Get ready to devour a variety of delectable desserts from various dessert food trucks as well as other goodies prepared by the Sunshine Coast Collective Markets.
Photo credit: Aussie World/ Facebook
Photo credit: Aussie World/ Facebook
There will be dessert pizza, brownies, waffles, chimney cakes, donuts, ice cream, dessert dumplings, crepes, lollies and so much more!
The fun doesn’t stop at the dessert food trucks and other drool-worthy stalls alone as there will be live music entertainment all day long, dessert wine tasting, food demonstrations, and loads of kid-friendly activities for everyone’s enjoyment.
Ticket Booking
Ticket for Sunshine Coast Dessert Festival 2020 is available for $10 only. There is also an optional upgrade of $30 for those who want to enjoy unlimited rides pass throughout the day at Aussie World.
According to real estate analysts, Maroochydore City Centre’s development helps boost real estate growth amongst surrounding suburbs of the Sunshine Coast.
The first stage of the Maroochydore City Centre was unveiled in August 2019 after more than a decade of careful planning by the local Council and the State Government. This city-making project has a full timeline of 20 years of construction and is estimated to cost $ 2.1 billion.
The City Centre is viewed as one of the largest CBD projects to be accomplished on a green field in Australia due to its size of 53 hectares.
Photo credit: Maroochydore – The Bright City/ Facebook
According to SunCentral’s CEO, John Knaggs, once the entire CBD is complete, it would strengthen the entire region by providing sustainable infrastructures for the purpose of commercial, retail, residential, and civic uses.
Included amongst infrastructure developments that are soon to rise in the region are the expansion of the Sunshine Coast Airport and the completion of the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
Photo credit: https://www.health.qld.gov.au/
“Maroochydore’s CBD will be at the heart of a region where unprecedented investments in private and public infrastructure are being made,” said Knaggs.
“Maroochydore’s new CBD is expected to create more than 15,000 permanent jobs on the Sunshine Coast and bring in more than $ 4.4 billion to the local economy.”
real estate report by analyst Terry Ryder shows a 37% increase in average property prices in the suburbs of Sunshine Coast last 2019. Specifically, Twin Waters suburbs grew 21%, Mooloolaba by 14%, Sunshine Beach by 37%, and Doonan by 19%.
“The new CBD is at the heart of this growth. It provides a center for the growing economy and employment opportunities of the Sunshine Coast while helping to boost housing price increases in the region,” said Ryder.
“Population growth leads to higher demand for real estate, which in turn leads to higher values.”
Satisfy your sweet tooth and fill your cravings without feeling guilty by visiting Soul Kitchen Bakery at Buderim.
Are you worried that your cravings will ruin your current diet? No need to worry because Soul Kitchen Bakery has you covered.
Located at Buderim’s Middy’s Shopping Centre, Soul Kitchen Bakery is a colourful and cosy cafe that offers a variety of sweet and savoury pastries that are as tasty as they are nutritious.
Soul Kitchen Bakery prides itself on being a plant-based bakery that offers organic, gluten-free, and vegan baked goods.
This cafe is ideal for those who have food allergies or dietary requirements, such as those with nut allergies and other food-related sensitivities. All items are handmade from scratch, and many of the ingredients used are locally sourced.
It’s also good to know that all their products are available to both retail and wholesale customers.
The idea behind Soul Kitchen Bakery’s guilt-free offerings and quirky interiors came from its owners—Hugh and Shirley Forster.
Both Hugh and Shirley are gluten-free and plant based experts. More specifically, Hugh is a graphic designer, an environmental scientist, an avid meditator, and a Qi Gong enthusiast; whilst Shirley is a certified holistic nutritionist and an elite master in the kitchen.
Together, Hugh and Shirley have created Soul Kitchen Bakery as a vehicle to express their love for fresh, clean, and allergy-friendly food to the world.
Raw Oreo is a healthier version or the classic cookies and cream cheesecake. It has a creamy white filling with a crunchy and crumbly raw chocolate topping and crust. Cheesecake lovers will definitely enjoy its right blend of smooth and crunchy texture on each bite.
Soul Kitchen Bakery’s Classic Lemon Meringue Pie has been a crowd favourite because of its mouth-watering taste of the classic American pie with a twist. This pie has a rich almond crust, gorgeous lemon centre, and a whipped cream topping made from aquafaba.
Want to know more? Visit Soul Kitchen Bakery’s webpage and Instagram for updates and full menu list.
Soul Kitchen Bakery is open from Tuesday to Saturday starting at 8:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.
Rachel Downie, a social entrepreneur and educator from Buderim, has been named Queensland’s Australian of the Year for 2020. She got the recognition, along with three other Queenslanders who will join the national awards ceremony in Canberra.
Ms Downie founded Stymie, an anonymous online reporting system that enables children experiencing bullying or other mental health challenges to seek support. Following a student’s death by suicide, Ms Downie decided she needed to find a way to support young people to say something when things are not right.
“After this boy died, the students came forward with what we believed was life-saving information. They told us he was bullied and excluded, that he was experiencing family violence and that he had been talking about not wanting to be ‘here’ anymore,” Ms Downie said.
She said the boy was too frightened to tell them what was happening despite checking in with him every day. “I know that if we had the details of this harm, we could have helped him,” she said.
Ms Downie with the Stymie team (Photo Credit: Stymie/Facebook)
Stymie (old word for stop) works with school communities both nationally and internationally, to connect students with their empathy and conscience so that they can, in an empowered and courageous way, enhance or change the culture of care in their school.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk commended Ms Downie for making a stand against bullying, which is a significant national problem. The latest survey revealed three in five students have experienced bullying.
“Last year she spoke to more than 83,000 students about creating a culture of care in their schools, conducting workshops with students, staff and parents covering topics such as eSafety, cyberwellness, personal safety and boundaries,” said in a media statement.
Australian of the Year Awards
The Australian of the Year Awards is a program of the National Australia Day Council, managed in Queensland by the Queensland Government. The other recipients of the award are:
Peter Dornan AM (Toowong) – 2020 QLD Senior Australian of the Year
Ashleigh Barty (Springfield) – 2020 QLD Young Australian of the Year
Adjunct Assistant Professor Nick Marshall (Mermaid Waters) – 2020 QLD Local Hero
Ms Downie, along with three other Queensland recipients will be joining those from the other states and territories for the national awards ceremony at the National Arboretum in Canberra on 25 January 2020.
The Maroochydore Donor Centre, together with the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, is looking for volunteers who are willing to come and donate blood for those in need.
Did you know that one in three Australians will need blood or blood products in their lifetime—may it be due to an accident, difficult pregnancy, cancer, or other medical conditions, and yet only one in thirty Australians donate blood each year?
Australia is in need of more than 29,000 blood donations each week in order to supply the growing demands of patients and hospitals. Given these general statistics from the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, more and more accredited donor centres are now seeking volunteers who are willing to donate blood.
Photo credit: Australian Red Cross Lifeblood/ Facebook
By donating blood, you get to help save the lives of those in need. A single blood donation can save up to three lives.
Blood Donation
There are three types of blood donation. These include blood, plasma or platelets. Each type of blood donation is used for different medical treatments, and a person’s blood type determines the best donation for him/her to make.
How does it work?
Blood is simply collected straight from a donor without anything taken out first. After the blood is donated, the manufacturing team separates it into three components—red blood cells, plasma and platelets—inside the laboratory.
Photo credit: Australian Red Cross Lifeblood/ Facebook
The team also tests samples from every donation to ensure patients are receiving high-quality and safe blood products. After completing the entire testing process, donated blood products are then delivered to different Australian hospitals.
Thinking of Donating Blood?
If you’re interested in being a blood donor, here’s a checklist guide for eligibility:
Feel fit and healthy
Age must be between 18 and 75
Weighs over 50kg
You may be temporarily unable to give blood if you:
Are on certain medications or antibiotics
Have a cold or are feeling unwell in any way
Have certain medical conditions
Changed medications
Recently had surgery
Have had recent dental treatment
Recently travelled
Had a piercing
Click here to view the full list of guidelines for eligible blood donors.
Photo credit: Australian Red Cross Lifeblood/ Facebook
Donating blood is simple and easy. Make your appointment now at the Maroochydore Donor Centre, one of Australian Red Cross Lifeblood accredited blood donor centres.
Maroochydore Donor Centre is open from Monday to Sunday. Click here to view the centre’s complete schedule and Holiday period open hours.
For more information and bookings, please call 13 14 95.
The Palaszczuk Government has approved $2.5 million worth of funding for the replacement of the Sunshine Coast Turf Club’s synthetic track.
Since April 2008, the Sunshine Coast Turf Club has been the home of the first synthetic racing and training surface in Queensland.
The track consists of a formulated mixture of long and short synthetic fibres, rubber, silicon sand and wax. This synthetic track was also made and specifically designed for Queensland’s weather conditions and in particular Corbould Park.
Having synthetic surfaces at the Sunshine Coast Turf Club for more than a decade has resulted in a handful of benefits for both the club and its users, including minimal irrigation, low maintenance costs, all-weather surface use even in the most inclement conditions, and improved rider safety and substantial reduction in soft tissue injuries in horses.
Photo credit: Sunshine Coast Turf Club/ Facebook
Synthetic Track Replacement
With the synthetic track showing its age, the Sunshine Coast Turf Club has presented plans for track replacement, which is estimated to cost $7 million.
The State Government has approved funding coming from the Racing Infrastructure Fund (RIF) to be invested in the club’s track replacement project, in the hope of contributing to the growth and sustainability of Queensland racing. It’s also aimed at helping the industry generate income as well as lasting community benefits.
According to Racing Minister Stirling Hinchliffe, replacing the synthetic track would result in having wider benefits for the racing industry throughout southeast Queensland.
“By working together with SCTC and the Sunshine Coast Racing Unit Trust, this investment will improve safety for horses and riders alike,” he said.
“A new synthetic track can stand up to a heavy workload than is possible on turf tracks, able to deal just as easily with too much water or not enough.
“That means we will be able to lean on the Sunshine Coast to carry more meetings when renovations are being undertaken at other tracks, or when meetings might otherwise be abandoned due to weather.”
Photo credit: Sunshine Coast Turf Club/ Facebook
Peter Boyce, Sunshine Coast Turf Club’s chairman, said that the new track would give the club a different stance from other racing venues.
“We have 400 horses using the track every day, so this is funding for an essential upgrade and most appreciated,” he said.
“The surface needs to be replaced urgently – it’s a racing track as well as a training track so all participants will benefit from it.
“The important thing is that it’s not just a track for us – it’s a track for the industry as well.”
A week after its sudden closure, six out of seven Red Rooster stores in Sunshine Coast are back and running, thanks to the combined effort of their head office and their administrator.
Last 15 October 2019, the owner of seven franchised Red Rooster stores—Sunstate Foods Pty Ltd— went into voluntary administration due to insufficient funding, according to administrator Robson Cotter Insolvency Group.
The company’s voluntary administration resulted to the sudden closure of these seven stores—Sunshine Coast at Buderim, Currimundi, Sunshine Plaza in Maroochydore, Noosa Civic Centre and Mary St, Noosa, and in Moreton Bay at Burpengary and Deception Bay.
Photo credit: Red Rooster/ Facebook
In light of this unfortunate situation, Red Rooster’s parent company, Craveable Brands, immediately began working with the administrator and landlords of the temporarily closed stores.
Craveable Brands’ aim was to reopen the stores as soon as possible with all staff entitlements fully settled.
Red Rooster was able to negotiate successfully with the administrator and multiple landlords of the six out of seven Red Rooster stores within the Sunshine Coast area. Employees at these stores resumed work again after having been temporarily closed for four days.
Likewise, stores at Moreton Bay and Deception Bay are back on its day-to-day operations as well.
Red Rooster’s main approach in reopening its stores were to stabilise jobs for all affected workers and also to have little to no impact on other Red Rooster outlets within the region.
Photo credit: https://www.redrooster.com.au/
It was indeed a successful community-focused initiative in re-opening these six Red Rooster stores within less than a week after its sudden collapse.
At present, Red Rooster is continuously working with the administrator and landlord of the remaining closed Red Rooster at Sunshine Plaza, with high hopes of reopening soon. The team members for this branch have been offered shifts at other Red Rooster stores for the meantime in order to ensure continuity of work for everyone.
Switch your grocery shopping habits into a more sustainable one by visiting The Source Bulk Foods at Maroochydore.
Going zero waste or ‘greenifying’ your grocery shopping practice is now made easier thanks to The Source Bulk Foods— Australia’s largest specialised bulk food retailer that is 100% waste-free.
Located inside the Big Top Shopping Centre at Ocean Street, The Source Bulk Foods Maroochydore has more than 450 amazing varieties of bulk products at this health food store. With items such as oils, nuts, seeds, grains, herbs, flours, spices, dried fruits and more, it is no wonder that The Source Bulk Foods Maroochydore is considered as a foodie haven by many.
But of course, more than just being a health food store, The Source Bulk Foods aims to provide the entire community with fresh and wholesome ingredients that will nourish their families and our planet as a whole.
Customers of The Source Bulk Foods can choose how much of any product they want to purchase.
Shopping at the store allows customers to only buy what they need—for a recipe, a day or two, or even a week— instead of ending up having to throw away all the excess food they had purchased.
Photo credit: The Source Bulk Foods (Maroochydore)/ Facebook
The store is properly arranged with huge tubs with lids and handy scoops per container. Each container also has written instructions and information about the product.
The Source Bulk Foods highly recommends that customers bring their own reusable containers and sturdy reusable bags so as to avoid package waste. In case customers do not have any containers with them, the store can provide paper bags for small items. Containers and reusable bags are also available for purchase at the store.
Photo credit: The Source Bulk Foods (Maroochydore)/ Facebook
Apart from offering healthy food options, The Source Bulk Foods also hosts regular workshops about food, diet, zero waste, sustainability and more. Visit The Source Bulk Foods Maroochydore to know their latest deals and workshops.
The World Surf League has been on the lookout for a location for Kelly Slater’s next surf ranch and it appears the Sunshine Coast is under serious consideration for the $100-million development, specifically Coolum, the “surfing mecca” of the Coast.
If approved, the proposed multi-million dollar surf ranch is going to be the first of its kind not just in Queensland but in Australia. There are talks that the artificial wave pool will have the same features as Slater’s first surf ranch located in Lemoore, California that comes with tourism facilities.
Having Slater’s surf ranch in Coolum is also expected to be a huge attraction in the coastal suburb. The beach is only a 10-minute drive from the Sunshine Coast Airport at Maroochydoore and only half an hour away from Brisbane. In the coming weeks, WSL is planning to talk to the Coolum community to discuss the concepts of the surf ranch, and to get to know what they think of this project.
Slater’s surf ranch in California has proven to be a success as it was chosen as the venue of the 2018 WSL Founders Cup. The $30 million surf ranch counts on hydrofoils to make artificial waves rise up over the rectangular pool.
The surf ranch is a hundred percent solar-powered, which is an environment-friendly way of building man-made waves. It’s just one of the many ways the legendary surfer has shown his concern for the ocean and beaches. In June 2019, he took part in the WSL “Stop Trashing Waves” campaign to raise awareness of environmental issues.
In addition to the surf ranch in Australia, Kelly Slater Wave Pool Company is planning more man-made wave pools in the years to come, with Brazil and Japan as the possible locations.
Clean and sustainable energy isn’t just a topic inside the classrooms of the University of the Sunshine Coast (USC) at Sippy Downs. The University also shows its commitment to sustainability by practising it through the use of solar-powered rooftops and a newly installed giant water battery.
Having these two cost-saving technologies hand in hand will allow the University to significantly cut its energy consumption.
“USC has calculated that this system will reduce their electricity use by 40 per cent and save the campus $100 million over 25 years,” Energy Minister Dr Anthony Lynham said.
Dr Lynham, who turned on the switch the solar-battery facility with USC Vice-Chancellor Professor Greg Hill and Veolia Australia and New Zealand chief Danny Conlon, also praised how the scheme helped boost employment in the state.
“This $12 million project has created 80 local construction jobs and adds to more than 42,000 rooftop solar systems on the Sunny Coast, and the 520,000 residential solar systems across Queensland,” Dr Lynham said.
Photo credit: USC: University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia/ Facebook
A first of its kind
So how does this energy-saving scheme work?
The USC has about 6,000 solar panels installed on rooftops of all its buildings and carparks. Having this much amount of solar panels would generate about 2.1 megawatts of power, thanks to the abundant supply of sunshine that Australia receives each day.
The power collected through the solar panels will then cool the 4.5 megalitres of water inside the three-storey water tanks. These water tanks serve as a thermal energy storage tank or what USC calls “the giant water battery”.
The cooled water will be stored and used for air conditioning, which is currently the single biggest user of electricity at the campus.
According to USC’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Greg Hill, having this kind of renewable energy system will result in a massive leap towards the University’s bid on becoming carbon neutral by year 2025.
“For a regional university to be leading the way on this is proof that we don’t need to be in the big cities to be taking big strides in new ideas in renewables, and for us that’s very exciting,” Professor Hill said.
“The team behind this are already sharing the technology with schools, universities and companies around the world.”
Partnership with Veolia
This renewable energy project of the University of the Sunshine Coast would not have been a success if it wasn’t for the fruitful partnership between the University and Veolia, a global company that is known for delivering renewable energy solutions.
Photo credit: https://www.veolia.com/
Veolia’s partnership agreement with the USC is comprised of installing and delivering infrastructure, namely the solar panels and the water tanks. Veolia will also operate and maintain the infrastructure for 10 years, and after this period the ownership of the infrastructure will be transferred to the University.
As for the collected energy from this energy-saving scheme, Veolia will sell the energy generated back to the University of the Sunshine Coast at a rate cheaper than electricity from the grid.
