Bandicoot Pottery

As the first business funded by Destination NSW to complete their Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard, Bandicoot Pottery is committed to continuous improvement on their sustainability journey.

Bandicoot Pottery opened in the 1980s when two classically trained ceramicists, Daniel Lafferty and Gabrielle Powell, decided to open a pottery studio to share their passion with their guests. After the Black Summer Bushfires forced Bandicoot Pottery to rebuild their studio from the ground up, the owners sought to strengthen their business’s resilience. Through completing the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard in partnership with Destination NSW, Bandicoot Pottery is determined to make the most of their new beginning and believe adopting sustainable operations can help their business in the long run.

Owner Gabrielle Powell said, “During tough times, sustainability may help my business survive. I may be able to increase profitability by looking at my costs. The less resources I use, the less I spend, and the better I will perform.”

Bandicoot Pottery are committed to improving their environmental sustainability and maximising the resources used in the studio by locally sourcing ‘wild’ clay and reclaiming and reusing old clay and packaging materials. Ingeniously, they also recycle fired clay as aggregate on their driveway.

Offering a variety of workshops for enthusiasts of all ages, they encourage guests to flex their creative muscles by expressing their imagination, experiences and thoughts through pottery. Fierce advocates for mental health, Bandicoot Pottery participate in disARTster in collaboration with the NSW Government and Charles Sturt University. This initiative provides young rural Australians an opportunity to share their experiences of the Black Summer Bushfires and climate disaster.

Striving to improve their sustainability initiatives, the Scorecard helped them to measure their current practices and identify recommendations across the four pillars of sustainability: sustainable management, environmental, socio-economic and cultural impacts.

“The objective is to provide a snapshot of our operations and the way we can improve sustainability in our business in key environmental and cultural areas,” said Powell. “As well as providing me with suggestions on how to improve my sustainability score, the Scorecard has also given me ideas on how to improve our business overall.”

Using Ecotourism Australia’s clearly formatted online application portal to complete the Scorecard simplified the entire process for Bandicoot Pottery. By identifying what documentation is required to complete the criteria, they can plan for their next Scorecard.

“Based on the criteria and feedback, I’ve already created a few documents. I’m going to use what I have and continue to develop to make improvements in my score,” said Powell.

Bandicoot Pottery found they had a lot to be proud in their Scorecard and are excited to share their achievement with their guests.

“I’ll put our Scorecard in the next monthly newsletter, then promote it on our website.”

However, the journey for Bandicoot Pottery doesn’t end here. For their next step, they will be using the insights produced in their Scorecard to build on their sustainability initiatives. Then, they intend to take the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard again.

Powell stated, “In certain areas, I’d like to improve my score as well. Retaking the Scorecard will help me to continue learning and improving in the sustainability space.”

Bandicoot Pottery received a complimentary Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard thanks to Destination NSW’s partnership with Ecotourism Australia. There are limited places remaining in this grant, register your interest here: https://www.ecotourism.org.au/strive-4-sustainability/NSW

Bandicoot Pottery completed their Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard on 2 August 2023 and is a snapshot of their current sustainability practices. The scorecard is not a certification and is valid for 12 months upon completion.

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