Welcome to Mt Victoria Transition Towns page.

Transition Towns Mt Victoria: 2013 Programme

2013 Theme: to be advised.

Meetings: 2nd Tuesday of the month at New Crossways, Roxburgh St, beginning 7:30pm

NEXT MEETING: Tuesday 14 May beginning at 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. Cr Iona Pannett will talk to the group about the Wellington City Council's Draft Annual Plan, highlighting those issues of special interest to Transition Towns. Submissions on the Plan close on Thursday 16 May and there will be an opportunity to make a short submission and also to ask questions. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

The group also offers to help with your bokashi bucket if you do not have space for the contents and to act as facilitator linking up people in the area who have gardens they struggle to keep going with people who would like to garden . Contact Pat Hubbard 384 2646 for further information.

PREVIOUS MEETINGS:

Tuesday 9 April beginning at 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. Seeds of Freedom DVD - Narrated by Jeremy Irons this film is a Gaia Foundation production which charts the story of seed from its roots at the heart of traditional, diversity rich farming systems across the world, to being transformed into a powerful commodity, used to monopolise the global food system. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 12 March beginning at 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St.Growing Change DVD - We will view the DVD Growing Change, which looks at Venezuela's movement towards a sustainable food system based on communities not corporations. We meet farmers who are gaining access to land for the first time in decades and working in cooperatives to break the country's reliance on imports.  The DVD introduces the concept of "food sovereignty", driven by communities and the government. At the core of which are principles of social justice and sustainability. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 12 February beginning at 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. Scientists Under Attack DVD - we will watch the DVD Scientists Under Attack which details problems associated with industry funded research particularly in the field of genetic engineering. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.
The group also offers to help with your bokashi bucket if you do not have space for the contents and to act as facilitator linking up people in the area who have gardens they struggle to keep going with people who would like to garden . Contact Pat Hubbard 384 2646 for further information.

Tuesday 11 December beginning at 7.30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. O E Wilson Biodiversity DVD - The DVD we are viewing is slightly different from the one advertised in the Mt Victoria newsletter due to technical difficulties but we have a similar one, still featuring the great biologist O E Wilson - still on biodiversity, its importance to our survival, and how much remains unknown about the number of species in the world and their importance to life. The DVD is only 22 minutes long allowing time some discussion and Christmas cheer. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 13 November beginning at 7.30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. Urban Permaculture DVD. We will view an Australian DVD Urban Permaculture by permaculture teacher Geoff Lawton.The DVD looks at the way permaculture can be used to create sustainable abundance in intensive small space gardens. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 9 October beginning at 7.30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. Psychology for a Better World. We will view a short film on psychology for a better world for people who believe in a world in which both our species and the ecological systems we are part of can flourish. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 11 September beginning at 7.30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. Sustainable roof water harvesting for earthquake affected communities - Stan Abbott, Director of Massey University's Roof Water Research Centre, will talk about sustainable roof water harvesting for earthquake affected communities. Stan's talk includes lessons learned from the Christchurch quakes. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 14 August beginning 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. Urban gardening - We will view a series of clips on urban gardening around the world today in the hope that it may inspire and inform our efforts this coming spring. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 10 July beginning 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. We will view a new transition towns film, In Transition 2.0, which is an inspirational immersion in the Transition movement, gathering stories from around the world of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. You'll hear about communities printing their own money, growing food, localising their economies and setting up community power stations. It's an idea that has gone viral, a social experiment that is about responding to uncertain times with solutions and optimism. In a world of increasing uncertainty, here is a story of hope, ingenuity and the power of growing vegetables in unexpected places. All welcome.
For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 12 June, beginning 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St. We will watch the film "Locavore: local diet, healthy planet", an American documentary about returning home to our food supply. Amazon says the movie 'is truly a local production. You won't find any big name "Foodie" celebrities in this production - they're not needed. The Living Farm's Lynn Gillespie plus Jay Canode use local talent to describe what a locavore is all about'. All welcome.
For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 8 May, commencing 7:30 pm and held in New Crossways, Roxburgh St, Mt Victoria. Councillor Stephanie Cook who is the Council's Social Portfolio Spokesperson will talk on community resilience and community/public edible planting projects. All welcome. For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

Tuesday 10 April, commencing 7:30 pm and held in New Crossways, Roxburgh St, Mt Victoria. The originally advertised meeting with a WCC Councillor on community resilience and the elderly will take place later in the year. In its place we will watch the film Gasland, about fracking.
For further information contact Frank Cook on 0276496508.

Thursday 8 March, beginning 7:30pm, at New Crossways, Roxburgh St, we will watch the DVD Anima Mundi.

Anima Mundi is a view of the world from a Gaian viewpoint including discussion of permaculture, peak oil, climate change. It is a timely reminder of the future we face and what we can do about it. All welcome.
Please note this is the second Thursday, not the Tuesday when our meetings are usually held.
For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.
A reminder too of help with your bokashi bucket if you do not have space for the contents. Contact Pat Hubbard 384 2646 for further information.

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 9th 7.30pm (note change of day from usual) - FOOD BILL
On Thursday 9 February, begining 7:30pm Johanna Knox will talk about issues around the Food Bill currently before Parliament.
Johanna Knox is a writer and researcher for magazines, educational publications, and exhibitions. She specialises in issues around food and resilience. She has spent time recently coming to grips with and writing about the Food Bill, and in particular what it may mean for cottage-scale trading. She will speak very briefly about where the Bill is currently at, then open for questions.
The meeting will be held at New Crossways, Roxburgh St, Mt Victoria. All welcome.
For further information contact Frank Cook on 027 649 6508.

2011 meetings: The Mt Victoria programme details from 2011 are available here.

Library
We are also developing a library resource which will enable borrowing of DVDs and books relevant to the wider theme of transition towns – including the topics of climate change, peak oil, gardening, sustainable development, energy use, environmental issues etc.
It is aimed to catalogue the resources available and also to start an environmental book reading group.
Margaret Pannett has kindly offered to coordinate the library side of our programme.

Bokashi
The group offers to help with your bokashi bucket contents and household organic scraps if you do not have space for them.
Contact Pat Hubbard 384 2646 for further information.

Gardening
The group also acts as facilitator to link up people in the area who have gardens they struggle to keep going with people who would like to garden .
Contact Pat Hubbard 384 2646 for further information.

Renewable/Sustainable Technologies
We are also keen to learn from local examples of installations of solar collectors, water tanks and the like to help others keen to do likewise. If you have an installation and can help others do likewise please contact Brent Cherry at brent.cherry@clear.net.nz

DVDs
We have various DVDs on the issues around Peak Oil, Climate Change and Permaculture. See the list here. The list will be updated from time to time.