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Greenest Street Competition benefits revealed
Greenest Street Competition benefits revealed
JUNE 10, 2013.
Interest in Kāpiti Coast’s Greenest Street competition from around New Zealand and overseas has prompted the release of a new report that records participants’ stories.
‘Building Sustainable
Communities: Kapiti Coast’s Greenest Street 2010-12’
report covers the journeys toward sustainability taken by 84
households in seven streets since the competition began in
2010.
The Greenest Street competition was inspired by
Council’s ongoing commitment to increasing sustainability
and community resilience in the district.
With
support from Council, groups of neighbours spend nine months
competing to reduce their environmental footprint. The
average reduction in participants’ environmental footprint
in the first two rounds of the competition was
16%.
While the environment provides a focus for the
streets’ activities, social wellbeing also features
strongly. Getting together for a shared purpose built
connections between people and increased community
resilience.
Some of the groups set ambitious goals,
with the report noting several projects were beyond the
scope of anything the organisers would have suggested. All
seven achieved a significant reduction in their
environmental footprint and stories abounded of new
connections and friendships.
Professor Brenda Vale,
Research Fellow at Victoria University and a competition
judge for 2011/12, said, “None of the participants thought
the reduction in environmental impact reduced their quality
of life. In fact, coming together as a street to tackle the
problem was observed to be life enriching and enhancing.”
The report is available on the Council website at
www.kapiticoast.govt.nz/building-communities.
The
Council is currently seeking entries for the third round of
the competition (now called Kāpiti Coast’s Greenest
Neighbourhood). Interested Kāpiti residents can contact
Stacey Gasson at staceyg@kapiticoast.govt.nz or 04 296 4700
or see
www.kapiticoast.govt.nz/Our-District/greenest-neighbourhood
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