A community trust on Great Barrier Island will be using a council grant to make drinking glasses out of discarded bottles and jars.
The AoteaOra Trust was granted almost $5000 under the April 2019 funding round of the Waste Minimisation and Innovation Fund to pursue its aim of decreasing the amount of glass being recycled or sent to landfill.
The panellists said this round of funding saw an increase of innovative, high-scoring applications for waste minimisation related projects.
Out of 30 applications, 11 grants were approved in June.
Great Barrier resident and founder of AoteaOra Trust Angela Wright said the money was critical to the trust’s objectives of reducing waste and providing employment on the island.
Wright said the money would be put towards buying a diamond cutter and the first month’s running costs of the programme. The aim was to eventually become self-sustainable.
She said the more that was done to boost employment and reduce waste, the better. “The dream is to stop people from bringing stuff to the island. If we can make stuff that people buy and take away, then even better.”
“We are attracting a lot of young people back to the island and the more jobs we can create for them the better,” she said.
The Waste Minimisation and Innovation Fund supports projects that promote or achieve waste minimisation.
The next grant round opens in September.
