http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/ The latest Blog feeds from www.20degrees.org.nz en-us Sun, 12 Apr 2026 18:37:36 +1200 Rocketspark http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/161230/we-were-on-the-verge-of-being-condemned--how-one-whanaus-1950s-home-was-transformed-to-care-for-their-father/ For more than 70 years, Michelle’s* whānau home has been the centre of their lives. But by the time she moved back home to care for her father diagnosed with dementia, the house was so deteriorated that rain poured through the roof and ceiling, the bathroom floor had rotted through, and her children were starting to regularly get sick from black mould. With support from Te Puni Kōkiri and the 20 Degrees program, this whānau turned a near uninhabitable whare into a warm, dry, healthy home an... Tue, 03 Mar 2026 15:03:55 +1300 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post161230 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/159422/a-tauranga-whanaus-journey-from-a-cold-and-mouldy-home-to-warmth-dignity-and-hope/ The house sat at the end of a long, rough driveway in Tauranga.Wandering dogs. Washed out tracks. Dense trees blocking the light.Even before stepping inside, it felt removed from support.Inside the whare, mould clung to walls. Wiring was exposed. There was no heating, no insulation, no hot water. The bathroom barely functioned. Windows were cracked, their joinery rotting. With no gutters or downpipes, water continued to damage the home. Sunlight struggled to get in.This is where the elderly coup... Thu, 29 Jan 2026 12:27:26 +1300 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post159422 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/158158/rubys-story/ In April 2025, we received a referral from a courageous single mum named Jane* and her five tamariki to Sustainability Options. We first visited the whānau in May.A Home Full of Challenges... Tue, 16 Dec 2025 11:30:13 +1300 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post158158 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/152470/unison-partners-with-sustainability-options-to-support-20-degrees-programme-for-rotorua-whanau/ Local power lines company, Unison Networks (Unison) joined the 20 Degrees waka in Rotorua in April 2025, partnering with Sustainability Options to help whānau across Rotorua achieve warmer, drier, healthier homes. The 20 Degrees collaborative programme was launched in 2020 and continues to grow its impact through community-led housing support.In Rotorua, the 20 Degrees partners now include Unison, Bay Trust, Rotorua Trust, Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora, EECA, and Rotorua Lakes Council. Un... Thu, 18 Sep 2025 15:27:14 +1200 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post152470 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/150428/simon-and-miriams-story/ Simon and Miriam* thought they were buying a nice home in a safe neighbourhood with good schooling for their four young boys. But when they moved in, they discovered what they’d actually bought was a house that, amid a terminal diagnosis, would plague their health, finances and wairua for years to come.“We purchased [the home] with my dad’s help to start with. But it was only looked at once, by him. Then when we came here, that’s when we started to find problems,” says Miriam, who’s ... Thu, 14 Aug 2025 14:48:12 +1200 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post150428 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/135209/mrs-rs-story/ Every time it rained, she knew she was in for a sleepless night. As the water fell on Mrs R’s damaged roof, she lay awake in fear, waiting for her ceiling to cave in. When morning came, she would begin emptying large buckets of water – sometimes up to four times a day.This was how the Bay of Plenty resident, a war-veteran’s widow, lived for years - under a roof in desperate need of replacement. But with an $18,000 price tag, as a pensioner in her late 60s there was no way she could afford ... Wed, 25 Sep 2024 20:10:43 +1200 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post135209 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/109117/arohas-story/ Aroha’s health has started to take a turn in the past few years as she has developed cancer, alongside suffering from arthritis and heart problems. As a kuia, Aroha knew she needed to take action to protect herself and ensure her health didn’t limit her life. Around the same time, a friend invited her to a Sustainability Options workshop. This was pivotal in Aroha’s expectation of what she could do in her own home, feeling motivated that she could start implementing change herself. She has... Tue, 22 Aug 2023 14:36:30 +1200 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post109117 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/107794/evelyns-story/ This is a beautiful depiction of the complexity of a whānau we journey with. It hasn’t been condensed for the ease of your reading, because to condense this piece would mean to be removing a fundamental aspect of Evelyn’s daily experiences and struggles. We want to provide you with the opportunity for a genuine look inside. It will take you around 8 minutes to read.... Tue, 25 Jul 2023 11:26:45 +1200 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post107794 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/83089/beths-story/ Meet Beth. Beth is a homeowner in Rotorua who just wants her place to be warm, dry, and safe for her and her 14-year-old daughter. They live in a certified transportable building, made up of three parts: a 1995 portacom for her lounge, kitchen, and bedroom, an add-on shed for her bathroom, then an add-on partial portacom for her daughter’s room. Initially, Beth’s daughter’s room was not connected to the bathroom meaning she had to go outside to access the rest of the house. Te Waiariki Pur... Thu, 19 May 2022 11:11:06 +1200 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post83089 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/post/71320/trust-horizon--bay-trust-support-20-degrees-activity-in-the-eastern-bay-of-plenty/ Trust Horizon has approved a $250,000 grant to facilitate a new programme, designed to empower Eastern Bay whānau to improve their health and wellbeing through energy education and home repairs. The Trust’s support has enabled the project to secure a further $200,000 from MBIE’s Support for Energy Education in Communities fund, and a potential further $50,000 from Bay Trust.  “The nation is collectively realising that we have allowed housing conditions to degrade over a period of dec... Tue, 07 Sep 2021 12:17:21 +1200 http://www.20degrees.org.nz/blog/#post71320