Cityhop New Zealand’s first car share service - cars by the hour

Did you know that  along with plastic bags, plastic water bottles are now one of the most prevalent sources of pollution on our beaches and in our oceans?

We came across an article in Gulf News, all about this water waste and what we can do about it.

Emily McDonald from Waiheke Fruit and Veg along with Village Project have had 3000 stianless steel water bottles made with the aim of ridding the Waiheke of plastic bottles as well as fundraising for a new classroom at a school in Uganda.

The campaign already has a high profile supporter in Lady Pippa Blake who coincidentally has signed a pledge in the UK to never buy or use a plastic water bottle again.

 Lady Pippa Blake with one of the stainless steel water bottles.

‘One planet, one life, take on step and use one bottle ‘ is the motto of the campaign.

Cityhop, NZ’s first car share company loves the concept and like Project Village is committed to doing its bit to change habits!

Each year  all over the world we drink 30 billion throwaway bottles of water -that’s 2.7 million tonnes of plastic and worse it takes about a quarter of a standard water bottle of  oil to make the bottle in the first place - that’s 2.5 million tonnes of greenhouse gases. Then once we’ve finished with the bottle it takes 1000 years to biodegrade it!

Emily’s bottles are for sale for $20 from Waiheke Fuit and Veg in Oneroa with $12 going straight to Village Project.

13 speakers,

20 slides,

15 seconds per slide 

A few blogs back we told you about IGNITE, the cool way to learn new stuff quickly! In 5 minutes speakers ‘enlightened’ the audience with lots of new and interesting ideas. Cityhop was lucky enough to have member, Dion Howard speak on car sharing in general and cityhop in wellington in particular.

Shadowfoot wrote about what grabbed them  - read on….

“Some presenters seemed only interested in self-promotion; some wanted to inform; and some wanted to simply entertain. Most inspired.

A few things I learnt from the evening:

• Vikings probably never lived in Dannevirke
• World-wide there are twice as many mobile phones as credit cards
• Teach gradually and playfully
• Show users ways to engage with your site with a smile
• Venice Biennale is awesome
• Insights come later
• Travel light and trust the serendipity
• Wellington’s shared car are hidden
• We’re going to be screwed over to preserve the failing business model of large corporations
• Use your mind to drive yourself past your boundaries

To read more on evening from the view of one attendee go here!

We’ll load the video when we get it - Ignite are working on it now.

Cityhop gets really excited when it reads about a cityhopper’s experience. Recently we read a blog about a member’s first experience of cityhop.

Only one thing made us sad, the fact the new member was disappointed with the state he found the car. Hand brake off, rubbish in glovebox, oh and the previous user had not left much gas for him to get to this first appointment.

Fair enough - common cityhoppers - remember it’s car SHARING! But overall he had a great first experience.

Read below his tale of a first use of car share.

Yes I know it is a weird title but I wanted to drag you in to click on the Terrapass site and read an interesting comment by Adam Stein.

He writes:

Let’s start by putting forth two propositions:

1. In the future we will be richer (and that’s a good thing)
2. Technology will save us from climate change (if anything does)

He then expands with the science and engineering thinking on why this could happen. 

Stein develops the reasoning behind solving an  environmental issue he cares most deeply (and it’s hard not to find it appealing)    “finding a way to sustain nine billion wealthy and fulfilled human beings on a planet that hasn’t been completely despoiled.”

I like Stein’s pragmatic writing style, he goes on, “Asking for a worldwide movement of people voluntarily and significantly downgrading their lifestyle to spare the earth is to pray for an energy miracle far beyond anything Bill Gates can conceive.

“There is good news here. With the right policies in place, and the right research and development, and with swift innovation on many different fronts, future citizens will be transformed into eco-warriors by default. My grandmother refuses to touch a computer, but one-year-old babies can use an iphone. Likewise, tomorrow’s kids are going to be energy geniuses and environmental savants, not because they’re any smarter or more enlightened than we are, but because the structure of their society and their technology and their markets will make it so.

For more on this article go to Terrapass

http://www.terrapass.com/blog/posts/bill-gates-was-pretty-much-right?utm_source=bronto&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Read more&utm_content=vcarter@xtra.co.nz&utm_campaign=Newsletter 03/03/10

Here’s a brilliant idea that Idealog have on their website. I then goggled the concept and it seems a few more people are also taken with the idea.

It’s a new way to recycle those reports you put in your paper rubbish. With White Goat you can put in your  reports add some water and make good use of the end result!

The £65,000 (nearly$130k) device  flattens the pulp and dries it before churning out rolls of toilet paper. It costs just 6p (nearly 12 c today) to create each roll.

It takes 40 sheets of A4 paper to create one roll of toilet paper.

What will they think of next!

check out utube

Video results for white paper to toilet paper

Office Paper to Toilet Paper - White Goat … 2 min 1 sec - 29 Jan 2010 www.youtube.com

Here’s a cool way to find out new stuff fast. I stumbled on Ignite recently it goes global—from March 1-5, 2010, with 50 Ignites in cities around the world. Best of all, Ignite is also happening in Wellington. Bit short notice to jack it up but what about 2011 Auckland?

Upwards of 10,000 entrepreneurs, technologists, DIYers, creative professionals, and enthusiastic knowledge-seekers will gather  for an evening that is a unique blend of networking, information, and fun, encapsulated in the Ignite motto: “Enlighten us, but make it quick.”

Fast-paced, fun, thought-provoking, social, local, global—Ignite is a high-energy evening of 5-minute talks by people who have an idea—and the guts to get onstage and share it with their hometown crowd. Run by local volunteers who are connected through the global Ignite network, Ignite is a force for raising the collective IQ and building connections in each city.  And, via streaming and archived videos of local talks, local Ignites share all that knowledge and passion with the world

Talks are exactly five minutes long, Ignite presenters share their personal and professional passions, using 20 slides that auto-advance every 15 seconds.

Local Ignites will stream live video during the event, and those videos will be archived on the new Ignite video site that is being launched in conjunction with the event. At least 500 five-minute session videos will be available on the new site when it debuts. See the link above.

 Any cityhopper in Wellingotn interested in igniting the cause for car share? Let us know.

Meanwhile tell us what ignites you!

Yes it’s Top Gear time. The noise of the cars burning up around the track while Top Gear was going on inside was deafening from our house less than a kilometre away. It sounded like we had a dragway outside the back door. That was Friday. It continued Saturday and I am hoping today will be the last day. We visited some friends in Remuera down a  posh street and could still hear it over there! So we knew it must have been loud where we lived. I understand people like going to rugby matches, listening to loud music but watching a car  skid and scream around a small circuit is lost on me these days.  Yes I loved going to the Grand Prix as a teenager but back then no one knew the damage cars, their emissions, their brake linings were doing to our environment. What message were all the people watching these stunts getting? It’s cool to drive fast; cool to waste gas; cool to burn tyres, cool to destroy our environment … the smoke and fumes going into the air was irrelevant to them.  It’s like watching people deliberately throw rubbish out of a car window. Someone else can clean it up and sort it out. I know Jeremy Clarkson will say I’m stupid but what if thanks to his encouragement his grandchildren don’t have a beautiful earth to live on and in? 

I did wonder where Greenpeace was as I walked the dog and took this photo of some spectators in a tree who didn’t want to pay to watch the action. The irony of the tree that was doing something good for the environment and providing seating wasn’t lost on me!

I know many people won’t agree with me. That’s okay. I just don’t think it’s smart to deliberately spoil the environment.

Hey great new Tui billboard - something like

Recycle our bottles - we don’t want all want to drive a hybrid!

Wow, half an hour after contacting Bond & Bond I got an email from their customer service team telling me that the Noel Leeming Group  has big bins out the back of their stores for all the packaging you don’t want.

 Good on you Noel Leeming and Bond and Bond.

I hope you remember to tell customers. Maybe you could add to your receipts and invoices a message if you want to recycle your packaging you can by bringing it back to the store. Broadcast it and it might get you more eco-friendly customers.

I was also reminded that the Noel Leeming Group takes old cell phones, TVs,  and appliances for recycling.

Great stuff.

If you read our blogs you will know that Victoria, the co-founder of Cityhop writes a bit about waste, rubbish and recycling!

After doing a bunch of research on what can go into a wheelie bin Victoria says,”I found polystyrene was a big no no, yet we all know it can be re-used.”

“If the amount of packaging you have to put into your rubbish bin bugs you then do what I did recently , make contact with the companies who use packaging that can’t be recycled easily and ask them if they have a policy and if not will they get one and preferably will they start taking the packaging and giving it to their suppliers to get them to re-think their packaging.

“There are so many alternatives to plastics and polystyrene,” says Victoria.  With enough consumer pressure more companies will realise it’s important to us.

Victoria first started with Harvey Norman,

http://www.harveynorman.co.nz/includes/contactus.php there is an email link for you to ask them if they would take back packaging. After all it is the supplier’s problem not ours. We have kept them in business and people in jobs by buying the goods but it’s time everyone played their part and recycled.

Each of the links we have highlighted below will take you directly to these company’s websites so that you can ask them if they offer consumers a place to take back materials used in packaging so that they can be recycled  and if not whether they would please consider doing this.

Bond & Bond, Noel Leeming, Farmers, Dick Smith or any other company that sells products that come with polystyrene are worth contacting to ask them if they have a policy and if not would they provide a container for polystyrene and other similar packaging to be recycled.

If supermarkets can do it for plastic bags then surely these big companies can do it and give packaging back to their suppliers so it gets re-used.

I was impressed with the packaging of a new Compaq Pressario - instead of polystyrene it had some kind of recycled cardboard inside the box so it could all go into the paper recycling box. Good on you Compaq and Dick Smith!

Got a comment?

When are those razor companies, electric tooth brush companies and all the others who use that AWFUL hard plastic to seal their goods going to change their packaging! I seem to always end up cutting myself the plastic is so stiff and it can’t be recycled either. Boo hoo. It makes me look for the items in more envrionmentally sound packaging. Remember consumers know what they want!

With new year resolutions flying about, Victoria Carter, Chief Executive and co-founder of New Zealand’s first car share, Cityhop suggests there is one easy way to make a ‘green new start to the year.’ “Not only will you be reducing your emissions output but many of these ideas will not only save you money but could even improve your waistline!” says Victoria .

“Whether you believe in global warming or not I don’t think is the issue,” says Victoria, “in this age of consumerism it won’t do us any harm to use less, recycle more and conserve a little more.

“We live in the age of waste so some economy is a good habit to instil in our children and it certainly won’t harm them to know ways that they can contribute to a more sustainable planet.”

The number one thing action that Victora says that will not only impact on your pocket and your wasitline but help reduce congestion is to use your car less. Consider selling your second or third car and sign up for a Cityhop car share annual membership. Then whenever you need a car you can go on-line and book one for only $15 an hour including petrol and insurance from handy locations all over Auckland and Wellington city.

“Car sharing is taking modern cities by storm as more families choose not to buy second and third cars and singles decide they can’t justify the investment in such a large depreciating asset or afford the parking costs.

“Joining car share schemes like Cityhop can also reduce your waist line,” says Carter, referring to the fact that overseas research into the behaviour of car share members shows that they drive around 7000 kilometres less than when before they were car share members.

“Every trip a car share member takes makes them think what is the best mode of transport for where I need to go, ferry, bus or train, walk or bike. As a result they walk more so they are fitter and exercising more. This is what we call one of the hidden benefits of joining car share, laughs Victoria.

Get serious about a green start to the year. There’s no shortage of places to start.