Usually, in NZ, we go into nature because nature is nurturing, relaxing, rejuvenating, energising and fun. But what if nature is so degraded it loses this capacity to support us in this and many other ways? Perhaps we think this couldn’t happen here in Godsown Clean Green 100% pure NZ. After all, when we look out the window we see Green. Or do we? That depends where we look and what we look for.

Waterways, estuaries and harbours are good indicators of how Clean and Green, how 100% pure NZ really is. And when we look there we find a different story because what we do on the land ends up in these places.

We have 77 national water quality monitoring sites – all showing worsening trends.
Most rivers do not meet bathing water quality standards. In Northland only two of the surface water rivers monitored by the Regional Council meet stock drinking water standards – and that’s the lowest standard.
Listen to this, I don’t need you to remember the numbers, I want you to notice what it feels like in your heart:
35% of all indigenous species in NZ are on the endangered species list – this includes all terrestrial mammals, frogs, marine invertebrates, freshwater fish, and vascular plants.
68% of identified natural ecosystems are now classed as threatened.
90% of NZs wetlands have been lost.
70% of indigenous vegetation has gone.
How does that feel?

To me, these are shocking statistics – not those of a Clean Green 100% pure country.

What do we do about it?
In 1991 the Resource Management Act came into being – it combined a vast array of previous environmental legislation into one document to give it us – the people of New Zealand – the powers to protect and care for what we depend on most.
The purpose of the RMA is to promote the sustainable management of natural and physical resources. Sustainable management means managing the use, development, and protection of natural and physical resources in a way, or at a rate, which enables people and communities to provide for their social, economic, and cultural wellbeing and for their health and safety while –
(a) Sustaining the potential of natural and physical resources (excluding minerals) to meet the reasonably foreseeable needs of future generations: and
(b) Safeguarding the life supporting capacity of air, water, soil, and ecosystems; and
(c) Avoiding, remedying, or mitigating any adverse effects of activities on the environment.

So why then are 35% of all indigenous species endangered?
The legislation hasn’t failed – we’ve failed to use the powers it gave us.

We use the Act to give permits to pollute – that’s what a permit is. And we provide them for many forms of point source pollution. Yet we do nothing to control or prohibit diffuse pollution such as from intensification of farming, horticulture or forestry runoff.

It has taken 20 years to produce a National Policy Statement (required by the Act) for Freshwater Management. Arriving after years of public consultation the National party has shamefully removed any requirement for consents to intensify farming. Instead, they are giving subsidies to irrigate – that is, they are encouraging it.

Governments are not independent. They have vested interest in economic growth. I am not against economic growth. I am against ecocide. Our current government, as do many, talk of balancing the economy and environment. But the seesaw has tipped, and the environment is the loser, and so are we.

When do we realise this is a crisis? When all fish have gone?

We cannot wait for Government to act on our behalf. So we take action into our own hands. I am facilitator for a local Charitable Society – Living Waters. We work with landowners around the Bay restoring riparian margins and wetlands to reduce sediment and nutrient runoff into the waterways. Our sister organisation FishForever works on establishing no-take areas in the marine environment. Together with a string of other non-government groups and individuals we will step- by-step nurture the return of our natural biodiversity.

And in doing so, we will importantly midwife a change in heart, a change of consciousness, so that we learn to think like a mountain.

When we Think like a Mountain we experience ourselves to be a genuine part of all life. We are not outside the rest of nature and therefore cannot do with it as we please without knowing we affect ourselves.

When you next go on holiday, I invite you to take some quiet time and Think like a Mountain. Perhaps then, we will begin to honour this watery earth.

What if increasing the success of these efforts depended on our intentionally focusing on a deeper process – the core process of conversation and meaning-making which is the way people have always co-evolved new realities. The natural cross-pollination of relationships, ideas and meaning as people move through conversations enables us to learn, explore possibilities, be innovative and co-create together.

“Conversations are the way workers discover what they know, share it with their colleagues, and in the process create new knowledge for the organisation. In the new economy, conversations are the most important form of work….. so much so that the conversation is the organisation.” – Alan Webber “What’s so new about the economy” Harvard Business Review 2009

How we come together to address critical challenges and opportunities may mean the difference between “business as usual” and the casualties this creates, and the breakthrough thinking and action we need today. By designing, convening and hosting conversations about questions that matter, and linking these conversations in intentional and disciplined ways, we have the unprecedented opportunity to tap the collective intelligence and for creative innovation and collaboration toward shared purpose.

So, what is the issue for your organisation? Is it lack of staff motivation, high accident rates, needing to reduce costs and increase innovation, or a desire to move further towards being a sustainable business or organisation? Or perhaps you don’t yet know.

Whatever your critical issue is, we offer the opportunity to discover and address it (or them) by hosting webs of intentional and disciplined conversations that enable your organisation to think, plan and work together for innovation and change.

“A leader these days needs to be a host – one who convenes diversity; who convenes all viewpoints in creative processes where our mutual intelligence can come forth.” – Margaret Wheatley. The Berkana Institute

We value our people, heritage, and culture, the profound wisdom of Tangata Whenua, and the knowledge of science and technology.

Government, business and community collaborate in partnerships growing education, an economy, and building infrastructure that meets our needs and those of our children. Healthy food, renewable energy, and goods are produced locally. Elders’ wisdom is captured in apprenticeships mentoring and training youth for a fulfilling life.

Public transport complements cycle and walkways in our towns. We’ve kept rail and improved local shipping. Diversity and local products designed into our economy and infrastructure ensure Northland’s adaptability and flexibility.

Most importantly, the environment we depend on is treasured and regenerated, vibrant and alive.  Waterways are clean, soils healthy, genetic engineering prohibited, and coasts protected with fair access for everyone.

Adaptability and flexibility, diversity of culture, sharing, and a supporting natural environment are our strengths in these changing times.

1. Create a shared long term vision that connects our unique communities and supports us to work together. Then create a plan and follow it.
2. Ensure NRC communicates effectively with communities and other agencies.  The many challenges in front of us cannot be addressed by any one person, business or organisation alone. We will listen for and work with our collective knowledge and wisdom to create robust policies and implement wise projects.
3. Encourage everyone’s voice to be heard and celebrate our diversity.
4. Treasure our people, land, heritage and culture.
5. Grow a local and regional economy that meets the needs of our communities. Support local food production, ecotourism, farm forestry, local energy production, craftsmanship of local resources, recycling, affordable healthy homes, and engage youth and value elders. Reinstate apprenticeships to ensure valuable knowledge and skills are passed on and not lost
6. Provide policies and incentives that encourage recycling and zero waste providing cost savings and opportunities for new businesses.
7. Monitor our natural and social environment and economy accurately and display this in long term trends to show how well we are doing and where we need to adjust.
8. Create visual plans and maps of what’s important to our communities so that these are easily shared and regularly used.
9. Ensure the 30 yr transport strategy connects Northland, responds to rising fuel prices, and encourages private and commercial transport that meets our needs and those of our children. Retain railways where possible for public and commercial use; keep the mega trucks off the roads (rail and sea are options); provide public transport, and create cylceways in our towns.
10. Prepare a Northland energy plan that encourages local renewable energy production creating business opportunities and building resilience (our ability to adapt and recover from unexpected change) into our communities. Work with leaders in this field who have knowledge and resources to support us. (I have held communications with Waikato University Vice Chancellor and NorthTec to advance this idea).
11. Last summer’s drought cost Northland $331 million by April this year. It is time to prepare information and strategies that help farmers and town people alike adapt to the unpredictable conditions of climate change preparing for unexpected events.
12. Water is valuable we must conserve it with care. We can develop integrated land and water catchment management plans that provide soil and water conservation, fair water allocation, and conservation of use. An excellent opportunity for regional and district councils to work together, and with community, and provide cost savings all round.
13. Fresh clean water and a clean green environment is how we attract visitors. With only 2 rivers in northland meeting stock drinking water standards it is time to collaborate and find solutions that work for everyone to clean and protect our waterways.
14. Protect our coasts and provide fair access for everyone.
15. Create new business and education opportunities with training and education packages that help us understand sustainability and resilience as important life and business skills.
16. Protect Northland from Genetic Engineering. Insert a policy prohibiting GE in the NRC Regional Policy Statement and rules that enforce this in the Regional Plan.
17. Design ease of living and fun into our communities.
18. Research and learn from successful experiences in other places.
19. Learn from the devastating earthquake in Christchurch. Plan, prepare, and be adaptable. Follow good urban design protocols, and build diversity and modularity into our infrastructure, so that if one system fails there are others to rely on. This is resilience.
20. Helping each other out is rewarding.  Let’s make it part of our everyday lives!

Thank you!

The forum brought people and ideas together in a safe and congenial manner that encouraged creative thinking.

There was shared understanding that loss of sovereignty of decision making and production, along with excessive consumerism, contributed to our current situation.

Shared commitments to action included:

• Developing a sustainable economic model for organic market gardening
• Establishing viable food markets for local produce
• Reconnecting groups and leaders in our communities
• Re-energising rural pride
• Community owned and created power generation
• Local craftsmanship using local resources
• Local currencies, and
• A commitment to care for our water ways.

Participants expressed genuine gratitude for the sharing and collective learning and ideas for action that emerged.

“Let us put our minds together and see what kind of life we can make for our children” – Sitting Bull

Are interested in rebuilding communities and local economies

We invite you to attend a Northland community-created employment initiative…

What we know – Our Northland communities have been hit hard by the economic downturn. Unemployment is currently 7,000.  A few big construction projects are being funded, along with community max employees on the new cycle way. These projects help temporarily and we will need to build on these for the long term.

What we must do – It is time for Northland communities to come together and explore possibilities to create new jobs that will contribute to a local and regional economy, and wellbeing in Northland.

So let’s get on with it- We will host 2 community-created employment initiatives

Kaikohe:  Friday 27 August 12:45pm to 5:00pm at Mid North Motor Inn on Broadway. (Please arrive at 12.30 for a prompt 12.45 start)

Whangarei: Thursday 2 September 12.45pm to 5:00pm NorthTec inter-active learning center. (Please arrive at 12.30 for a prompt 12.45 start)

What will you get – A grass roots community that will bring together: community groups, business leaders, youth, elderly, Chamber of Commerce, NorthTec, High school career guidance staff, local industries, church groups, and unemployed. The outcome of the day will be individuals and teams inspired and committed to work together to create new jobs over the coming months.

Together we will explore:

• What is happening in our communities
• What has created this situation and resulting loss of jobs
• With this understanding, what new jobs can we create now

This is a free event – come along and work with us to create new jobs for our communities…….

To register your interest, please contact Ruth Marsh at ruth@ourcommonfuture.co.nz or phone 09 407 1399

Last week we heard from NIWA (Coasts 20/20 research) and Ministry for Environment (NZ Herald 20 July) about the serious nutrient and sedimentation threats to our rivers and coastal waters. Hard on the heels of these releases Cabinet endorsed a proposal (22 July) by Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Phil Heatley to unilaterally change the Tasman and Waikato regional coastal plans removing legislation that restricts marine farming to shellfish. The plan changes will not be subject to any environmental scrutiny or public submissions under the RMA. Finfish farming is now being proposed.

I support marine farming. Yet such non-democratic decision making favouring one interest group raises two main concerns.

1. Finfish farming has quite different environmental effects than shellfish: deposition of faeces and uneaten feed, use of chemicals to treat disease, visual and navigation issues, and use of wild fish stocks (often caught far away) in fish feed. It usually takes between four and six tonnes of wild fish to produce one tonne of farmed fish. The sustainability of such a system has to be questioned when wild fisheries and marine ecosystems are already under pressure.
2. Of equal concern is leadership that contravenes the good governance principle of public participation. Northland Regional Council was also criticised for poor leadership in inadequately bringing the many stakeholders together to develop the Northland Coastal Plan – Plan Change 4. (Student research project supervised by Victoria University Nov. 2007).

What is required to establish sustainable long term plans for our coastal waters representing all interests is leadership that engages the public in open and fair discussion and decision making.

(Considerations for October 2010 Local Government elections)

Put Community First is a group which aims to bring about an informed leadership that is responsive to community needs and restores hope in citizenship. It will do this by raising community awareness. Put Community First provides a foundation to guide candidates and voters.

Citizen engagement

The problem is that instead of citizens we have become consumers and statistics. We unintentionally give away our power to elected politicians who make decisions for us instead of with us.

Our solution is that as citizens we can reclaim local governance by choosing to be involved and carefully selecting local government representatives who have strengths and experience in caring for our environment, bringing people together, and listening and acting on the collective community voice.

A Path that puts community first

Communities and councils enjoy their shared commitment to work together to restore the safety and joy of community by:

ü  Nourishing the health of local decision making through active participation by everyone;

ü  Ensuring that the natural environment is not adversely affected by local and regional economic growth and development;

ü  Developing and promoting a local and regional economy that will keep and cycle wealth in Northland; and

ü  Balancing and giving equal consideration to Northland’s environmental, economic and community health.

Candidate Qualities

Who will listen to and work with Northland’s communities in the time ahead, and what qualities and competencies will they need?

Individuals who:

ü  Focus on the “we” not the “I”

ü  Are true to their word

ü  Are open, sincere and respectful

ü  Are accepting and empathetic of a wide range of viewpoints

ü  Respect inclusiveness and equality

ü  Value and build healthy relationships

ü  Are proactive, visionary and understandable

ü  Actively seek to understand and respect Maori traditions, processes and protocols

ü  Create excitement, enthusiasm, commitment and action in others

Role of local Government

(Quotes from Local Government New Zealand A candidates guide to local government)

“Local government exists to:

ü  Provide for the wellbeing of communities and must lead, nurture and respond to community views. The key principle for local democracy is that the power of decision making should rest as close as possible to the communities affected by those decisions.

ü  Provide leadership for the good of the community.  It is about balancing views, resources, and needs and making decisions that are best for the community.

ü  Make decisions promoting the community’s social, cultural, environmental and economic well being.

ü  Manage, protect, develop, restore, enhance and conserve the environment.”

How will Community First carry out these responsibilities?

Over the next three months Community First will host workshops to listen to and understand public concerns and share how Community First can advance the following principles in the upcoming elections:

ü  Council will work with communities not for communities.

ü  Include everyone with the intention of creating and respecting partnerships that meet our collective needs.

ü  Conduct business in an accountable manner such that decision making is shared, understood and ultimately supported.

ü  Monitor and report on the health of our community, environment, and local economy.

ü  Host forums on a regular basis to actively listen to the community.

ü  Provide information that is clear, simple and understandable.

Questions to Candidates

ü  Can you support the Put Community First initiative?

ü  How do you see yourself contributing to these?

ü  How would your actions be measured and reported to the community?

Community First will invite all candidates to answer these questions and post their responses on either of these websites

http://whangareitt.ning.com or         http://ttkerikeri.ning.com

Questions to Citizens

ü  Do you support Community First intentions?

ü  Would you like to know which candidates support the intentions, demonstrate the qualities, and are committed to putting the community first?

ü  As a citizen you now have an opportunity to inquire with candidates about their capabilities, track record, and what they stand for.

Jeff Griggs Whangarei

Ruth Marsh Kerikeri

Community First Northland Leadership Conveners

• Resilient communities that are mutually supporting and flexible making them able to adapt to shocks and change; and
• A decision making and monitoring process that ensures the social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being of communities are met.

Increased resilience will provide the means for our communities to grow in an increasingly challenging future. These challenges now include:

• Climate change and its implications for agriculture, horticulture, energy, and water management;
• Rising oil prices and the implications for transport, food and commodity prices, and the need to be more self reliant;
• Growing health issues arising from an aging population, poor quality food, deteriorating air and water  quality, and exposure to growing environmental toxicity; and
• Resource depletion and increasing economic uncertainty and its implications for social inequality and unrest.

A new way of thinking is needed along with a collaborative leadership style that will focus on :

• Restoring the health of local democracy by re-engaging with and encouraging participation of our community members irrespective of age, education, ethnicity or socio-economic background;
• Developing and promoting a local and regional economy that will keep and cycle wealth in Northland;
• Understanding that regional development and growth is dependent on the health of the natural environment;
• Measuring local and regional environmental, economic and community health more holistically, using tools such as the Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI); and
• Planning for long term strategic employment within the region through targeted education and re-skilling initiatives.

Northland needs leaders with unique skills and knowledge to guide the region through this transition.

The qualities and skills Northland’s future leaders will need include the following:

• Value collaboration (working together) and be able to:
  • Build and maintain respectful partnerships within and between government and non-government organizations and businesses working in Northland;
  • Lead, facilitate and/or contribute to a number of project-focused teams;
  • Value, listen to and find common ground between cultural and inter-generational contributions from the community;  and
  • Make rational, logical and defendable decisions, and be accountable for them.

• Be  informed:
  • Understand the history of Northland and its social complexities;
  • Appreciate the issues and processes that contribute to the nature of our communities;
  • Understand global and local environmental and socio-economic trends and how these are related; and
    • Appreciate and negotiate sound community-focused solutions to local and regional issues.

• Be visionary and creative and able to:
  • Generate enthusiasm, commitment and action in others;
  • Harvest and use the shared knowledge and wisdom of the community;
  • Recognize and use the opportunities in change;
  • Provide a wise and transparent structure to analyse and make decisions on complex issues; and
  • Promote innovation, new ideas, and methods.

I ask that you take a minute to seriously consider what sort of community you want to live in and the qualities of community you want your children and grandchildren to inherit. With the local elections coming up in October I ask you to consider the qualities and skills the candidates will bring to your vision for our future together.