Moved by Councillor Scully, seconded by Councillor Kok –
It is resolved that:
(A) Council note:
(i) this year marks the 76th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people;
(ii) the City of Sydney has a long standing commitment to supporting peace efforts at a local and on a global level: as a member of Mayors for Peace and key supporters of the Sydney Peace Prize, and in October 2018, Council unanimously endorsed the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons;
(iii) the Green Legacy Hiroshima initiative is a global volunteer campaign, aiming to disseminate the universal message of nuclear disarmament by providing the seeds or saplings of ‘survivor trees‘ - trees that survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki - to be planted in locations all over the world;
(iv) currently seeds and saplings from the A-bombed trees are growing in more than 30 countries - in a sustained, long-term campaign, joining other efforts for a nuclear-free and sustainable future;
(v) there is community support for the City of Sydney to participate in the Green Legacy Hiroshima tree project;
(vi) participation in the Green Legacy Hiroshima initiative involves sourcing a seed from one of the original Hiroshima survivor trees for growth and eventual planting somewhere in the local government area; and
(vii) City staff have advised that the City does not have the facilities to grow plants imported from overseas from seed. However, they suggested that the Royal Botanic Gardens would be a suitable partner. The Royal Botanic Gardens have expressed interest and capacity to undertake this; and
(B) the Chief Executive Officer be requested to:
(i) seek advice from City staff to determine the preferred species of Survivor Tree seed, noting many of the species on the list may be considered weeds in Australia; and
(ii) initiate the process to join the Green Legacy Hiroshima project, working with the Royal Botanic Gardens to secure an appropriate seed from a Survivor Tree for cultivation and future planting in an agreed location in our local government area.
Carried unanimously.
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