Wollongong City Council hopes to inspire people to discover what's in their own backyards, with a series of "Secret Suburb" events to highlight what's special about particular areas.
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Thirroul and Corrimal have been chosen for the pilot, with hopes that a great turnout will secure the future of the series, bringing people, places and activities out of the woodwork.
Cultural development co-ordinator Megan McKell explained the mix of presenters would be quite "eclectic", ranging from Aboriginal elders to wildlife advocates, spokespeople from the Northern Suburbs Skating Alliance, and avid community gardeners.
"One of the beautiful things about the Illawarra is we have a fantastic sense of community and [the Secret Suburbs series] is just learning more about what's around the corner, and I think it's of real interest to people."
Some residents might already know what was in their local area, but two suburbs down they might not, Ms McKell said.
At the Thirroul showcase, Wild Rumpus co-owner Caitlin Marshall will speak about the not-for-profit social enterprise curating a variety of classes and believes an event like this shines a light on what's going on at grassroots level.
"We go on living in our homes and sometimes forget to look around and see what's going on, and there's so many new and fantastic things happening," she said. "It's a chance to hear about them all in one place and give people some new ideas, and celebrate what's happening here."
She said there were so many many ways to be involved in the community "all over Wollongong".
The Thirroul event starts at 6pm on Wednesday at Thirroul District Community Centre.
Corrimal's showcase is at 6pm on Wednesday, June 17, at Corrimal District Community Centre.