Karawatha Forest Discovery Centre

Brisbane City Council's Karawatha Forest Discovery Centre is in Karawatha Forest Park. The centre aims to inform locals and visitors about the significance of the natural area, including the local frog population, and includes Queensland's first nature play space.

Opportunities are available to volunteer.

Location, opening hours and events

The centre has free entry and:

• is located at 149 Acacia Road, Karawatha
• is open Tuesday to Sunday from 9am to 4pm
• hosts an artist-in-residence
• provides free or low-cost events and activities
• has two meeting rooms available for hire.

What's on

Council's environment centre host a number of events throughout the year, from guided walks to children's activities.

Check out what's on at the Karawatha Forest and Discovery Centre.

Facilities

The Karawatha Forest Discovery Centre includes:

• an interactive floor projection of a frog habitat
• a sculptural forest discovery area
• a night-time audio visual experience room
• a virtual reality experience giving a bird’s-eye view of Karawatha Forest
• a meeting room and adjacent large outdoor undercover area available for environmental group use
• free or low-cost events and activities
• Queensland’s first nature play space which includes water play, climbing features, discovery trails and sculptural artworks
• sheltered picnic tables
• free double-plate electric barbeques
• improved pathways
• additional public toilets
• a car park area providing 50 additional spaces and coach facilities
• wheelchair access.

The environment centre incorporates sustainable features such as rainwater harvesting to flush toilets and solar panels to offset energy use.

Download the:

• Karawatha Forest Discovery Centre brochure (PDF - 491kb)
• Karawatha Forest Discovery Centre brochure (Word - 106kb).

Artist-in-residence

2017 artist-in-residence, Caitlin Franzmann, commenced her residency in May 2017 at Karawatha Forest Discovery Centre.

Caitlin is an installation artist working with sound, sculpture and performance. Her work at the centre involved nature inviting visitors to listen and reflect.

During her residency, Caitlin invited visitors to join her exploring the flora and fauna of the forest. She did this through a series of conversations, workshops and sound events. She researched, interviewed guests and gathered field recordings. This enabled the development of sound work to guide listeners on a journey through the forest.

Caitlin holds a Bachelor of Fine Art and has exhibited both nationally and internationally. Exhibitions have been held at the National Gallery of Victoria, Institute of Modern Art, MPavilion, residencies at Yogyakarta and Asialink Istanbul.

View images from Caitlin's residency in this slideshow. Alternatively, view the images in Council's Flickr account.

Previous residencies

Simone Eisler - 2016

During her six-month residency, Simone opened her workshop to the public to share her progress and works. She delivered 17 workshops to children and adults. These included ephemeral art, natural collages, wire creations, natural brooches and clay forest creatures.

Volunteering

Environment Centres Volunteer Program

Help raise awareness of our reserves while enjoying the company of other volunteers by joining our Volunteer Program. A variety of volunteering opportunities are available including:

• greeter and administrative positions, including project and workshop delivery
• forest guides to lead group walks
• event and activity support, including environmental educational and advocacy.