Business initiatives

Great green gathering

Green Ideas editorial team

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Green Ideas editor Greg Roughan hosted a panel discussion on growing sustainable cities.
Created by the Sustainable Business Network, a group dedicated to helping New Zealand businesses create a more sustainable economy, the Sustainable City Showcase was a hit this summer.

Held over three scorching days in Auckland, last November’s Sustainable City Showcase saw green entrepreneurs, sustainability advocates and crowds of eco-minded visitors mingle in the dramatic Cloud structure on the waterfront. The Green Ideas team went down to meet the public and learn about some of the amazing products caring Kiwi businesses have come up with. We also hosted an open panel discussion on becoming a sustainable city: big thanks to Damon Birchfield, the senior strategic advisor for Auckland Council, visiting Swedish academic Martin Hultman, and Emily Harris from Urban Pantry for contributing their expertise. Here are some highlights from the event.

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Love it

One of the first businesses we met at the Showcase had one of the coolest ideas. Love Notes stationery turns office waste paper that is printed on one side into cute and neatly bound jotter pads for re-use. Sure, the paper has old reports and emails visible on the other side – but somehow that adds to the aesthetic. And the service ensures that paper from within your business is returned to you – so no-one outside the company gets to read those drafts reports – and your paper costs get slashed. Nifty. www.lovenotes.co.nz

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Glass half full

It was great chatting to Nick Feint of Stone Arrow Jewellery and learning how he carves his designs out of used bottles. Many of the green bottles he uses give his earrings and pendants a soft glow similar to pounamu or greenstone, while a popular pale blue colour can only be achieved by using empty bottles of Bombay Sapphire gin. Hmmm. www.stonearrow.co.nz

 

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Good for you, good for workers

In the push to become more sustainable the human element can sometimes get overlooked – so it was great to see All Good bananas bringing fair trade issues back into the public eye. All Good director Chris Morrison won the Sustainable Business Network’s Sustainability Champion award on the first night of the Showcase. www.allgoodbananas.co.nz

 

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Photo / Ian Balme

Forward fashion

New Zealand’s first ethical fashion show was held on the Friday night, and proved a huge success. Kiwi brands such as Starfish, Nature Baby and Chalky Digits showcased the great things that can be done with ethically sourced materials and the night had a friendly spin with – shock! – models actually smiling, George FM providing the tunes, and a few glasses of bubbles to get things moving.