Northern Beaches Council is joining the promotion of science, technology, engineering and maths, or STEM, to engage with the community and local school children.

Council General Manager Environment & Infrastructure Ben Taylor said becoming a founding member of the Northern Sydney Science Hub would help promote science-based events including environmental initiatives.

“Being part of the Science Hub is a great opportunity to communicate the science behind important Council functions and programs, especially those hard-to-reach young people.

“It will also give Council events a much greater reach by leveraging off events like Science Week.

“Science, technology, engineering and mathematics underpin so much of what Council does and this will help the community to better understand the work of Council.

“We are blessed to live in an area with a rich coastal and bushland environment and this will help promote initiatives like the backyard bird count and coastal monitoring as well as promote the expertise of Council staff,” Mr Taylor said.

Northern Beaches Council will also be able to draw on the experience and expertise of other member organisations, host new events and engage other Council business areas like libraries and youth services.

The Science Hub network is an initiative of the Australian Government and its Inspiring Australia strategy. Membership of the Northern Sydney Science Hub includes the CSIRO, Macquarie University, Willoughby and Ku Ring Gai councils, the National Measurement Institute, Australian Astronomical Organisation.

To mark Councils membership to the Northern Sydney Science Hub, there will be three citizen science events held during this year’s science week 12 – 20 August 2017. For more information on these events go to Councils Things To Do page or contact Northern Beaches Council’s Sustainability Officer on (02) 99422542 or by email to James.Chan@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au