoring the kids were carrying out thanks to a Naturally Inspired Grant. School was never this much fun when we were young!

Spending a day with Tasmanian farmers whose properties had been affected by bushfire was sobering, listening to and telling their stories was inspiring.

A few years back we were asked to kick off a new series of stories for Wild Magazine focusing on Australia's endangered species. Ever since we'd seen this gorgeous picture taken by the very talented nature photographer Michael Williams we'd been intrigued by the growling grass frog.

The sun was out and Tasmania's southern vineyards were looking pretty as a picture when we talked to US professor Fred Provenza about how stock animals can help manage weeds, enhance biodiversity and protect riverside habitat for NRM South's newsletter Naturally Inspired.

Every little community has a story to tell. We were lucky enough to get the chance to tell the story of the Ballarat Environment Network.