Teams of 25 competed in the virtual challenge in June which required them to complete as much of the 4,800-kilometre trail as possible over a month by walking, running, cycling, and swimming.
This included members from the academies of Countrywide Surveying Services (CSS), SDL Surveying, E.surv and Sava who took on the challenge for LionHeart, the independent charity for Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) professionals.
The trail ran from Melbourne to Cairns and the group’s progress was monitored via an application with updates posted on social media.
The LionHeart charity supports RICS members and families in times of need from new starters to those in retirement. Also included are past members and their dependents. The charity provides financial and legal support, confidential advice, and counselling.
The latest Impact Report by LionHeart revealed that the charity supported over a fifth (21 per cent) more people in the year 2022/2023 in comparison to the year prior.
Carolyn McDonald, corporate fundraiser at LionHeart, said: “We absolutely loved the enthusiasm – and good-humoured sense of competition – of this challenge and seeing all the pictures and posts on LinkedIn. We know the firms enjoyed the team-building aspect of the challenge but what was really lovely was that they never lost sight of the aim, which was to raise as much money as possible to help us help their fellow surveyors.
“We’re grateful to all the individuals who took part and to all those who donated to support their efforts, as well as to the firms for coming up with the idea and driving it forward. There is already talk of planning a similar 2024 challenge which we’re very excited about, especially as this would fall in LionHeart’s 125th Anniversary year.”
Sarah Chalmers-Stevens, head of professional development at CSS, added: “This was another light-hearted challenge between firms championing talent and the role all firms play in ensuring that becoming a surveyor is an attractive career option for people from all walks of life and backgrounds. Seeing the posts from members of our team over the month, demonstrated what team spirit our team have and so we look forward to the next challenge – whatever that may be.”
Adrian Drummond, assistant training and quality care manager at SDL Surveying, also commented: “We have had a blast over this last month taking part in the Bushtucker Trail challenge. The event has been a fantastic excuse to get out of the office, soak up the sunshine and feel some of that summer heat.
“Our academy team has had great fun organising and taking part in joint bike rides and runs. It’s been brilliant to see competing firms coming together to support a fantastic charity and we’ve really enjoyed the engagement with like-minded surveyors from across the profession.”
