We’ve all bought or received gifts we know are never going to be used, which is why The Good Registry has created a way to channel those wasted funds into making a difference. Three years ago, Christine Langdon decided to give up a lucrative career in corporate communications to do something a little bit different. … Read more
In the depths of Unitec’s School of Architecture, teams of second-year students are preparing to put their first tangible projects in front of the public. Alex Braae went to meet one of the teams who will be transforming Devonport’s Windsor Reserve for GLOW@Artweek. Stepping into the room where all the creativity is being done, Unitec … Read more
Inspired by the ethos of food-rescue organisation Kaibosh, chef Kelda Hains looked to the past to champion unloved ingredients and showcase clever waste-minimising techniques at her All Taste, No Waste dinner during Visa Wellington On a Plate. Ever glanced at those supermarket bags of pre-cut broccoli florets and wondered what happens to the stalks? Kelda … Read more
Don’t chuck those lovely feathery green carrot tops in the compost bin – make this instead! We live in a little town in rural Taranaki. This semi-rural lifestyle has countless benefits, but one high on the list is the ready access to fresh, locally grown produce. There are two vegetable farmers no more than 15km … Read more
For the month of July, Josie Adams is taking on the challenge of being low-waste. That means minimising plastics, emissions, and even recyclables. Each week we release her diary. This is week two. Read week one here. I’ll be honest, week two has been a struggle. I’ve been less enthused about finding low-waste solutions because … Read more
Every week on The Primer we ask a local business or product to introduce themselves in eight simple takes. This week we talk to Offcut founder Adrien Taylor whose company takes fabric scraps destined for landfill and turns them into hats instead. ONE: How did Offcut start and what was the inspiration behind it? I started the … Read more
A call for feedback in our daily email newsletter The Bulletin on how New Zealand could reduce the amount of waste being produced – and ending up in landfills – prompted a massive response. Here are some of your ideas. In some ways, this call for feedback was the crisis New Zealand is facing with … Read more
Our landfills are approaching capacity and our country is lacking the necessary infrastructure to support reuse, recycle and composting programmes. Two Māori businesses are helping create waste solutions by championing product stewardship. Whether you are reading this from your computer at your desk, or your phone on-the-go, stop and look around your immediate space. What … Read more
Every week on The Primer we ask a local business or product to introduce themselves in eight simple takes. This week we talk to James Denton, owner of Auckland’s plastic-free supermarkets GoodFor. ONE: How did GoodFor start and what was the inspiration behind it? GoodFor started out of frustration with the amount of plastic I was consuming and the sheer difficulty to … Read more
Alex Casey goes on an odyssey to discover the fate of Auckland’s disposable sanitary waste. Chux cloths. The odd bit of corn. A set of false teeth. It was the worst Generation Game any human had ever played, and I hadn’t even found what I was looking for yet. I was staring into the void … Read more