Kiwi mums gear up for 2,100km road trip
22 March 2012 – Cloth Nappy Week 2012 is less than four weeks away, and a group of intrepid Kiwi mums are gearing up for a whirlwind nine-day, 20-stop road trip designed to spread the word about cloth nappies all over the country.
The Nappy Lady Kate Meads is leading the group of mums and sustainable parenting advocates from Invercargill to Auckland,
a distance of 2,100km – the distance covered by seven million disposable nappies laid end-to-end, the number of disposable nappies being thrown into New Zealand landfills each week*.
With the support of councils nationwide and the sponsorship of over 60 Kiwi businesses, including cloth nappy retailers, Kate is hosting coffee groups and workshops in 20 locations and will also be giving away $40,000 in prizes, including 700 cloth nappies, at stops along the way.
“We’d love to get a cloth nappy into the hands of every interested mum and dad in New Zealand,” explains Kate.
“If every parent of a child in nappies used just one cloth nappy every day, that would save a million nappies from going into our landfills each week, and would save our local councils tens of thousands of dollars per year dealing with disposable nappy waste. I, for one, would prefer my council rates instead go toward equipping parents with the knowledge and tools to raise their children more sustainably, and cloth nappies go a long way toward this goal.”
Kate explains that a baby will need up to 6,000 nappy changes in the first two-and-a-half years of life, and at around 50c per nappy, parents are literally throwing their money away. But modern cloth nappies are not only money-saving, they’re much easier to use than parents are aware.
“Modern cloth nappies are so advanced in design and materials that they truly are no more difficult than washing
a load of laundry.”
This is only one of the messages Kate and her team of Nappy Avengers is spreading during the event, which also focuses on sustainable parenting and education. With events held in Invercargill, Gore, Dunedin, Oamaru, Timaru, Christchurch, Nelson, Wellington, Hutt City, Palmerston North, Hastings, Napier, Gisborne, Tauranga, Katikati, and Auckland, coffee group and workshop spaces are filling fast.
Three Cloth Nappy Week Preview events held in Cambridge and Hamilton last week were a great success and an excellent barometer for what’s to come, Kate says. “We held two coffee groups and a workshop that were extremely well-attended, and the mood among Kiwi mums is definitely one of excitement and anticipation. With less than four weeks to go, we’re seeing increased traffic to our website (www.clothnappyweek.co.nz) and Facebook community (www.facebook.com/clothnappyweek) and I’m getting so many emails about cloth nappies, I can’t keep up with the demand.
“Cloth Nappy Week 2012 is going to be huge, and we can’t wait to spread the word about cloth nappies and empower parents to make better choices for the future of their children’s planet.”
--ENDS--
* Source: Zero Waste New Zealand (www.zerowaste.co.nz/hot-issues/nappies)
Cloth Nappy Week 2012 Road Trip Itinerary
Media are welcome to attend any of the following Cloth Nappy Week events. The Nappy Lady Kate Meads is also available for interviews and commentary prior to and during the Cloth Nappy Week Road Trip. Please contact Katherine Granich on 021 120 5778 or katherine@copylab.co.nz if you wish to attend.
13 April
11.30am – 12.30pm: Coffee Group, Invercargill Environmental Centre, 67 Glengarry Cres, Invercargill
2.30pm – 3.30pm: Coffee Group, Milk & Honey, 103 Main Street, Gore
14 April
8.30am – 9.30am: Bacon, Eggs and Nappies, Mojo Café, Princess Street, Dunedin
11am –1pm: The Nappy Lady Workshop, The Dunningham Suite, Dunedin City Library, Dunedin
3pm – 4pm: Coffee Group, Steam Café, 7 Thames Street, Oamaru
7pm – 8pm: Wine, Cheese & Nappies, Tussock Restaurant, 51 King Street, Timaru
15 April
10.30am – 11.30am: Coffee Group, South City Shopping Centre, Christchurch
2pm – 3pm: The Nappy Lady Workshop, South City Shopping Centre, Christchurch
16 April
12.30 – 1.30pm: Coffee Group, Robert Harris Cafe, 193 Trafalgar Street, Nelson
17 April
10am – 11.30am: Coffee Group, Southern Cross, 39 Abel Smith Street, Te Aro, Wellington
1pm – 2.30pm: The Nappy Lady Workshop, Life City Church, 1-3 Parkway, Wainuiomata, Hutt City
6.30pm – 7.30pm: The Nappy Lady Workshop, Southern Cross, 39 Abel Smith Street, Te Aro, Wellington
18 April
12 noon – 1pm: Coffee Group, Robert Harris Café, 73 Church Street, The Square, Palmerston North
6.30pm – 7.30pm: The Nappy Lady Workshop, Hastings Central Library, Cnr Eastbourne Street East & Warren Street South, Hastings
19 April
9am – 10.30am: Coffee Group, Milk and Honey, 10 Hardinge Rd (The Crown Hotel), Ahuriri, Napier
2.30pm – 3.30pm: Coffee Group, Robert Harris Café, Treble Court, Peel Street, Gisborne
6.30pm – 8.30pm: Wine, Cheese & Nappies Workshop, The Winemaker’s Daughters Café, 88 Grey Street, Gisborne
20 April
11am – 12 noon: Coffee Group, Grindz Café, 1st Ave, Tauranga
2pm – 3pm: Coffee Group, Robert Harris Café, Main Road, Katikati
21 April
10am – 12 noon: Nappy Flash Mob and Coffee Group, Robert Harris Café, Upstairs by Whitcoulls, Botany Town Centre, 588 Chapel Road, East Tamaki, Auckland
