Gould League
Encyclopedia
The Gould League is an independent Australia
n organisation promoting environmental
education
, originally founded in Victoria in 1909 and named after the English
ornithologist John Gould
. Largely autonomous branches were subsequently established in other Australian states.
, supervisor of nature study
in Victorian state schools and later Assistant Chief Inspector of Schools in Victoria.
protection, especially the prevention of bird egg theft, the promotion of interest in and knowledge of birds and to campaign for the formation of bird sanctuaries
. Members would take a pledge to protect Australian birdlife and not to collect their eggs
. One of the main sponsors was the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union
. Alfred Deakin
was the first Gould League president
. The League had considerable success during this period, particularly in education. Activities included field days for the public to be introduced to birdlife, and publishing educational material.
.
". For example, the 1990 formation of the first Recycling Education Centre in Australia by the Gould League of Victoria
and the Waste Wise Schools program significantly reduced the waste to landfill produced by schools.
In August 2008, Gould Group had been under voluntary administration. This was attributed to many factors, primarily being lack of funding for projects. The loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars of funding from Sustainability Victoria caused major problems.
In good news though, administrators found a buyer for the ailing organisation, with a NSW land care group taking over its running and reviewing the Gould League's operations in a bid to have it continue into the future.
2009 is the 100th anniversary of the organisation.
Gould League Publications
In the late twenties Neville Cayley, a member of the Council for some years, was occupied in writing and illustrating the first comprehensive guide to Australian birds. In return for the Council’s sponsorship he assigned four tenths of his 10% royalty to the League, and in 1931 at the 21st Bird Day celebration in the Assembly Hall, What Bird is That? was launched. Despite early doubts, What Bird? was a huge success; in 1960 it was rated the all-time best seller in Australian natural history books, and is still in print today. But initial sales were disappointing, and in February 1935 Cayley, perennially short of cash, offered to sell his remaining royalty share to the League for £300. With considerable misgivings, Council agreed. Sales took off during World War II, sparked interest from US servicemen in Australia, and the book turned out to be a lucrative investment.
It was not until 1934 that the League undertook a publication of its own with the production of Gould League Songs and Poems. This took for form of an 80-page booklet: the main section of 14 pages featured 16 songs, the words mainly written about Australian birds and set to the music of well-known British folk songs. Twenty five pages of bird poems followed, and the rest was given over to articles about birds and Gould League matters. The book is plentifully illustrated with photographs and two colour plates of paintings by Neville W. Cayley (fantails and whistlers). Dongs & Poems was reprinted in 1965, but on inferior paper and without the colour plates.
In June 1935 Council agreed to another publication, called Feathered Friends. It consisted of “a Foreword by The President, Mr. Ross Thomas; a preface by Mr. W. Fingigan, and an introductory article on Australian birds in general by Mr. A. Chisholm. Then followed six articles: The Lyrebird by Mr. M. Sharland; The Satinbird by Mr N. Chaffer; The Blue Wren’s by Mr. Cayley; The White-eared Honeyeater by Mr K. Hindwood; The Magpie by Mr. D. Leithhead and The Heath Wren by Mr. Chisholm.”
Feathered Friends was illustrated with numerous photographs and full-page colour plates of the six birds, painted by Neville Cayley (the originals are now in the National Library in Canberra). The book was published by Angus and Robertson in September 1935, and copies given to every public school in NSW.
In the same year, 1935, the League commenced publication of Gould League Notes, a magazine that appeared annually until 1967, following the general pattern set by the earlier Supplements to the Gazette. A copy was sent to every public school in the state, as well as every private school with a Gould League branch. The first issue ran to 24 pages, the next three to 40, and from 1939 there were always more than 50. From the beginning the pages were brightened by a coloured plate, supplied (with descriptive notes) by Neville Cayley for many years, and then by a succession of distinguished artists. Starting with 1938, League Notes featured extensive accounts of the most recent Bird Camp.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n organisation promoting environmental
Natural environment
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, originally founded in Victoria in 1909 and named after the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
ornithologist John Gould
John Gould
John Gould was an English ornithologist and bird artist. The Gould League in Australia was named after him. His identification of the birds now nicknamed "Darwin's finches" played a role in the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection...
. Largely autonomous branches were subsequently established in other Australian states.
History
The initial stimulus to form the Gould League was a letter from Jessie McMichael to John Albert LeachJohn Albert Leach
Dr John Albert Leach was an ornithologist, teacher and headmaster in the state of Victoria, Australia.Leach was born in Ballarat, Victoria and educated at Creswick Grammar School , Melbourne Training College and the University of Melbourne, where he graduated B.Sc. in 1904, M.Sc...
, supervisor of nature study
Nature study
The nature study movement was a popular education movement in America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Nature study attempted to reconcile scientific investigation with spiritual, personal experiences gained from interaction with the natural world...
in Victorian state schools and later Assistant Chief Inspector of Schools in Victoria.
1900s
When formally established in 1909, the Gould League of Bird Lovers, as it was then called, was devoted to birdBird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
protection, especially the prevention of bird egg theft, the promotion of interest in and knowledge of birds and to campaign for the formation of bird sanctuaries
Animal sanctuary
An animal sanctuary is a facility where animals are brought to live and be protected for the rest of their lives. Unlike animal shelters, sanctuaries do not seek to place animals with individuals or groups, instead maintaining each animal until his or her natural death...
. Members would take a pledge to protect Australian birdlife and not to collect their eggs
Oology
Oology is a branch of ornithology studying bird eggs, nests and breeding behavior. Oology can also refer to the hobby of collecting wild birds' eggs, sometimes called birdnesting or egging, which is now illegal in many jurisdictions.-As a science:Oology became increasingly popular in Britain and...
. One of the main sponsors was the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union
Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union
The Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union, also known as Birds Australia, was founded in 1901 to promote the study and conservation of the native bird species of Australia and adjacent regions. This makes it Australia's oldest national birding association. It is also Australia's largest...
. Alfred Deakin
Alfred Deakin
Alfred Deakin , Australian politician, was a leader of the movement for Australian federation and later the second Prime Minister of Australia. In the last quarter of the 19th century, Deakin was a major contributor to the establishment of liberal reforms in the colony of Victoria, including the...
was the first Gould League president
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
. The League had considerable success during this period, particularly in education. Activities included field days for the public to be introduced to birdlife, and publishing educational material.
1960s
After the 1960s the League focused on more general environmental education, and the name "Gould League" was adopted, without specific reference to birds. The Gould Leagues promoted the teaching of Environmental Education in schools, publishing classroom material and establishing Field Studies Centres, initially in New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
.
1990s
During the 1990s there was a shift of emphasis to "Education for SustainabilitySustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
". For example, the 1990 formation of the first Recycling Education Centre in Australia by the Gould League of Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and the Waste Wise Schools program significantly reduced the waste to landfill produced by schools.
2000s
The Gould League located in Moorabbin, Victoria changed its name from Gould League to Gould Group Ltd. in 2006.In August 2008, Gould Group had been under voluntary administration. This was attributed to many factors, primarily being lack of funding for projects. The loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars of funding from Sustainability Victoria caused major problems.
In good news though, administrators found a buyer for the ailing organisation, with a NSW land care group taking over its running and reviewing the Gould League's operations in a bid to have it continue into the future.
2009 is the 100th anniversary of the organisation.
Gould League Publications
In the late twenties Neville Cayley, a member of the Council for some years, was occupied in writing and illustrating the first comprehensive guide to Australian birds. In return for the Council’s sponsorship he assigned four tenths of his 10% royalty to the League, and in 1931 at the 21st Bird Day celebration in the Assembly Hall, What Bird is That? was launched. Despite early doubts, What Bird? was a huge success; in 1960 it was rated the all-time best seller in Australian natural history books, and is still in print today. But initial sales were disappointing, and in February 1935 Cayley, perennially short of cash, offered to sell his remaining royalty share to the League for £300. With considerable misgivings, Council agreed. Sales took off during World War II, sparked interest from US servicemen in Australia, and the book turned out to be a lucrative investment.
It was not until 1934 that the League undertook a publication of its own with the production of Gould League Songs and Poems. This took for form of an 80-page booklet: the main section of 14 pages featured 16 songs, the words mainly written about Australian birds and set to the music of well-known British folk songs. Twenty five pages of bird poems followed, and the rest was given over to articles about birds and Gould League matters. The book is plentifully illustrated with photographs and two colour plates of paintings by Neville W. Cayley (fantails and whistlers). Dongs & Poems was reprinted in 1965, but on inferior paper and without the colour plates.
In June 1935 Council agreed to another publication, called Feathered Friends. It consisted of “a Foreword by The President, Mr. Ross Thomas; a preface by Mr. W. Fingigan, and an introductory article on Australian birds in general by Mr. A. Chisholm. Then followed six articles: The Lyrebird by Mr. M. Sharland; The Satinbird by Mr N. Chaffer; The Blue Wren’s by Mr. Cayley; The White-eared Honeyeater by Mr K. Hindwood; The Magpie by Mr. D. Leithhead and The Heath Wren by Mr. Chisholm.”
Feathered Friends was illustrated with numerous photographs and full-page colour plates of the six birds, painted by Neville Cayley (the originals are now in the National Library in Canberra). The book was published by Angus and Robertson in September 1935, and copies given to every public school in NSW.
In the same year, 1935, the League commenced publication of Gould League Notes, a magazine that appeared annually until 1967, following the general pattern set by the earlier Supplements to the Gazette. A copy was sent to every public school in the state, as well as every private school with a Gould League branch. The first issue ran to 24 pages, the next three to 40, and from 1939 there were always more than 50. From the beginning the pages were brightened by a coloured plate, supplied (with descriptive notes) by Neville Cayley for many years, and then by a succession of distinguished artists. Starting with 1938, League Notes featured extensive accounts of the most recent Bird Camp.
See also
- Conservation biologyConservation biologyConservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...
- Conservation ethicConservation ethicConservation is an ethic of resource use, allocation, and protection. Its primary focus is upon maintaining the health of the natural world: its, fisheries, habitats, and biological diversity. Secondary focus is on materials conservation and energy conservation, which are seen as important to...
- Conservation movementConservation movementThe conservation movement, also known as nature conservation, is a political, environmental and a social movement that seeks to protect natural resources including animal, fungus and plant species as well as their habitat for the future....
- EcologyEcologyEcology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
- Ecology movementEcology movementThe global ecology movement is based upon environmental protection, and is one of several new social movements that emerged at the end of the 1960s. As a values-driven social movement, it should be distinguished from the pre-existing science of ecology....
- EnvironmentalismEnvironmentalismEnvironmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
- Environmental movementEnvironmental movementThe environmental movement, a term that includes the conservation and green politics, is a diverse scientific, social, and political movement for addressing environmental issues....
- Environmental protectionEnvironmental protectionEnvironmental protection is a practice of protecting the environment, on individual, organizational or governmental level, for the benefit of the natural environment and humans. Due to the pressures of population and our technology the biophysical environment is being degraded, sometimes permanently...
- Habitat conservationHabitat conservationHabitat conservation is a land management practice that seeks to conserve, protect and restore, habitat areas for wild plants and animals, especially conservation reliant species, and prevent their extinction, fragmentation or reduction in range...
- Natural environmentNatural environmentThe natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
- Natural capitalNatural capitalNatural capital is the extension of the economic notion of capital to goods and services relating to the natural environment. Natural capital is thus the stock of natural ecosystems that yields a flow of valuable ecosystem goods or services into the future...
- Natural resourceNatural resourceNatural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by mankind, in a natural form. A natural resource is often characterized by amounts of biodiversity and geodiversity existent in various ecosystems....
- Renewable resourceRenewable resourceA renewable resource is a natural resource with the ability of being replaced through biological or other natural processes and replenished with the passage of time...
- Sustainable developmentSustainable developmentSustainable development is a pattern of resource use, that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come...