The Community Sharing Shed with Irene di Lauro
Story by Tania Brookes, Permaculture Tasmania Life Member
✨From Vision to Action
Irene di Lauro, a community organiser and PhD researcher in sustainable food systems, has immersed herself in Tasmanian grassroots activism. Her mission is clear: to challenge extractive, profit-driven systems and instead build structures that are economically, environmentally, and socially just.
Through the Sustainable Integration Program for Students (SIPS) at UTAS, Irene launched two projects that embody permaculture values: The Community Sharing Shed and a Community Pantry.
🏡The Community Sharing Shed
Located in the UTAS Inveresk community garden, the Community Sharing Shed opened in July 2020 with a celebration of live music and food. It functions like a free op shop, offering clothes, books, kitchenware, bric a brac and more—available to anyone in the university precinct or passing by.
Highlights include:
- a volunteer who discovered a golden calligraphy pen and wrote a poem about it
- daily changes as donations arrive and items find new homes
- a growing sense of community ownership and joy.
🍞The Community Pantry
Just steps away from the Sharing Shed, the Community Pantry sits near the Railway Cottage and UTAS accommodation. Stocked with donations from organisations like Host Harvest, CWA in Tasmania Online Branch and the Benevolent Society, as well as contributions from local gardens, the pantry provides free food to students and community members. While still gaining traction, Irene sees enormous potential in the pantry as a symbol of trust and solidarity.
“Free food is different than free stuff,” she explains. “It takes time for people to build confidence in these systems.”
🌍A Broader Vision
For Irene, these projects are not about solving food insecurity outright but about changing mindsets. They demonstrate that resources can be exchanged outside of the market, through community and mutual aid. She hopes these initiatives inspire replication across Tasmania and beyond, joining the growing network of community currencies, street libraries, repair cafés, and informal sharing spaces already thriving in Launceston.
🌿Irene’s Five Tips for Sustainable Living
- Avoid the duopoly – buy from local producers instead of Coles and Woolworths.
- Share food – cooking and eating together strengthens community bonds.
- Grow food – even a pot of tomatoes can reconnect us to nature.
- Do the research – understand the environmental impact of packaging and food choices.
- Organise collectively – join co-ops, community gardens, or community groups to build resilience together.
💡Why It Matters
As Irene reminds us, sustainability is not just about self-sufficiency—it’s about community sufficiency. By valuing human connection and collective action, projects like the Community Sharing Shed and Community Pantry show us a glimpse of a more hopeful, cooperative future. Irene will leave Tasmania in January 2026 and is currently seeking expressions of interest from the Launceston and surrounds community to keep this vibrant community initiative thriving. Drop Irene and email if you have time to give.
📍Visit the Community Sharing Shed and Community Pantry
- weekdays 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
- UTAS Inveresk 2 Invermay Road Invermay TAS
For more information, contact Irene di Lauro at [email protected]
