Safety – Amenity – Access – Health

 

Media Release

As all Sydney workers are being asked to step up to the Walk to Work Day challenge on Friday 6 October, the team at Stockland has already taken the first steps in getting involved and are calling for others to join in for fun and fitness.

 

“You’ve got to get to work somehow, so why not walk – at least part of the way? As they say, ‘you don’t have to take exercise seriously, just regularly’. This is why Stockland staff members will not only participate in Walk to Work Day but celebrate afterwards as well, with a Healthy Breakfast reception on Friday 6 October,” said Siobhan Toohill, Group Manager, Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability, Stockland.

 

Walk to Work Day encourages all Australians to develop regular walking habits and aims for better health, cleaner air, less traffic and increased use of public transport. Organisations across Australia are being asked to host Healthy Breakfasts on the morning of Walk to Work Day for participating management and staff.

 

According to Professor Adrian Bauman, creator of GutBusters and Head of the University of Sydney’s Epidemiology Unit, if an additional 10% of Australians walked regularly, even by as little as to-and-from the bus stop each day, it would significantly increase our productivity and overall well-being. It would save more than a thousand lives every year from heart disease alone.

 

Pedestrian Council of Australia Chairman, Harold Scruby, says that walking is the first step toward personal and environmental health. “With our current habits, Australians are predicted to be fatter than Americans by 2020. Making time to walk everyday and eating healthy food will help to prevent this prediction.

 

“In 2006, we are calling on Australian businesses to do their part by rewarding ‘walking class heroes’ with a healthy breakfast on Walk to Work Day, Friday 6 October,” Mr Scruby says.

 

Ms Toohill says Walk to Work Day is the perfect catalyst for starting a long- term health plan.

 

“Walking is cheap, it’s easy and I can do it whenever I like. It costs nothing but a pair of good walking shoes, which is cheaper than a gym membership and I’ll get to enjoy the outdoors in springtime! I really can’t wait!” Ms Toohill says.

 

The ninth national Walk to Work Day is on Friday, 6 October. Companies, businesses, councils and government agencies are encouraged to host Walk to Work Day Healthy Breakfasts. To find out how to organise your own Walk to Work Day Healthy Breakfast, contact Frances Dwyer/Allison Lee (02) 9519 5411 or visit www.walk.com.au.

 

 

Walk to Work Day is an initiative of the Pedestrian Council of Australia (PCA). It is sponsored by the Australian Government and supported by each State and Territory Government. For more information about Walk to Work Day, visit www.walk.com.au

·          Frances Dwyer, (02) 9519 5411 or 0402 382 477

·          Allison Lee, (02) 9519 5411 or 0410 485 131