Huitanguru Pānui / February Newsletter 2021

Highlights

Composting & Worm Farm Workshop | Trail hosts wanted | Electricarna 2021 | Low-waste camping | Food Resilience Talks - event recap | Take-away containers, explained | Marfell Community Garden update | Let’s Compost Workshop | Sustainable Business Champion | Tane Manu & planned kiwi release in Kaitake

Trail hosts wanted for Sustainable Backyards 2021

If you have a sustainable backyard, and you are interested in sharing your positive story and experiences with others, then the Taranaki Sustainable Backyards Trail may be for you! It's not just about growing kai, but also about wastewater treatment, sustainable energy, construction, waste reduction, upcycling,… you name it - if it's sustainable and inspiring we'd love to know about it! Please submit your expression of interest by the 7th March 2021 to be considered.

Electricarna 2021 - Getting Noticed

Saturday 27th February from 1 - 4pm at the Central School carpark

It’s no surprise that more than just a few ears are pricking up at the thought of buying an electric vehicle, especially after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced “New Zealand must ban the import of petrol and diesel cars by 2032 in order to reach its climate change targets and de-carbonise the economy.” There will be a static display so people can walk around and talk to the owners about their experience in going electric. Melo Yelo, NPDC, Venture Taranaki, Powerco, Evolocity, and Sustainable Taranaki will be there along with special guests and founders of Charge Net, Steve and Dee West who will be showing their 2008 Tesla Roadster.

Electricarna 2021 | Central School carpark

Low-Waste Camping

If you’re travelling by car, van or motorhome, camping, hitch-hiking or renting a bach, there are really no barriers to continue to engage in our low-waste home habits. Have a look at our team’s top tips for a low-waste camping summer.

Alex making lunch at Lake Wanaka

Food Resilience Talks - event recap

We finished 2020 with a community event to discuss the very important kaupapa around food resilience in our region. With a guest speaker from Canterbury and four local panelists, it was an engaging evening where we talked about community gardens, school initiatives, growing kai at home and urban farming. Our event recap also includes links to the live videos and materials shared during this event.

Pounamu Skelton sharing beautiful imagery of her first experiences with kai as a youth

Take-away containers, explained

In the take-away world, there are many eco- friendly sounding options out there: compostable, bio-degradable, recyclable, plant-based… it’s no wonder some of us are confused about what they all mean! We aim to shed some light into this and suggest alternatives to reduce our impact while enjoying our favourite coffees.

Marfell Community Garden - New Year update

Since its first hui in November, the Marfell Community Garden has made considerable progress and has brought together neighbours near and far to help develop the space. With 24 fully planted rows of vegetables, a kumara patch, corn clusters, teepees of runner beans and sunflowers as well as a perimeter of native trees, flowering bulbs, and taro, one could say...it has really taken off.

Marfell Community Garden 14th Feb Hui | Photo credit to local gardener Andrew French

Sustainable Business Champion - Mad Irish Keyman

Cobblers have been around just as long as shoes; however, in modern times, it’s more common to cast away footwear after one season. It’s also a rarity to find a cobbler, so we feel pretty lucky to have Lou and her father’s family business in New Plymouth saving our beloved shoes from landfill again and again.

Sustainable Taranaki would love to work with local businesses to help them find positive solutions to any recycling and composting challenges that they may have put into the "too hard basket" in the past. If you or a business you know would benefit from our team's services, please email info@sustainabletaranaki.org.nz so we can be in touch. Let's work together as a community to build a more resilient and sustainable Taranaki.

Mad Irish Keyman store front | 11 Devon Street East New Plymouth CBD

Let’s Compost - Mimi School

Saturday 27th March 12:30 - 4:00pm

Learn how to compost and the different systems you can use in your backyard.  After completing a workshop, your household will receive $40 off your choice of one of three easy-to-use compost systems. Registrations essential.

Team Focus - Tane Manu

Tane Manu has joined the Sustainable Taranaki tīma as an Education Coordinator for Te Ara Taiao o Kaitake Conservation Education project in the Kaitake rohe/region. He is heavily involved in his hapū environment work for Ngā Māhanga and Ngati Tairi, including both Pūniho Pā and Ōākura Pā, and has taught rangatahi/youth at WITT and Te Wananga o Aotearoa to deliver trades and hospitality/retail courses and spent the past year delivering the Kai Oranga program with his wife at Ōākura Pā. 

With a deep passion for the environment, his drive comes from his whakapapa connections to the Maunga, Whenua, and Awa from within the Kaitake rohe/region and aspires to reconnect our future leaders to their inherited responsibility to protect our Taiao for generations to come.

Recently, Tane has been part of the predator-free project to soon release kiwi into the Kaitake Ranges for the first time.

Tane Manu | Photo credit Andy Jackson