Series 2: Episode 0 – Trailer

In the Great Southern, the transition from winter to spring is a sensory experience – canola crops and wattle trees inject a vibrant pop of yellow across the countryside, a distinctive smell underpinned by pollen and fresh florals hangs in the air and abundant outbreaks of wildflowers animate the bush with their resplendent, bespoke beauty. I was reminded about how invigorating the seasonal change is as I drove through the regions last week and witnessed these splendours firsthand.

I find I’m more inclined to notice things like changing seasons, or the start and end of a day marked by the rising and falling sun when I’m outside the city because there are less buildings intercepting my intimacy with nature.

In this fast paced, highly charged world we live in, the opportunity to retreat from the frenetic anxiety of urban life is extremely attractive and there’s widespread discussion about how living in sync with natural cycles is genuinely good for our wellbeing.

Returning to the rhythms of nature and the positive effects that has on people’s lives is a dominate thread in Series 2 of YOU MOVED WHERE?! Additional to the joys of getting your hands dirty gardening, and the thrill of living alongside extraordinary wildlife, our guests share how moving outside the city has rejuvenated them with a sense of calm and renewed perspective relative to their sweeping surroundings.

Just as the eb and flow of nature brings about change, for many of our Season Two guests a move to the regions prompts a new season, another chapter in their lives that signals exciting, new beginnings. For some, the move has been extremely transformative and has given them an opportunity to explore different parts of themselves, reveal emerging instincts within that have been dormant in city environments and evolve their sense of self.

Another shared experience in Series 2 that goes hand in hand with embracing newness, is that change can be terrifying, and fear is a common denominator for many of the movers. A very compelling part of this podcast is that the guests we chat to transparently share their stories about what this fear felt like for them, and what they did to overcome it. Their insights are invaluable and resoundingly the rewards they gained for leaping out of their comfort zones far outweighed the fear – breathtaking backyards, electrifying outdoor experiences, new natural wonders to see, wonderful people to meet, networks to join, places to travel, new hobbies, friends, jobs, aspirations, ambitions, connections, and careers.

Uplifting chats on the topic of renewal are complimented by discussions about the delight of space and silence – not easily afforded in cities. Such is the extent of space that David and Christy of Hay, NSW, fit a footy oval in their backyard! Pippa, Steve and Charlie of Lake Clifton, WA, have generated a thriving garden on their rural slice of paradise and Bonnie, who moved from to Sydney left the confines of her cardboard box city apartment for the expansive outdoors of Alice Springs.

Some of our guests have moved from highly dense global cities to places where there is more space but less people, “I mean, in India you’ve got 24 million people in one city, and I come from those cities…and then I moved to Perth and Western Australia is basically the size of India, and there’s two million people, if at all, in the whole state, you know, so I wondered where are the people? Are they all dead…?!” (Tanuja Sanders, Binningup, WA)

We hear how the sound of silence is a game changer, “I suppose I’ve always been really interested in space, but I became so much more interested in having my own space when I acquired my disability. It was really important for me to have a place where I could actually hear silence – when you have sensory stimulation, like I do, an over sensation at certain times and noises that I used to not pay any attention to are now an incredibly big deal.” (Chanel Bowen, Dunsborough, WA)

And we learn about the unique benefits of small communities, as seen through the lens of people who are new to them, “I think it’s the variety and diversity of people that makes you appreciative of the melting pot of people you can find in the regions and the attitudes and the mindset that you only really find once you leave the city boundaries.” (Tim Wong-See, Albany, WA)

Series 2 of YOU MOVED WHERE?! is bursting with anecdotes, adventures and captivating stories from people who have moved from cities to regional areas all over Australia. We dispel myths and assumptions about life outside the big smoke and we hear from inspirational individuals living their dreams, old and new, in dynamic regional communities.

The Series 2 guests have moved from different cities all over Australia and the world, for all sorts of different reasons, at different times in their lives. However, the consistent throughline is that they don’t plan on moving back any time soon!

The first episode of Series 2 launches on Tuesday September 12 so be sure to follow YOU MOVED WHERE?! on all the platforms you listen to podcasts so you can listen as soon as it drops and, in the meantime, catch up on Series 1!

LUKE PROUT – Publican, Tamworth, NSW

EMILY RIGGS – Fashion Designer, Burra, SA

ELLIE BIGWOOD – HSEQ Officer, Pardoo, WA

DANIEL FLETCHER – Public Servant, Dalby, QLD

AUNTY YVONNE GREEN – Ngadju Elder, Esperance, WA

MATT YOUNG – Actor, Blackall, QLD

JACINTA REDDAN – CEO Advance Cairns, Cairns, QLD

GIAAN ROONEY – Olympian/TV Presenter, Clunes, NSW

What’s to come in SERIES 2…

“It’s been the people locally bolstering me up that have made me want to share and continue on this journey, now the point where I do really actually believe in myself and my abilities…you make connections with other business owners just really organically because it is a smaller place, so you do run into them at the local cafe.” (Kayla Henley, Orange, NSW)

“The moon is so much clearer in the regions, so is the stars, and, you know, we can be more aware of that than when you’re in the concrete cities, unless you actually make the effort to go out and into your yard or make space for that time to look up.”

(Marie Dennis, Mackay, QLD)

“Growing up playing a lot of sport in big cities you were involved but as a player you kind of just came and played, but out here it’s a whole day event. If it’s a home game, there’s often a function at night and it’s a function for families so everybody comes and having that together time just to catch up to chat about whatever – it’s so important. I love that aspect. It’s a whole different side of sport that I didn’t grow up with.” (Christy Webb, Hay, NSW)

“It’s interesting coming as a migrant to this country – it’s literally uprooting every aspect of your life whether it is cultural, social, you basically uproot an entire fully grown tree bring it to a completely different place and plant it and that’s where you start; from scratch again.” (Tanuja Sanders, Binningup, WA)

“It’s so beautiful and there’s wildlife everywhere and the neighbours are friendly and on the drive home…you pull into the driveway, and it takes you a while to get to your house down the driveway and you go, ‘yeah, this is this is a dream!’” (Pippa Grandison, Lake Clifton, WA)

“Every single night just before the sun sets the carnabys will do a big circle and they’ll be calling out and they’ll be crying and me and my mum will always make sure that we catch the carnabys. (Chanel Bowen, Dunsborough, WA)

“The skills that actually exist in the regions are mind-boggling and that’s what I’m finding in the work that I’m doing. There is so much talent locally and I mean Kojonup is such a small town and Shire punches so far above its weight. We’ve got world class entrepreneurs, farmers, innovators. You name it – we have it in Kojonup and that has absolutely blown my mind.” (Jill Watkin, Kojonup, WA)

“Going to those kind of places and feeling really connected and grounded to the earth here, it makes me wonder if I’m ever really gonna be able to go back to the cardboard box in the middle of the sky in Sydney. I just think out here I can finally breathe and I might just suffocate if I go back there.” (Bonnie Carroll, Alice Springs, NT)

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