Our Group
Gen Blades
My joy of walking and rivers has been part of my personal and professional life. I have been involved in outdoor and environmental education in schools and the tertiary sector for over three decades, having most recently been lecturing at La Trobe University, Bendigo campus. Living in Castlemaine and working in the proximity of the Loddon region has enabled me to get to know these places and people who live here. I completed a PhD in 2020 which focused on walking and how, as a sensory, embodied experience, we come to know places on foot.
Contact: genevieveblades@gmail.com
Lisa Hall
The River runs a connection from where I grew up in Northern Victoria to my now hometown in Central Victoria. It is a privilege to connect the threads of this land shape with Gen, Lesley & Phil, and beyond into the wider community. My background in landscape and education shapes my feeling, thinking and practice. This project is for myself and also for some of us who are shaped and touched by the (Loddon) Yarrayn/Minne-minnie/Pullergil-yaluk/Wopoon/Gunbungwerro/Mudyin gadjin.
Contact: lisanaomihall@gmail.com
Lesley Hodgson
Hello. My name is Lesley Hodgson and I love being outdoors. I have a background in geography and teaching and worked for some time in natural resource management. In 2000 I moved to Bendigo to work in Outdoor Education at La Trobe University, teaching in environmental studies and interpretation. My experience there deepened my understanding of, and interest in, Central Victorian natural and cultural landscapes. Now retired, I welcome the opportunity of walking the Loddon River; exploring and sharing the River’s stories with others.
Phil Robertson
I love spending time exploring the outdoors. I enjoy the physical nature of walking and scrambling through landscapes. This is often driven by a yearning to know and learn about our natural environment and the interactions
and connections that link their infinite complexity. I’ve worked and taught in the fields of environmental and outdoor education for the past 40 years. Birds and birdwatching have been a wonderful interest and source of pleasure throughout my life.