Nov 2015 10 Waitohu Stream Care is a voluntary community group who work together to restore the dunes, wetland and estuary of the Waitohu Stream. They were established in 1999, with a goal to improve the quality of the then ‘filthy’ stream. With numerous accomplishments now behind them they are going strong with members aging from 7-86 years. They meet every Monday morning for planting followed by morning tea. In doing so they are By Vanessa Crowe able to grow from seed and then plant over 1000 plants each year, slowly repairing the dune. Adding an annual Time banking, community gardening, creating local hubs, winter swim and Christmas party into the mix ensures the supporting local families, promoting community safety, group enjoys a great mix of socialising and the rewards sharing local assets to encouraging generosity and of their communal efforts. Their hope is that those transforming local environments. These are just few of upstream will be inspired to take an interest in the the skills and interests of a passionate grass roots crew stream also. who recently came together to be a part of Boost Camp. Held at Tatum Park in September, Boost Camp brought After a guided tour around the dunes and stream banks together over 30 community leaders from across the Boost Camp participants were invited to share in an North Island. It was developed in response to research by incredible spread of home baking for morning tea. Seeing Strengthening Neighbourhoods in Aotearoa who the results of all of group’s work doubled with supreme identified the need for more opportunities for the hospitality encapsulated what makes the Waitohu community group leaders to connect and upskill, Stream Group so special. It was certainly inspiring for the focusing on wisdom around what works and enables Boost Camp crew to see how such a simple approach can neighbourhood-led action to thrive. enable a group to grow, thrive and sustain themselves over a long period of time. I had the privilege of being a part of the weekend, having it happen in the Kāpiti area provided an excellent Boost Camp was run through Inspiring Communities, a opportunity to show off an example of the amazing national network that shares stories, as well as things that are happening within our local community. connecting people and projects. Visit their facebook page On Sunday afternoon Boost Camp went on an outing, or website for more information. visiting the Waitohu Stream Care group at Ōtaki beach. For more information on the Waitohu Stream Group, The group were fantastic ambassadors for the Kāpiti particularly an overview of what they have achieved, click Coast, sharing their inspirational story and the tangible here. Sue says the group will be weeding from now until results of their years of hard work. June and they welcome any able bodied volunteers who We meet at the Moana St nursery in Ōtaki Beach and Sue would like to help out. For more information contact Sue McIntosh, the group’s Chairperson explained how McIntosh: 06 364 0641 or email: [email protected] On To It is a publication of the Kāpiti Coast District Council The cloth bags were actually donated, so the funding went towards screen printing a beautiful design onto the bags. Flo set up a local design competition to involve the wider Paekākāriki community in the project right from the beginning. The designs had to identify the purpose of the bag bank, and to communicate how it works, other than that, it was over to locals to use their creativity. The competition winner then had their design printed onto Popping down to the shops in Paekākāriki has just the bags as well as receiving prizes donated by local changed for the better, thanks to the new reusable bag businesses. A judging panel of three bank instigated by Flo McNeill. Those shopping and Paekākāriki personalities, Horace the Mayor of visiting local businesses will no longer have to walk away Mainstreet, Sir John Trimmer, and Councillor Janet with yet another plastic or paper bag to be thrown away Holborow had the tricky task of selecting the final after serving its average 12 minutes of function. winner, and announced it to be the stunning design by Instead they can opt for a free to use-and-return cloth local artist Rachel Gannaway. Her print features local eels bag. and kowhai flowers. Flo felt inspired to do something with a broader reach The bags are now printed and available to be borrowed after participating in Plastic Free July. "Although plastic from two spots outside the local shops, providing a may be terrible environmentally, even I have to admit it is practical way for community to bring about change and really useful and something most of us rely upon daily, so to support more sustainable consumer behaviour. In true we can't just expect to successfully live in a vacuum if it Paekākāriki style the project makes visible the were to be eliminated over night. I prefer to crowd it out community's commitment to reducing their demand on with better, more sustainable options." the world's resources, raising consumer awareness about the issues of waste and pollution while also providing "When I was sourcing feedback and ideas for this project, cool designer bags for local use. many people asked why we couldn't just have paper bags as an option. To be honest I was really surprised when I For more information went looking for comparison studies of the full product email [email protected] or check out: life-cycle of different bags only to find out that paper can https://www.facebook.com/paekakarikibagbank be many times worse than plastic for it's toxic legacy." Remembering a “Bag Bank” idea that Stacey Gasson had Thanks to the Paekākāriki Community Board, Foresight talked of a few years earlier, Flo decided that with so Clothing, the Paekākāriki Fruit & Vege Shop, Paekākāriki many disposable plastic and paper items being Village Grocery Store, The Beach Road Deli, The Perching practically unavoidable in our daily lives, shopping bags Parrot Cafe, In Use Clothing, Roots Hair Design, Hearts & did not have to be one of these. She pitched the idea to Roses, Paekākāriki Chiropractic, Paekākāriki the Community Board and successfully received funding 88.2FM, Finn's Pub, and Paekākāriki School. to establish the Paekākāriki Bag Bank. On To It is a publication of the Kāpiti Coast District Council Rod showed that we have overshot the biophysical limits of the planet not just on climate change, but also on By Vanessa Crowe biodiversity as well as phosphorous and nitrogen Hosted by Energise Ōtaki, Award-winning business emissions. Species are now becoming extinct at 100 times journalist Rod Oram visited Ōtaki to talk about the town's their natural rate. Through artificially fertilising our soils place in the worldwide Energy Revolution. I attended the we are pumping more energy into our system than what evening discussion which was introduced by we can sustain. A picture of the earth upside down by the representatives from Energise Ōtaki and Ōtaki College. A Apollo astronauts, provided another visual pun to support business breakfast was also held the following morning. his suggestion that we need to turn things on their head Both events had excellent turn outs with over one and find ways to link ecology, economies and ethics hundred people coming to the evening talk and 86 at the together so we can change our relationship with each breakfast. other and our relationship between us and the planet. Rod began by saying his talk was about “electrifying the Rod reiterated that while the issues are global the future”, with a disclaimer that though this was a dreadful solutions need to be local. He used the Doughnut pun, it is apt as, “the future is electrifying in the exciting Economics model developed by Kate Raworth to explain sense”, with regard to the scale, speed and complexity of how local communities where individuals are helped, change that we are about to see. He explained for the valued and encouraged to contribute their energy, insight most part we presently have large power companies and creativity are key to establishing sustainable providing energy to consumers, with some efforts being economic development. made to help reduce demand by encouraging households to become more energy efficient through home “Paris will help but we can only get this right if we build it improvements and insulation. However to meet the out neighbourhood by neighbourhood, street by street, challenges that lay ahead we need radically rethink the town by town, region by region” supply side of our energy system. From a Kāpiti perspective it was heartening to hear that The technology used to generate and distribute electricity small towns and local communities will play such an is changing very fast. Rod envisions that we will move important part in future sustainable economics. Referring away from big power companies distributing to everyone, the work of Energise Ōtaki, Rod said Ōtaki is exactly on towards a system where consumers are also a part of the track towards developing smart energy systems, doing supply side too. Interestingly what is happening in absolutely the right things through learning fast, electricity aligns with what is happening more generally in experimenting continuously, knowing where you are economics and business. ‘Post Capitalism, A Guide To Our going with room to manoeuvre. Future’ by Paul Mason highlights initiatives such as Uber, Wikipedia, Air bnb which operate according to similar new View slides from the evening discussion and the business economic models. breakfast. On To It is a publication of the Kāpiti Coast District Council to other people’s homes, baking, making school lunches, freezing left overs and making an hour long round trip to help someone out.