Kindness, ingenuity and sustainability triumph at Community Group Awards

Te Whare Mahana recently secured a finalist spot in the Keep New Zealand Beautiful Community Group Awards.

Te Whare Mahana is the home of Levin’s Repair Cafe, which runs on the first Saturday of each month at the Levin RSA. The Repair Cafe was started with support from Horowhenua District Council’s Community Development team, and funded through Council’s Waste Minimisation Grant.

Levin’s Repair Cafe is a regular event where people can bring their broken goods along for volunteers to repair. It is a social space that brings together people with unique skills, alleviates social isolation, assists people living on a tight budget and most importantly promotes environmental awareness and sustainable living.

The Repair Cafe encourages people to repair or upcycle household goods, as opposed to buying new items and disposing of broken goods to landfills. The programme also encourages individuals to learn new repair skills, moving our community towards long-term waste minimisation and behaviour change.

Victoria Gregory spokesperson for Te Whare Mahana says “The Repair Cafe has resulted not only in less rubbish being dumped but cost-saving for families and individuals who no longer have to replace household items. The initiative has also created a place for learning skills and building social connectivity.”

With seven events since November 2020, the Repair Cafe has now seen over 180 attendees, and almost 200 items successfully repaired.

Horowhenua District Council’s Waste Minimisation Officer Robbie Stillwell says “We want to thank the volunteers who are the heart of Te Whare Mahana. They are incredibly skilled and are beyond generous with their time and patience. This initiative fits perfectly with our waste minimisation kaupapa.”

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