10 Easy & Energy-Efficient Ways to Keep Your Home Warm This Winter Here in Beautiful Pōneke (Wellington)
Wellington winters are no joke. Between the icy southerlies, sideways rain, and grey skies that seem to settle in for weeks, it's easy to feel like you’re living in a walk-in fridge. And with power prices climbing faster than a cable car, it’s tempting to just pile on the socks and hope for spring. But what if you could stay warm and keep your energy bills in check?
Here are 10 easy, practical, and energy-efficient ways to keep your home (and your body) warm and toasty this winter—without cranking up the costs.
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Innovative design for reusable serviceware collection
FillGood provides resuable serviceware solutions. The reusable serviceware replace disposables at events, venues, and in hospitality, providing a smart, cost-effective solution for serving food and drinks. When FillGood couldn’t find a market solution for liquid collection, they reached out to Industrial Designer Darcy Snell, and Garage Project Sustainability Champion, Steve Almond for help to develop a prototype design.
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How much does a heat pump cost to install? You could be eligible for a huge discount.
Imagine warm, toasty air filling your living room during chilly Kiwi winters, and a cool, refreshing breeze keeping you comfortable over summer. That’s the beauty of a heat pump—it’s a two-in-one solution that works as a heater in winter and an air conditioner in summer. It also has a dehumidifier mode, to reduce moisture in the air. Beyond keeping you comfortable, it also helps reduce energy bills with its efficient technology, making it a win for both your wallet and the environment.
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Honouring the beauty and wisdom of trees
Passionate about reuse and quality timber, Jo provides framing services with a difference. Read on to learn more about her journey with recycled timber and a recent purchase that will help her achieve her zero waste goals.
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Circular Creativity and Design Innovation
The creative industries have a significant role to play in finding zero-waste solutions and have the power to shape cultural values and attitudes. We love supporting and collaborating with students and artists who are exploring creative ways to use materials.
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COP28 - Our Global Leaders are Failing Us
Fossil fuels must be phased out now. COP28 was touted as groundbreaking but was dominated by fossil fuel lobbyists and only saw a weak commitment to transition away from fossil fuels.
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Travelling Fresh...by Bike
Rediscovering the joys of biking with a 6-year-old! Hear from another staff member who shares her story of her families’ move away from the private vehicle school run.
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Travelling Fresh
Globally, transport is responsible for a big chunk of our overall greenhouse gas emissions and much of this is from the engines of road vehicles. So, what can we do?
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Phosphorus: Essential to Life but Widely Wasted
We import it, use it, eat it, and release it into the sea. No recycling, no recovery. If a circular economy is the goal, this is a straight line. Read Brayden's blog on the issue of phosphorous which is rarely discussed.
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Community, Gardens and Kai - The Welly Urban Food Org.
With the end of June been and gone, our funding to run the Welly Urban Food Org. has come to an end. But, our involvement doesn't end here. We'll still be active advocates and supporters of urban agriculture in our city, it just changes slightly…
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Energy Hardship is a Thing, MBIE Report Shows. (Yes, we already knew that).
Do you live in a house with significant mould or dampness? You’re not alone (sadly). A recent report from MBIE has found that as many as 110,000 households can’t afford to adequately heat their homes. Our CEO Georgie Ferrari dives into the report and tells you what Sustainability Trust is doing to turn this terrible statistic around.
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Getting Ready for National Volunteer Week…
The Curtain Bank could not run without the support, mahi and encouragement of the volunteers who come into the workroom every week. It seems nothing can adequately express just how lucky we are to have such a great team, and that without them, Juliet and Amanda would end up buried beneath a three-ton pile of donated curtains! Or is there?
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Green Home Loans
Did you know if you’ve got a mortgage with one of the major banks in New Zealand - chances are you can access a low or no interest loan to make sustainable improvements to your home? Read our latest blog, written by our very own CE to learn more about which banks have started offering low or no-interest loans to encourage the uptake of sustainable home improvements.
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The Benefits of Heat Pumps
The results of the most comprehensive study of heat pump use in New Zealand, or elsewhere in the world has recently been released. It evaluated the benefits, costs, and changes in behaviour in households who had a heat pump installed in the government’s Warmer Kiwi Homes (WKH) low-income heating and insulation installation subsidy programme.
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EcoShop Legacy
Our EcoShop may have sold its last shampoo bar, but it leaves a legacy to be celebrated. Here we spotlight some of our favourite suppliers and where you can continue to get their products from awesome spots in Wellington.
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Get ready for winter
As the cold weather approaches, it's time to make sure your home heating system is ready for the challenge. Whether you have a heat pump or a ducted heating system, annual servicing is a must to ensure optimal performance and safety.
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Switched On Workshops
We live in a wasteful linear economy where most of the materials we use are used once and then end up in landfill. In NZ, millions of appliances are needlessly being dumped because they can't be repaired. Repair is one way we can make our economy more circular. Find out more about our electrical repair workshops in Pōneke.
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My Year Without New Clothes
Susie, our Community Manager, decided not to purchase any new clothing in 2022 in an attempt to reduce her carbon footprint. Read her blog to find out how she got on.
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Is your insulation due an upgrade?
Insulation is one of the most cost-effective ways to boost the thermal performance of your home. But, if you've had insulation installed 10 years ago or more, it could be time for an upgrade.
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Let's get growing!
We are excited to be collaborating with the Wellington Timebank on our Welly Urban Food Org. (UFO) project. Working together, we'll expand our UFO network and help facilitate urban agriculture volunteering around Pōneke.
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