History

Grassroots Ecostore grew out of a need. There was more to ethical shopping than food; however food had to come first. Elizabeth had started the Armidale Food Cooperative with a small group of dedicated volunteers. The “co-op” continues to run as a not-for-profit, community owned cooperative, selling fresh, local, organic, biodynamic and/or chemical-free backyard produce.

Elizabeth could see the demand for eco-friendly lifestyle products in regional NSW.  The opportunity to touch, feel, smell and explore first hand is so valuable when considering new and alternative options.

The Grassroots Eco-store was conceived, stocked, fit-out and opened in a frenetic nine weeks in 2006. It aimed to bring the best in eco-living to Armidale shoppers by only sourcing from Australian and overseas suppliers with a strong ethical commitment to those affected by their product.

The “six-ticks” label was introduced at the start and continues to form the basis of stock selection and how a product is presented to the customer. Now, two years on, the challenges remain the same.

How do we do retail without it costing the Earth and its People?

How can we all play a part in building up communities, locally and internationally?

We are all learning more about how our consumer products, transport, food production and clothing might contribute to pollution, human suffering and degradation of resources. But we are finding more and more alternatives; better information and the ability to make positive choices. Together, Grassroots communities are driving change and shaping a future. We are optimistic, interdependent and globally-minded. Naïve…yes, but very willing to learn.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead

About Liz

Liz Moffitt grew up in gumboots in Sydney’s rural fringe in the 1970’s. She straddled two worlds. One had country air, sheep, barbed-wire fences, and a bloke down the road who could fix the tractor. The other was filled with the demands of North Shore living; private schools, European cars and expensive taste.

Married at twenty, with a child and half-finished university course in Physiotherapy, she learned quickly not to rely on wealth and independence, but on her local community and resourcefulness.

With four children, a career as a Physio and husband with a passion for earth-building, she moved to Armidale to do the tree-change; sustainable home, veggie-patch and greater sense of place in her community. With this came a desire to affect change in a broader sense. What she wanted for her own family – good (organic) food and a good price - became a gift she could work towards for Armidale. This was made real in the Armidale Food Co-op.

The Eco-store concept became an opportunity to combine her Christian belief in the value of God’s people and His creation with the need to provide truly good products. By opening the store, she found great encouragement from so many ethical shoppers from a variety of backgrounds. Liz has been delighted by the response of the local community to the Eco-store.

Now living in a straw-bale, solar powered home, with kids all at school and a busy Eco-store expanded into an online domain, she heads a committee of local people examining the Transition Town model for community development and planning for low energy future. She is always growing, always learning and always challenging herself.

Without intending to, she challenges us all to make our own place in the world, full of meaning, abundance and love. (Written by David Moffitt)

“We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, but we borrow it from our children.” Native American Indian Proverb