On Wednesday, June 19, UOW Science Space hosted a screening of Rising Up. Produced by ocean advocate Kal Glanznig, the documentary investigates the impacts of the climate crisis and plastic pollution on different communities, and showcases the voices of young leaders creating change.

After the screening, there was a Q&A with Kal and a panel featuring Georgia Watson, LIFT Project Coordinator at UOW; Kylie Flament, CEO of the Social Enterprise Council for NSW and ACT; and Wollongong's 2024 Rising Star Penelope Towney.

The event was a fundraiser for women in STEMM from UOW who are undertaking a global climate leadership journey with the Homeward Bound Initiative.

Here's what four audience members had to say about the night.

Cath, Greens Wollongong City Councillor

“I just love what Georgia is doing in the Homeward Bound program. It's awesome seeing young women scientists calling for greater action on the threats of climate and plastic pollution. And it's great seeing people doing what they can and being really creative – like Kal making this film; Penny who is a superstar with Towney Time; and Kylie who's got such an amazing network in social enterprise and so many people doing practical things to address these challenges.”

Michael, Illawarra local

“I really liked one of the last sentiments that was raised in the Q&A about how to be a good storyteller. I think what everyone came down to was being authentic in your own message and not trying to communicate in a way that doesn’t suit you. Just approaching things with being genuine.”

Illawarra local Tanya, Green Gravity

“My biggest takeaway from tonight was that we all know someone who's gotten up and taken that first step to do something. I think what was really inspiring tonight is that that can look like environmental action, it can look like social action, it can look like raising awareness through education and science… The panel really represented that there are so many important diverse ways we can take action together.

"And how beautiful it was to have Penny – one of our First Nations beautiful youth voices and she totally rocked and owned the floor. That was it if ever I saw storytelling at its absolute most professional – wow. How old was she? Ten? That’s really, really encouraging. We all come at it from different walks but put it all together and it's really powerful – and it's in our backyard!”

Warilla resident Diana, a Homeward Bound participant

“We’ve had an amazing night. It's been a great turnout and we've had some really fascinating experiences shared. All the films we were shown were really really eye-opening but also inspirational. I think we now have a few more small steps and actions that we can take in our own individual lives that will help to create a sustainable future.”