Gary Freemantle reflects on the time when Paekākāriki hosted a nationally acclaimed contemporary art gallery with a foreword by Mark Amery. New Zealand's regions are full of galleries representing the work of local artists. Rarer outside the cities are contemporary art gallery managers … [Read more...] about Diamond in the rough: One Eye Gallery
Paekākāriki Xpressed 2001-2011
Before there was Paekākāriki.nz there was Paekākāriki Xpressed. Paekākāriki Informed Community Incorporated have been publishers of both. It has been our inspiration: an award-winning community newspaper we consider, with total bias, to be one of the finest ever printed. Remarkably, it was packed … [Read more...] about Paekākāriki Xpressed 2001-2011
Waitangi Day 2020 Paekākāriki
On February 6th Ngāti Haumia ki Paekākāriki and the village community hosted the official 2020 Waitangi Day commemorations for the Kāpiti Coast. Delivering spectacular sunshine, music and kai the day will be remembered as a triumph of community spirit. Mark Coote was there to capture some shots for … [Read more...] about Waitangi Day 2020 Paekākāriki
A lovely seaside haven for rodents
It's that time of year in New Zealand when mice and rats move in and share our bubbles as they seek warmth. That means, says Maree White, it's time for us to work together on being predator free. Paekākāriki has long taken a lead with likely the first backyard trapping group anywhere in New Zealand. … [Read more...] about A lovely seaside haven for rodents
How we are doing. Me pēhea tatou
Mark Amery reports on a special time for www.paekakariki.nz and looks back on the site’s activity since it launched. Image: Mark Coote A rocket launch at the end of June 2019 at the Paekākāriki Surf Club as the sun sets. We huddle together against the cold before a beach fire, or we perch … [Read more...] about How we are doing. Me pēhea tatou
We are failing the Wainui
When it rains hard a treasured Kāpiti Coast waterway, Wainui Stream turns very brown. Home to some of the best native fish biodiversity in the Wellington region the stream, says freshwater ecologist and advocate Mike Joy, has long been abused. It is now likely being damaged by Transmission Gully … [Read more...] about We are failing the Wainui
Stronger together: What communities can do in the Covid-19 crisis
From Italy’s ‘Listen to Your Grandmother’ campaign and Bristol’s Mothers Turned Drug Runners to RongoCare in the tiny village of Rongotea, Louise Thornley has been researching great NZ and international community responses to the Covid-19 pandemic. A public health researcher, most recently … [Read more...] about Stronger together: What communities can do in the Covid-19 crisis
Driftwood bridges
Dani Deluka about reaching across water to touch those we can't and how a village can help get us to the other side. I am grateful for the quiet of April. This stillness. Is something else. Something good. Easter is different this year. We are connected. We are … [Read more...] about Driftwood bridges
Hearts all day long
Sarah Bainbridge on her work as an essential worker in a Wellington hospital during lockdown I’ve never been afraid of hospitals. I actually find them sort of comforting. I was in a burns unit as a pre-schooler and I wonder if it imprinted on me somehow. The faintly antiseptic scent. The … [Read more...] about Hearts all day long
In lockdown with the kids of Paekākāriki
Tash Nilsson gathers together the creative ways tamariki and their parents are keeping sane in the Kapiti Coast village. When our village went into lockdown with the rest of the country, many parents were no doubt wondering how they would navigate this new reality: entertaining the kids … [Read more...] about In lockdown with the kids of Paekākāriki