Great Start’s Project Sunshine teaches children around NZ about seeds, bees, and cross-pollinating communities 

Taita children, along with a delegation from the UN Youth Model UN Conference (see below), recently learned a lot about the importance of bees and what they can do to protect bee populations, and how they can use sunflowers to help not only bees but also their community.

A special event was created on 2 July as part of the national launch of “Project Sunshine”, an initiative of Great Start Taita’s Children’s Gardening Club. Taita children were joined by young people from all over New Zealand who were participating in the UN Youth Model United Nations. Their participation was an outreach programme, as part of the 2011 NZ Model UN conference, designed to promote the delegates as global citizens, and allow students to give back to the community and become involved to begin making changes.

The Project Sunshine launch took place at Great Start House Taita, which is gaining a ”reputation as one of the city’s most active and practical community centres” (Simon Edwards, Editor Hutt News , 17 May 2011).

The UN Youth arrived at The Great Start House in a big yellow bus and were fed a beautiful lunch, homemade, all produce from the Great Start garden.
All the children got down on the floor to work together to make up 'Project Sunshine Packs' for the Model UN delegates to take home. These contain information about the initiative, facts on bees and sunflowers, a guide to growing a project in your own community, an invitation to feed back and stay connected, and 2 packets of sunflower seeds – one packet supplied by Eco Seeds, the other were second generation seeds harvested from the Great Start Children’s Garden Club’s own sunflowers.

Dave Treadwell from Eco Seeds gave a talk about his heritage seed company, who are the suppliers of sunflower seeds for Project Sunshine (these seeds can be harvested to use again the following year, which is not possible with many commercially produced hybrid seeds).

Al Kilminster local Bee Keeper gave a talk on the importance of Bee's and how they need our help.  He also brought some of his bees along, which was fascinating for the children. Al also showed children how to build a ‘bumble bee box’ that would provide a cosy home for bumble bees, when they emerge in spring.

The Great Start Children's Garden Club then took the UN Youth to the local park (designed by Taita’s children with support from Hutt City Council, and where they have several community food plots), where they worked together to do a planting of natives to support local bee foraging.

Then it was back to The Great Start House for a well deserved thirst quencher, supplied by Mark Atkin of local company Wildfern, which creates beverages made from unfloridated Petone artesian water.

The children and UN Youth students were all given a Project Sunshine T-shirt and a Project Sunshine Pack to take home, where they will work with children in their own communities to plant seedlings.  They have been invited to write stories about their experiences and post photos of the resulting plantings on the Project Sunshine Aotearoa Facebook page. 

About Project Sunshine

Project Sunshine was designed by the Great Start Taita children’s gardening club.  In 2010 the club planted hundreds of sunflower seedlings through the streets of Taita to make their community more beautiful.  With the planting of the sunflowers, something magical happened: the sunflowers generated pride and joy.  The project also supported residents to build connections with each-other and with their physical environment.

 As the children learned about sunflowers they also learned about the importance of bees, and their current plight.  They realised that sunflower planting could help other children to make their communities beautiful, build connections between people and also ensure the survival of the bee population.

Other schools and individuals are also invited to become part of the Project, by contacting the team at Great Start House (phone 04 567 5437 or 567 KIDS)

UN Youth and Model UN's in New Zealand

New Zealand Model United Nations 2011 is a four day conference where students simulate a real UN assembly amidst some of the most motivated young global citizens NZ has to offer. It is an event filled with leading keynote speakers and politicians, workshops, engaging debate and most importantly an awesome social atmosphere including a formal ball.

UN Youth is focused on inspiring global citizens and the theme of this year’s conference, The UN Today will prompt students to question the past, present and future dynamic of the UN and how it relates to them and the country they will represent as a delegate.

UN Youth was formed in 1946 to be the Peoples Movement for the United Nations. It is a non profit, non-governmental organisation which supports a national office and a number of branches around the country. UNANZ has several hundred adult members, publishes a regular newsletter, and holds seminars and events in support and celebration of the work of the UN.

In 1999 UNANZ established UN Youth, which today consists of over 400 individual members aged under 25 from around New Zealand. In addition to this, the New Zealand Model UN Programme annually reaches around 1000 secondary school students through Model UN.

UN Youth runs the New Zealand Model UN in June/July of each year, and sends delegations to the UN Youth Conference (UNYC) in Australia and The Hague International Model UN (THIMUN) in the Netherlands.

(http://www.unyouth.org.nz/about)