Nomination to Energy Options for Blue Shed

To Energy Options

The Transition Town Opotiki Coast group are working hard to raise awareness of the twin pressures of Peak Oil and Climate Change, and specifically how these will impact on our ability to sustain our way of life in Opotiki. 

We are in the process applying to become a Charitable Trust, with a goal of providing support to community actions that will help to create a sustainable and resilient community in the Opotiki Coast region.

We are working with the Ngaitai Iwi Authority Trust to use their “Blue Shed” building on Church St as a community “Environment Centre”.  The site is ideally situated as it is a central, walkable location, which is highly visible.

Along with the Enviro-Centre there are a number of other initiatives that are planned to jointly run from the venue, these include:

* Organic food co-op.

* Learning Centre 

* Open Market

* Garden Tool Library

*Youth Centre

Currently a few of the offices in the building are being used by the Whakaatu Whanaunga Trust, which is a Social Service organisation that operates throughout the East Coast region from Nukuhou North to Cape Runaway.

Whakaatu Whanannga will also work co-operatively and in partnership with the Transition Town group, sharing building space and continuing to provide their services, particularly the development of a Youth Centre and their Housing Education Programme which is inclusive of energy efficiency.

The Ngaitai Iwi Authority Trust is a charitable organisation which is committed to working cooperatively with others to provide environmental and sustainable land practices.  The purpose of the Trust is to “provide education programs, support and advice to develop individuals and or families to attain their aspirations so that they may enjoy a quality of life with good health, sound and stable finances, simple decent quality housing whilst preserving the environment they live in.”

These three organisations have a great deal of their kaupapa in common, and we are working together to create a strategic plan for the long-term co-operative community use of the Blue Shed as an Environment Centre.

A huge asset to this town, an Environment Centre would be a showcase for all initiatives to help with self-sufficiency, personal energy reduction and lowering carbon emissions.  We would aim to work in partnership with Energy Options to help promote more insulation of Opotiki homes, and be a central site where education, presentations and meetings could be held.

Currently the large building is un-insulated, and the few offices that are being used have small oil and fan heaters warming the working spaces. 

As an Environment Centre a much larger portion of the building would be used for regular meetings, workshops and even film-screenings.  The skills of sustainable living have many direct benefits to the community, for example; greatly reduced costs, improved health and lifestyle, reducing pollution and waste.

If the Environment Centre building was provided with a wood-pellet fire for heating and insulation then we would be able to ‘pay it forward’ many times over by promoting these as sustainable solutions to the whole community.  The fire would be a working display model and we would welcome the opportunity to connect people in our community with Energy Options.

For more information about the Transition Towns concept please visit http://www.transitiontowns.org.nz/ . 

For more background on the Opotiki Coast initiatives, see

http://www.transitiontowns.org.nz/opotikicoast .

Thank you for your consideration of our request

Sincerely                                             

Kazel Cass