Kia ora and welcome to my final column as your Environmental Officer. The VUWSA elections for 2011 will be underway shortly, so make sure you use your voice and vote. You may have noticed I’m not running again (as I have other plans…) but it’s been an honour to serve you for the past year and a bit. I believe I have lived up to my promises to work hard for you the student, and be committed to the cause of protecting our future.
Warm My Flat
The biggest project I have worked on this year is Warm My Flat. For too long we have put up with frickin’ freezing flats. Hopefully you will have been to vuwsa.org.nz/campaigns to arm yourself with information, insulation, curtains and door snakes, and it will have paid off. Luckily the weather now seems to be warming up (a bit).
Soon you may be looking for a new flat, and have a real chance to improve your lot. To nab a warm, healthy place there are simple questions you can ask and things you can look out for. Check out the pages of this fair magazine for Kate Pike’s next column about just this. Watch out for VUWSA’s upcoming flatting guide, and the next updates at vuwsa.org.nz/campaigns.
10:10:10 Greenovations
Speaking of which, the awesome environment group on campus, Gecko, has your back on this front too. As part of 350.org’s 10:10 campaign for a safe climate, Gecko is looking for flats to warm up and Greenovate – giving away free Eco-bulbs, composters and much more! Go to warmupwellington.wordpress.com for more info, and watch out for them in the quad this Wednesday.
10:10 is an organisation aiming for voluntary cuts to emissions by 10% over the course of 2010, and have teamed up with 350.org to make this happen. People around the world, like Gecko, are working on their own projects to show Governments that we’re serious about climate change and that they should be too. Appropriately, the day of celebration for these projects is Sunday 10/10/10, so watch out for local events (including maybe a Gecko one)! Go to 350.org.nz.
Sustainability Policy
Finally, I am working hard to get VUWSA’s new Sustainability Policy in place for next year. This is another one of my 2010 babies. It is my hope you will see a much greener VUWSA next year, leading by example. Watch this space!
Zack Dorner