Get Your Bug On! : Amy’s Love Rant about the Macro Muster
Did you know that jobs in STEM (jobs in Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) are predicted to grow at twice the rate of non-STEM roles?
I was passionate about the Macro Muster event before I learnt this.
Now, it’s hit ‘rant-level’ passion.
The Macro Muster is a community citizen science waterbug count event that happens twice a year in May and October, held at the Bellingen Showground. This event has grown to be the biggest event of its kind in Australia. No one else is doing this work in this way.
This fun, hands-on event sees families, individuals, young people, partners and scientists all come together to do an accurate count of the waterbugs to help protect the rivers of the Bellinger, Kalang and Nambucca catchments. It also supports the recovery of the critically endangered Bellinger River Snapping Turtle. This round, we’ll be testing twelve sites.
The Muster began in 2021.
At Muster 1, my passion for the event was very much about the bugs.
They are coooool.
Like I mean, sci-fi cool. All different colours. They move in all different ways. They are seriously captivating!
By Muster 4, my passion for the event moved to the wellbeing impacts.
I, and others around me seemed silly-ly uplifted from the event and I couldn’t work out why.
Then it struck me - it’s like an hour-and-a-half of mindfulness and intense nature connection! I realised that being mindful and focused on nature this intensely for this long in one sitting was having a profound effect on how we were feeling. It’s quite amazing to watch this change take place at each Muster. To see the energy in the room change.
Around Muster 6, I became super passionate about the connections this event is making - making our community stronger. The Muster offers a beautiful, and quite unique, way for families to connect.
A key ingredient in connection is vulnerability.
For your kids to see you step out of your comfort zone and try something new - that’s pretty powerful modelling.
But to do it together as a family - trying something you’ve all never done before, side-by-side, and then feel that moment where it clicks, where you all start to ‘get it’… walking that path of discovery together - that’s even more special.
The Muster can also become a meaningful family rhythm. A twice-a-year ritual.
For me and my family, it’s a simple, tangible way to live our family values. Showing up to the Muster says to my kids: ‘This is who we are. We care about our rivers, our environment and our community.’
By Muster 8, though, my passion for the Muster became about ‘curiosity’.
This event fosters curiosity in regional communities and regional young people.
I keep hearing that curiosity is ‘the key skill’, both for our world now, but into the future. The world is changing at a rapid rate. Curiosity is what helps us make sense of that change. It drives questions, sparks learning and opens the door to new ideas and solutions.
Curiosity encourages people to look more closely. From this, they care more deeply, which leads to taking action. With the Macro Muster, curiosity comes from something very simple - a waterbug in a tray. But it quickly grows into a deeper understanding of our rivers, our ecosystems and our role in protecting them.
This is why OzGREEN works to foster curiosity in regional people and support regional people to ‘see themselves in STEM’.
Our work in STEM is also fundamentally about the resilience and wellbeing of regional communities. STEM jobs, and roles requiring STEM skills, are growing rapidly.
The Macro Muster helps to build is called ‘STEM identity’, which, research shows, is one of the keys to choosing to study or work in STEM.
And this is why, at Macro Muster 10, for the first time, we are opening the event up to all ages (it used to be for ages 8 and up). So that we can build ‘STEM identity’ in our very young people and they can ‘grow up with the Muster’.
If you come to our next Macro Muster and experience the magic of this truly innovative event, you too can be faced with the dilemma of asking yourself, “what do I love most about the Muster?”
And trust me, it’s not easy to choose just one.
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When is it?
Macro Muster 10 is being held on Friday 22 May from 4pm-7.30pm. We start the count at 4pm so if you could arrive before 4pm, that is ideal. However, we are trying to make the Muster a highly accessible event so, please let us know before the event if you’d like to come and help witht he count, but are going to be a bit late (because we are gathering accurate scientific data at this event, this will help us with our planning).
How much does it cost?
The Muster is a free event and we share a free, delicious community dinner of pizza and sushi after the waterbug count.
Who is it for?
The Muster has traditionally been for ages 8 and up, but for the first time, we’re opening it up to be an all-ages event. We understand that families with young kids may need to leave early (please check out the Itinerary in the Info Booklet for Participants and let us know upon registration if you think you will need to leave early and at what time).
How do I register?
Register at www.ozgreen.org/macromuster. Registration closes 15/5/26. Places are limited.
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Macro Muster 10 is proudly supported by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water and its Saving our Species Program, Bellingen Shire Council, Nambucca Valley Council, the Australian Communities Foundation, Arborgreen and North Coast Local Land Services. Learn more
