THE AKAROA MAIL Friday September 27 2013 Page 11

The Akaroa M

Issue 101 - Friday September 27 2013Whakarauika o Whakaraupo

A Project Lyttelton initiative in association with The Akaroa MailTo contact the Lyttelton News team - Telephone (03) 328 9260 or email michael@akaroamail.co.nz Check out our upgraded website! www.lyttelton.net.nz

Lyttelton - portal to Canterbury’s historic past, a vibrant sustainable community, creating a living future.

James and Jillare gettingmarried

James and Jill regularly busk outside theLyttelton Library each Saturday at thefarmers market to help contribute to theirwedding expenses.

There is an open invitation to thecommunity to attend the wedding and thereception. 3.00pm Saturday 9 November. Thewedding ceremony will be the first weddingin the new cardboard cathedral. As Jill wasa server for many years in Christ ChurchCathedral the new temporary cathedral is anatural place to choose for the service.

The reception will be at Lyttelton MainSchool hall. It will take the form of a ceilidh,so bring any props you need to help createthe fun. Bring pot luck food.

Much of the wedding is being organisedby TimeBankers.

Festival of Learning theTimeBank will be hosting itsannual “Lyttel Book Fair”.

That event will be at thegarage sale on the morningof October 5th. All proceedswill support the TimeBank.The fair opens 10-2pm.

Sarah Pritchett is the newDiamond Harbour Co-ordinator.

She is over in Lyttelton atthe Information Centregenerally on a Monday butyou can also meet her everysecond Friday 9-11 at theGodley House Cafe inDiamond Harbour.

She is tasked with gettingmore trading and moremembers for the DiamondHarbour area.

One of her new initiativesis a repair cafe at the KuraFestival of Learning atDiamond Harbour School onSunday 6th October from 2-4pm.

At this TimeBank eventshe is going to have peoplewith sewing machines forsimple repairs, a handy blokewith a sewing machine thatcan handle heavy duty jobsand a plastic welder.

If you have any other skillsyou’d like to swap just lether know.

In November she is alsogot an Inspiring StoriesTrust movie night over inDiamond Harbour.

Jen Kennix is the longestserving member of thecurrent TimeBank team.

She is instrumental inensuring all our computersystems are running well.

She is also a great linkbetween other TimeBanks allaround NZ.

In Lyttelton she is the mainorganiser of the community“Welcome Bags”.

The TimeBank plays a vitalrole in making new residentsfeel welcome.

Jen produces all ourliterature and has put herdesign skills to great usecreating all our posters,flyers and promotionalmaterial.

She’ll also be heavilyinvolved in the TimeBankSkills swap at the Portal aspart of the Kura Festival ofLearning on SaturdayOctober 5th from 11am to1pm.

Jen is an invaluablemember of the team and veryversatile.

Last week she did a greattalk to the junior school atLyttelton Main and with herchildren did a great skit aboutthe Timebank.

Jen can be found at theInformation Centre onTuesdays and Thursdays.

“Our door is open and welook forward to meeting youand welcoming you to theTimeBank” Wendy said.

Lyttelton TimeBank isbased at 20 Oxford StLyttelton Phone 328 9093 orcontact can be made by emailtimebank@lyttelton.net.nz

Wendy Everinghamis based at theL y t t e l t o n

Information Centre.Her role is primarily to look

after Lyttelton Harbourenquiries, existing membersand help create interestingopportunities for TimeBankers.

Because she also works forthe Information Centre, shecan generally be found therebetween 10am - 4pm Mondayto Friday.

Currently she hosts aThursday afternoon tea from2.30-3.30pm. This is forcurrent members and anyresidents who might like toknow more about theTimeBank.

She looks for anyopportunities for TimeBankers to spend theircredits.

Keep an eye out for theKura - Festival of Learningand you will see a few eventsthat are available for TimeCredits.

This past weekend TimeBank member RobinaMcCurdy hosted a FoodForest workshop and severallucky Time Bankers parti-cipated for credits.

In early November theBanks Peninsula WalkingFestival will also offermembers walking oppor-tunities for credits.

Wendy is also involved infundraising.

As part of the Kura -

“During the quakes, theLyttelton Time Bank had thebest local communicationsystem through which vitalinformation flowed tomembers and local residents.

“Using a range ofcommunication modes,timely information wasprovided to residents onpractical and safety pre-cautions, as well as theavailability of clean water,food, services, and otherresources.”

Dr Ozanne says as apartner working withemergency workers and firstresponders, the LytteltonTime Bank had an intimateknowledge of the com-munity. It acted as a huborganisation activating itsextensive social networkthrough which valuableresources could flow.

When at-risk families andgroups were identified, timebank members offered homevisits, emotional support,food, accommodation andrepairs.

Problems were solved inthe immediate aftermath ofthe earthquakes, such asdismantling chimneys thatcould be safely removed,freeing emergency workers toassist on projects thatneeded greater skill.

Time bank members visitedelderly residents providingemotional labour, whichfreed medical personnel todeal with more acute medicalproblems.

A University ofC a n t e r b u r yresearcher has

found the Lyttelton TimeBank was a builder andmobiliser of resources duringthe 2010 and 2011earthquakes.

Marketing lecturer DrLucie Ozanne says herresearch found a surprisingpartner in emergency man-agement - the local com-munity time bank.

“We saw a strong role forthe Lyttelton Time Bank inpromoting community resil-ience following the earth-quakes” she said.

“A time bank is agrassroots exchange systemin which members tradeservices non-reciprocally.

“This exchange modelassumes that everyone hastradable skills and all labouris equal in value. One hourof any labour earns a memberone time bank hour, whichcan be used to purchaseanother member’s services.

“Before the earthquakesstruck, the Lyttelton TimeBank had organised morethan 10 percent of the town’sresidents and 18 localorganisations.

“It was documenting,developing and mobilisingskills to solve individual andcollective problems.

“Across the 30,000 tradesbefore the earthquakes, astronger social network wasbuilt through theseexchanges.

Research finds LytteltonTime Bank a builder andmobiliser of resources

The Timebank teamLyttelton Harbour is really fortunate to have three dedicatedpart-timers looking after the TimeBank.Who are they? are and what do they get up to?

“After emergency person-nel left the community, thetime bank provided on-goingsupport in the months andyears that followed.

“Individual assistancecontinued to be provided toresidents, such as helpingwith home repairs or findingrental accommodation whenhouses were deemed unin-habitable.

“The time bank wasparticularly adept bothworking with other com-munity organisations tosolve larger communityproblems and harnessinghuman labour and resourcesto complete these initiatives.

“Research suggests thatcommunity resilience im-proves when communitiescan quickly mobilise a rangeof resources.

“This is a real strength ofthe time bank model sinceresources are identified,developed and activatedthrough hundreds andthousands of trades.

“My research suggestedthe time bank model can beexpanded to assist inemergency planning andmanagement.

“Investments in local timebanks are an economicalmethod of building a trustedand practiced local commun-ication infrastructure, whichis critical during a crisis.

“Moreover, time bankscurrently identify and dev-elop communities’ assets” DrOzanne said.

Wendy Everingham, Sarah Pritchett and Jen Kennix.

Lyttelton - portal to Canterbury’s historic past, a vibrant sustainable community, creating a living future.

Page 2 - Lyttelton News - Friday September 27 2013

Dann who brought in aposter depicting the KateSheppard white camellia.

- Annette Williams

with an annual income frommemberships, the co-op canbe guaranteed of constantcapital injection.

So why didn’t we think ofthis?

Well actually we did andwould have explored thisoption in earnest if it hadbeen a legal possibility.

Unfortunately, NewZealand appears to be at adistinct disadvantage whenit comes to the growth of co-operatives by the simple factthat current legislation makesno allowance for ‘not-for-profit’ or ‘non-distributing’co-operatives.

The history of co-ops inNZ is dominated by theagricultural sector whichlooks to maximise profits byconsolidating processingand distribution – asuccessful model indeedlooking at Fonterra as theprime example.

Therefore investmenttakes the form of sharepurchase not membershipfees, and the business isregulated accordingly.

Overseas, namely inAustralia, the US, and UK,however there has been amuch stronger developmentof consumer co-ops.

Small towns that have losttheir supermarkets, or petrolstations, or who were in needof affordable housing,formed co-operative com-panies to keep control andaccess to these vital goodsand services, not just as aninvestment for financialreturn.

That’s why our neighboursover the ditch have specificlegislation for ‘non-distri-

buting’ co-ops which is whatall of the food co-ops I visitedhave formed under.

What would this mean forus?

Firstly, it would mean thatco-operatives would becomea viable option for smallcommunities across thecountry to gain control overessential business such as:grocery stores, petrolstations, housing develop-ments, energy companies,retirement villages… withouthaving to meet the prohib-itive levels of compliance thatregulate large corporationsand profit motivated indus-tries.

Our experience at theHarbour Co-op is one ofcaution to any small grouptrying to organise under theexisting co-operative legis-lation.

In NZ there is $2,000 perregistered prospectus, $5,000for annual audits, registrationas a financial serviceprovider, and a list ofcompliances that causesmuch scratching of headsfrom experienced financialand legal minds.

What this country needsis new legislation that allowsfor this form of businesswhich can empower smallcommunities and disen-franchised groups, not justserve to increase the returnsof those who put profitbefore people and ourenvironment.

If this resonates with youplease help further thediscussion. Contact yourlocal Member of Parliamentand drop me an emailbrian@harbourcoop.co.nz

Free firstaid courses

St John Banks Peninsulais again offering freecommunity first aid coursesfor Lyttelton Harbourresidents.

There will be two eighthour courses, the first onSaturday 6 October and thesecond on Sunday 7 Octoberfrom 08:30am until 5:30pm atthe Lyttelton St JohnAmbulance Station, 52London St.

Pre-registration is requiredand its first in first served.Interested persons shouldcontact Pete Dawson on 021-334381 or 03-3180859 orpete@fishcon.net to register.

assisted by Mary Ogilvie. Nicole Wiedemann will be

the guide for the firstweekend.

Nicole is keen to start acompany doing guided walkson the Port Hills, so she iswell qualified.

More local involvment isplanned with accomodationbeing available for out-of-towners, so it will be a goodchance to invite friends andrellies over for the weekendand put the word out.

Living Springs will beputting on a sausage sizzleand refreshments for thewalkers arriving at Allendaleon Saturday afternoon.

Perhaps other communitygroups will seize the chanceto participate and fundraise.

Bookings for the walks willbe taken at the LytteltonInformation Centre (328-9093) and the program willbe available in print and onProject Lyttelton’s website,www.lyttelton.net.nz

Louis Dyer the owner of Civil and Naval, a new bar and restaurant that opened on LondonStreet recently, serves a coffee for a patron. Louis lives in Lyttelton but has family connectionswith the Governors Bay Hotel says the venue will be open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am untillate. The food is tapas style – sharing plates.

I recently took a trip overto Sydney for a bit ofreconnaissance.

There are severalsuccessful food co-opsoperating in and around thecity and I was curious toknow what made them tick.

The first thing that struckme was that they weren’t anylarger in size to our ownHarbour Co-op – in fact mostof them occupy significantlysmaller premises.

There are none of thesupersized organic mega-marts that are found in theStates.

But crammed into thesesmall spaces were a trulyimpressive variety ofproducts – predominantlyunpackaged bulk goods – inthe same vein as our ownphilosophy of trying toreduce price and packaging,but with a vastly greaterselection.

Chalk it up to economiesof scale and greater domesticproductions capacity Ipresume - certainly a bench-mark to pursue.

The other striking differ-ence upon further enquirywas this - the two mostsuccessful co-ops had 2,000-4,000 active members, eachpaying a nominal annualmembership fee - $20-40.

This provides universalaccess to benefits (whichpredominantly was a straight10% off of retail prices –interestingly, all shops wereoperating on significantlyhigher margins than ourown), and a steady stream ofrevenue to the business.

Basically anyone canafford to join the co-op, and

Co-op law change neededBrian Rick, the Managing Director of the Harbour Co-op and a communitydevelopment worker with the Harbour Resilience project shares his viewson the need for legislative change in New Zealand around co-operatives.

that they will be ready forthe festival.

Some parts of the walkwayare not completed and needto be walked on the road, butthe wonderful scenery makesup for that.

Many locals see it as abeautiful walk that couldgrow very popular, like theOtago Rail Trail.

It could be suitable forfamilies with young children,walking at their own pace,with shops, cafe, accom-modation and activities onthe way.

And the many walkingtracks in Governors Bay andMt Herbert, the Little RiverRail Trail, and so on meansthat there are manypossibilities of linking upwith even more walks.

As part of the WalkingFestival, Rowena MacGill isplanning to guide a walk fromLyttelton to Allendale on theSaturday, and Church Bay toPurau on the Sunday,

Many people must havememories of the fun they hadon walks during last year’sFestival of Walking.

Some walked aroundvisiting the chooks ofLyttelton, others learnt of thehistory and so on. There wasa huge variety.

Although the WalkingFestival is not until the firsttwo weekends of November,some locals are alreadywalking the tracks andholding working bees toclear tracks of the Head-to-Head Walkway.

This walkway goes fromGodley Head, throughLyttelton, around theHarbour, and out to AdderlyHead.

It is a work in progress byChristchurch City Councilwith our Community Boardand local groups such as theRod Donald Banks PeninsulaTrust.

Maps, and a brochure arebeing planned, with the hope

Getting ready for theBanks PeninsulaWalking Festival

camellias to members of theLegislative Council whoopposed the franchise billand wanted women to“remain in our proper sphereapart from politics”.

Information on thesuffrage movement was alsosourced from http://www.nzhistory.net.nz andincluded a printout of theLyttelton women who signedthe original women’ssuffrage petition.

A lot of the names werequite familiar.

Interest in the topic washigh amongst our womenlibrary customers, and thecamellias very popular.

Thank you to everyonewho supported this cele-bration, in particular Sue-Ellen Sandilands whocontributed a bunch of whitecamellias to the display, AnnJolliffe who provided afascinating magazine articleon her family members andtheir connection to KateShepherd, and Christine

MarkingSuffrageDay atLytteltonLibrary

People may have noticed anumber of women walkingthe streets of Lyttelton onThursday September 19 andsporting a rather differentlapel adornment.

A closer inspection wouldhave shown that the“brooch” was a silver origamicamellia, and hopefullyinterrogation of the wearerwould have revealed that thiswas being worn to celebrateSuffrage Day.

At the Lyttelton Library wefelt we couldn’t let the 120th

anniversary of New Zealandwomen winning the right tovote pass without some formof commemoration, so wespent September 19 foldingorigami camellias out of silvercrepe paper and passingthem out to our librarycustomers.

A couple of customerswere brave enough to foldtheir own camellias, but mostwere happy to accept theready-made ones and spenda moment talking about thesignificance of the day.

We also put up a displayof articles from localnewspapers of the time,printed from the onlinehistorical newspapers data-base Papers Past http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz .

These articles included aneditorial from The Presswhich informed its readersthat most women didn’treally want to vote andwould prefer to be carryingout their household duties,and the interesting infor-mation that women whoobjected to the women’sfranchise distributed red

The Lyttelton Library’s Suffrage Day display.