Healthy homes, sustainability + other things we like
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Seven Tips For a More Sustainable Black Friday
With Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas and Boxing Day on our horizon, we've compiled our top tips for staying conscious, mindful and sustainable while consuming.
COP28: a weak cop-out, signaling 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.
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.
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?
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.
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?
DIY Make a pallet planter for small spaces
DIY pallet planter boxes are all the rage. If you have some pallets lying around on your property, turn them into Pallet Planters, make use of them and add a unique look to your yard or garden. Follow this guide and make your very own.
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.
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.
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.
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.
(Actually) Convenient Compromises to Decrease Your Footprint
Working with a thin stretched budget and even less energy? Here are some small but mighty lifestyle changes you can make to reduce your footprint while also saving time and money.
What is the Winter Energy Payment?
With winter well and truly upon us, it’s the time of year power bills skyrocket. For many who are struggling to get by, that could mean a difficult decision about a warm, healthy home for your family, and saving a few dollars on the next energy bill.
DIY worm farm
Learn how to make your very own worm farm, and convert your organic waste into fresh useful compost with an easy method you can do at home.
How to have a more ethical Christmas with kids?
For many families, Christmas is about keeping the magic alive for the kids. Leaving lists for Santa, hearty food, backyard cricket, and of course, the presents.
Your Sustainable Workplace Christmas
Christmas is all about fun, food, and bringing people together. None of these things are inherently wasteful and we reckon a little bit of mindfulness goes a long way over the holiday season. Check out our guide on how to have a sustainable Christmas in the workplace.
Your very merry sustainable Christmas gift guide
In the week after Christmas, we send 50,000 extra tonnes of waste to landfills which, if stacked up in a tower, would stretch 105 times higher than the Sky Tower. It’s not a good look for our country and it is avoidable. Check out our Very Merry Gift Guide for neat ideas to take you into a low-waste Christmas season.
COP 26 - Five things you can do right now
There’s no denying that this is the decade of urgency for the climate and our planet. With COP26 running from 31 October to 12 November 2021, there has never been a better time for you to act.
Repair-ED: A repair cafe
Check out what happened when we joined forces with our friends at Hopper- Refill to deliver our first-ever joint repair cafe.
A Zero Waste Plan for Welly
We believe that Wellington should start working towards a zero-waste vision. This is why we put forward recommendations to Wellington City Council on their strategic waste review and proposed residual disposal treatment options.