We are immensely privileged to be surrounded by the prodigy of nature and the communities of Ararat, Halls Gap, and Dunkeld. We are humbled to be able to call the open fields at the foot of the Grampian Mountain Range home for the weekend once again.
Community support and involvement are crucial components to the ongoing success of Pitch. As we are attending as visitors of the local area, it is imperative that we treat the land with the respect and dignity it deserves. Remember, we as a community are guests, we must be respectful of this and ensure we are leaving a positive impact.
Seed is Australia’s First Indigenous Youth Climate Network with a vision for a just and sustainable future. With connection to strong cultures and communities at the forefront of their mission, Seed is building a movement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people for climate justice.
For too long, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices have not been included in conversations around the climate crisis and as a result across the globe, young First Nations people are inheriting the consequences of our climate inaction. As one of the youngest generations of the oldest continuing cultures on Earth, we have responsibilities and moral obligations to ensure our cultures continue for generations ahead of us.
Pitch Music & Arts is proud to share that we will be donating $1 of every ticket to Seed.
All materials purchased or hired for Pitch are sourced with longevity and positive environmental impact in mind. This includes all materials for staging, site plant & equipment, Info Hub materials, artist area furnishings, catering supplies and Glamping tents & furnishings.
You can do your part at Pitch by supporting the community by heading to the Local Community BBQ for a meal on site. Profits from the BBQ are split between all participating organisations in this year’s community grants program.
Compostable Toilets will be making a return to reduce a small amount of waste in comparison to their flush counterparts, and require less resources to maintain.
Pitch Music & Arts feels great privilege to support the Djab Wurrung, Eastern Maar Peoples, who are the Traditional Custodians of our site in Moyston. In delivering a Welcome to Country, a dance performance and smoking ceremony will take place to mark the beginning of our seventh instalment.
Historically, a Welcome to Country was a rite of passage for any Aboriginal/and or Torres Strait Islander person or group wishing to enter a nation that was not their own. First and foremost a Welcome to Country gave permission from the host nation to the visitor. Such permission had to be sought out a long time in advance and would require a lengthy negotiation process. The details of the ceremonial event of a Welcome to Country differs from nation to nation. Primarily however, regardless of if it was done as a speech, dance, smoking ceremony or all of the above; the ceremony was a source of information, used to show visitors safe and unsafe areas to travel and explain laws and customs they must follow whilst they are visiting.
The process of being welcomed to an Aboriginal nation is highly significant, so we ask all to be present for the ceremony as a way of paying respects to the land and the traditional owners of our temporary home. We encourage all festival goers to be present and attend the Welcome Ceremony. Attending a Welcome to Country expresses to the traditional custodians your recognition as a festival patron, that Gariwerd (The Grampians), Moyston, surrounding landscapes and the entire Australian continent always was and always will be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land.
We are proud to be working with Good Intentions once again this year. Good Intentions will be on site at Pitch so you can rent sustainable camping gear that has been reused and refurbished. Check back here soon so you can pre-book your equipment and collect at Pitch.
The beauty of the Pitch Music & Arts home at The Grampians extends far beyond the festival site. We are grateful to the communities of Ararat, Moyston and surrounding areas for welcoming us with open arms each year.
We will be injecting generous donations into the community and have made a commitment to donating annually to local groups via our grants program. These funds have been put towards the following organisations and groups:
- Ararat Swimming Club
- Willaura District Community Development Group Inc.
- Grampians Petanque Club
- Pomonol Men’s Shed
- Moyston Primary School
- Moyston Progress Association Inc.
- Wickliffe Lake Bolac Football and Netball Club
- Lake Bolac El Festival Inc.
- Gum San Chinese Heritage Center
- Ararat West Primary School
- Moyston Recreational Centre
- Ararat City Band Inc.
We are striving year on year to reduce our impact on the environment and we ask you to do the same. By attending Pitch Music & Arts, you deeply acknowledge this is a privilege and understand that Pitch is a leave-no-trace event. As a community it is our responsibility to leave the land we dance upon in the same condition we found it.
Please be mindful and considerate of the amount of food, camping equipment, packaging and waste materials you are bringing into the festival and the direct impact this will have on the environment.
As a community we are accountable for our actions and preserving the land we occupy at Pitch Music & Arts. With this in mind, we have implemented sustainability initiatives with the objective of collectively encouraging sustainable behaviour among guests including:
- Recycle: Bins will be conveniently located throughout the festival site. There will be a Campgrounds and Clean Up crew handing out garbage bags throughout the festival. Please ensure you dispose of your waste properly and in the correct bin bags. If you need more rubbish bags at any point, please visit your nearest Helper Hub.
- Reuse your camping gear: Abandoning your camping equipment comes at a huge environmental cost. In fact, 90% of tents from Australian festivals end up in landfill once left behind by patrons.
- Leave no trace: As a no-trace event, items considered ‘microtrash’ including cigarette butts, small pieces of plastic, glitter, and doof stick materials should not be overlooked. This waste breaks down easily, negatively impacting wildlife and the natural environment.
- Bring reusable items: A simple and effective way to reduce your carbon footprint at a festival is to ditch single use plastics that would go straight to landfill and instead bring reusable items including a cup, bowl and cutlery.
- Parktake in the Clean Up Songs: Each stage will have a daily dancefloor cleanup with a track chosen by you. Our hosts will be conducting these throughout the event to keep our dancefloors clear from litter. We encourage you to do your part by participating.
We are once again enforcing our site-wide ban on single-use plastic bottles. We urge you to bring reusable water bottles and make use of our water stations available around site to refill your bottles and keep hydrated.
We are introducing a number of battery powered generators to reduce the festival’s emissions. Battery powered generators will be used to power our infrastructure and lighting.