As the One Bucket tour continues across NSW, photographer Edwina Robertson has spoken with small business owners, graziers, farming families and a town mayor, among others.
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Ms Robertson said her mission to share stories of drought with people in the city was well under way.
And while she’d heard some troubling tales, she was yet to tackle what she felt would be her most confronting stop.
Ms Robertson said the most poignant story she’d heard at that point was about a Coonabarabran area family.
The six- and seven-year-olds rotate days off school to help with livestock, to minimise labour costs; the four-year-old often drives the ute so mum can feed out cottonseed.
“To me, personally, that was a really hard story to cover – to see tears in these kids’ eyes talking about how much they wish it would rain,” Ms Robertson said.
“And despite mum and dad trying to keep things away from kids, they can pick up on the vibes; they can pick on the stress; they know when their parents are sad.”
Ms Robertson’s next stop was Cassilis, where locals were battling drought after the devastating Sir Ivan bushfires of 2017.
“It’s tough and stock are poor and they’re feeding and you can tell they’re doing everything they can to get by, day by day,” Ms Robertson said.
She said many of the people following her campaign were country people who simply took most of this in their stride.
But the purpose of her journey was to share the struggles and impact of drought with metropolitan audiences – whom, she felt, would be shocked at how different their country cousins’ lives were in drought.
“This is about getting the message to urban communities … We have to be really active in sharing the message.”
Her fundraising and awareness campaign continues in earnest:
Social push
Ms Robertson’s campaign is also challenging people to spend a day using no more than one bucket of water, and to donate to those people for whom that is a reality.
Almost 7000 people are already following the One Bucket journey and campaign on Facebook.
Her next meetings are in Coonabarabran – on level 6 water restrictions as its dam grows dangerously low – then Cassilis and Merriwa.
Ms Robertson said she’d already spoken to many people as she arranged her trip and meetings, and there were a few tales that had particularly struck her.
“There are people taking their kids out of school, either because they can’t afford boarding school or because they can’t afford to pay for labour and need the help,” she said.
“There are farmers that have run out of water and they’re bathing in dirty dam water …
“I’m not a politician, I’m not a journalist, I’m pretty unskilled – but I do have a voice and enough of a profile to bring attention to this issue.
“I can’t not do something.”