Calling all zero waste heroes; nominations are open until the 30th of June for the 2021 Tāmaki Makaurau Zero Waste Awards which celebrate all those helping reduce waste to landfill across Auckland.

“There are so many people across Tāmaki Makaurau finding creative ways to reduce waste in their local communities whose stories need to be heard,” says councillor Richard Hills, chair of Auckland Council’s Environment and Climate Change Committee.

“Celebrating these people and organisations and their mahi helps inspire others to try new things. It will take all of us to meet Auckland’s target of being zero waste by 2040.”

There are plenty of awesome businesses and organisations in the Matakana locality that are doing their bit to reduce waste. The Matakana Markets have a zero-waste policy, which has seen huge success and is a point of pride for market organisers;

“We needed an easy system for people to deal with waste. We changed our systems, and slowly eased into compostables. We’re very proud to say that we are 98 per cent zero waste. It was a great accomplishment”.

Neighbourhood Recycle are contributing to a circular economy, giving unworn clothing a new life, and stopping it going to landfill.

Mahurangi Wastebusters focus on reducing, repairing, reusing and recycling as much as possible for the benefit of our people and our environment. Mahurangi Wastebusters have proudly been running zero waste events, repair cafes, waste minimisation education and training events in north Rodney since 2017, and they now have an up-cycled learning hub at Lawrie Road to educate kids on how to reduce and recycle waste.

Nominations are open until 30 June at ecomatters.org.nz/zerowasteawards. Individuals, groups, schools, businesses and organisations can be nominated in one of the five award categories:

• Rangatahi Leadership - for individuals or groups of rangatahi (young people under 18 years) showing commitment and leadership in reducing waste in their community.
• Growing the Movement - celebrating local heroes (individuals or groups) raising awareness, inspiring change and spreading the aroha of the zero waste kaupapa.
• Community Collaboration - businesses or social enterprises who are ‘walking the talk’ by demonstrating a commitment in building community partnerships to reduce waste.
• Cultural Connection - individuals or groups using culturally appropriate approaches to educate, inspire and care for their communities to reduce waste.
• Innovation - initiatives demonstrating the circular economy in action, and ‘making it happen’ through demonstrable results.

This year’s awards are being hosted by EcoMatters Environment Trust, in partnership with Auckland Council, in support of its aspirational goal of zero waste by 2040.

“We’re keen to hear the amazing stories of those trailblazers who are championing innovative ways to minimise waste,” says Charlotte Moore, chair of EcoMatters Environment Trust.

“The Zero Waste Awards are a chance to celebrate individuals, groups and organisations working towards achieving zero waste in Auckland. We know the recognition means the world to those who are acknowledged.”