POEM FOREST is a free nature writing prize that breathes life back into the natural world that sustains us.

Red Room Poetry is Australia’s leading organisation for all things poetry.

And, because we believe in the power of poetry for expressing, exploring and communicating ideas, we use our expertise to run programs for people who have something to say, from school kids to adults.

The POEM FOREST Prize invites Australian school students of all ages to use poetry to express their love of nature, and voice their calls for climate action.

Prizes are awarded for the best poem in each age-group.

We provide free learning resources and online workshops to help kids write their poems. We collaborate with First Nations knowledge-holders and our environment partners to include sustainability case studies for the students to explore.

Since 2021 we have worked with Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan, and Wollongong City Council, so that, for every nature poem we have received, a tree has been planted to help heal habitats and create a POEM FOREST for future generations - over 17,000 trees so far.

In 2025 we hope to build collaborations with new environment and funding partners to help us grow the POEM FOREST Prize nationally. If that sounds like you, please get in touch!

Email Rebecca Cuschieri, Development Director: rebecca@redroompoetry.org

“Nature is dying. But I am only 11. I don't have the courage to stand up. But with Red Room Poetry, I felt that I could tell the world how much nature is dying. And even if my poem does not get picked, just remember, I still care about nature and I will do anything, in my power, to save it.”

~ Joshua V, Year 5, Cheltenham Primary School, VIC

ABOUT THE FOREST

The first POEM FOREST was planted on traditional land of the Dharawal people, on Mount Annan, in the heart of the Australian Botanic Garden between 2021 and 2022, and is helping restore the critically endangered Cumberland Plain Woodland and Western Sydney Dry Rainforest.

Since 2023, the POEM FOREST has been be planted on Dharawal and Wodi Wodi Country in Wollongong, and will extend far and wide across Wollongong with trees planted in local parks, natural areas, backyards and as street trees. With some of the lowest canopy cover in all of NSW, these trees are critical to creating a better future.

Seedlings planted in the POEM FOREST include a mix of native plants like eucalypts, paperbarks (melaluca), palms, flame trees, as well as coastal-loving trees like Wild Quince (Guioa semiglauca) and Cheese Trees (Glochidion ferdinandi). They are carefully prepared by the team at Wollongong Botanic Garden Nursery so they're ready to provide shade, purify the air, capture and store carbon, and provide homes for living things above and below ground.