I've been fortunate to be able to be a regular volunteer in different towns, for most of my adult life. Like most volunteers, it's been seen as a normal and important part of my life. As far back as I can remember, there's always been a shortage of volunteers.

Unfortunately , it seems it has become much worse for a number of reasons.

Keith Curry, Orange

It was interesting to read that environmental sustainability speaker Jo Taranto is Orange's Australia Day ambassador. Her message, "As a country kid, I've got a vested interest in making sure there's a just transition for regional communities and I'm quite excited about what climate action can mean for regional communities" is particularly appropriate given that according to a study conducted by the Australian National University, the federal electorate of Calare is the fifth most at risk from runaway climate change should it not be contained. Let's hope local member Andrew Gee, whose National Party is anti-renewables, is in attendance to hear what Ms Taranto has to say.

Ray Peck, Hawthorn

In a cashless society, financial transactions are not conducted with physical banknotes or coins, but instead with digital information (usually an electronic representation of money).Wikipedia

A cashless society is one in which cash, in the form of physical banknotes and coins, is not accepted in any financial transaction. Encyclopedia Britannica

Stop The World (Australia) becoming an 'inevitable cashless society " by 2030 despite The Australian Banking Association Report saying that at the end of 2022, cash only accounted for 13 per cent of consumer payments in Australia compared to 70 per cent (2007).

Keep cash a legal tender and make it illegal for cash not to be accepted as legal tender.John Mclaughlan www.change.or

A Cashless Society puts the vulnerable needy poor and the vulnerable needy rich all at the mercy of banks and jeopardizes our right to trade directly with who we chose rather than having banks or government involvement our private business.

Since 2018, Sweden became a virtually cashless society. Since then when the banking system has gone off line there have been times people were not able to purchase basic and essential good including food and medicine. Some individuals have reported banks randomly freezing their accounts leaving them penniless for weeks without an explanation.

Access to your money can be blocked at a button click when/if banks need clarification from you on any matter. What if all the red tape processes took 2 weeks to get you back online; what if it didn't happen?

John Mclaughlan www.change.org

Jane Wallace, Riverwood Bronx

Not many years ago we had the then Prime Minister Scott Morrison waving coal around in Parliament expressing how harmless it was, and more recently strongly promoting the use of natural gas for creating energy.

A short time ago the present Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton made it clear that nuclear power was strongly favoured in relation to providing energy in the future..Now we have Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg proposing that households, moving away from gas appliances in order to use electricity, should be able claim tax deductions ,in a move to establish a cost effective path way to net zero.

The suggestion by Senator Bragg is excellent in my opinion, however if ever net zero is going to be reached a consistent approach will be essential to reach that goal.This is not at all evident in Coalition policies to date.

Brian Measday, Kingswood