Welcome conversation at Global Café Penguin Trust donation

Golden Bay Holiday Park recently made a donation of $500 to The Mohua Penguin Trust (MPT).

“The Trust does invaluable work supporting our little blue penguin population which has a colony on the shores of the holiday park. We are very proud to be able to support a very worthy cause right on our doorstep,” says camp owner Bob Perriam. “The money is a large percentage of the shower money collected this summer season.”

Trustee Heather Wallace accepted the donation on behalf of the MPT and said: ”We are grateful for the support we receive in Golden Bay. This penguin is very vulnerable as it nests and moults on the coast where it is often killed by dogs, stoats and other predators. This money will be used for education and protection for these special birds”.

Tom battles the elements

Tasman District Council’s Welcoming Communities officer, Birte Becker-Steel, set up a Global Café in Tākaka library on Monday.

An invitation was issued to the Golden Bay community via social media and The GB Weekly, welcoming everyone to pop in from 10am-12pm. Herbal teas and snacks from various countries were offered, while Birte invited locals to share their thoughts. Large sheets of coloured paper displayed conversation starters, including:

• How can we improve inclusion and connectedness in our region?

• How welcoming are the communities, businesses, and workplaces in Tasman?

• What is currently working in Golden Bay?

• What could we do to improve?

Thirty-two councils throughout Aotearoa have joined the Welcoming Communities incentive, which started in 2013. TDC instigated its programme last year.

“The core aim is to build relationships and get the message out about being a welcoming host community,” said Birte. Feedback from pilot programmes revealed that, for some adults new to an area, meeting people and making new friends can be difficult. While some people find their “tribe” easily, others don’t.

A number of factors can affect a person’s ability to become integrated into a new community: work commitments that don’t allow time to get out and meet others; the cost of joining clubs; an inability to drive; and language barriers.

Part of Birte’s role is to liaise with community groups, workplaces, and businesses, advocating for inclusion.

“The basic formula is – the better connected a community is, the more resilient they are.”

Nearly 60,000 people from more than 100 ethnicities live in the Tasman region. They bring diverse skills, experiences, talents, and perspectives. The Welcoming Communities vision is to make Te Tai o Aorere (Tasman District) a place where everyone can live, play, participate, and grow.

As part of the intitiative, TDC is conducting a survey to gather community feedback to create a people-focused welcoming plan, which will include ideas to help reduce isolation.

“We really want to hear from people throughout the district how we can do better,” said Birte.

Have your say online at www.shape.tasman.govt.nz or pick up a paper survey from Tākaka Memorial Library.

Furthermore, Birte is promoting Unity Week Tasman, 1521 March. Welcoming Communities Tasman advocates for diversity, inclusion, and supporting ethnic communities, and urges individuals to get involved.

Email: birte.becker-steel@tasman.govt.nz, ph 03 543 7240 or 027 700 3139.

SUBMITTED

Cult rhythm and blues singer-guitarist Tom Rodwell doggedly tours the country this month in support of his star-crossed but critically acclaimed Wood & Waste LP.

Although the LP gained international media coverage and secured distribution with the legendary Cargo Records UK, Wood & Waste flew mostly under the radar in New Zealand. The LP had the misfortune to be launched just as the most recent lockdowns took effect, and even the 27 January tour launch party managed to coincide with Auckland’s legendary rainstorm.

Musically, Tom’s album moves easily between minimalist rock structures and improvisatory, darkly sensual grooves that betray influences from Caribbean and African music, as well as the low-brow guilty pleasures of doo-wop and garage rock. It’s a secret language of guitar music – vivid, propulsive and uncommon, not the usual histrionics of blues-related music. Similarly on-stage his shows are gothically witty, sprawling affairs, playing fast and loose with traditional forms and sensibilities, regularly featuring sacrilegious dives into a greasy barrel of calypso, roots and gospel obscurities.

Saturday 25 March at the Mussel Inn.