Char curious? Keen gardener? Orchardist? Lifestyler? Climate Champion? BBQ enthusiast?

Come one, come all to this one-off opportunity to spend a day making biochar in a magical orchard, forest and garden. Thank you Kapiti Coast District Council (KCDC) and Paekākāriki Orchards and Gardens (POG) for sponsoring this event so we can offer subsidised tickets as part of Sustainable September!

You will:

Spend the morning (9.30-12)...

Getting hands-on exploring the property and learning to source good burn material (stuff you can find in your own backyard or lifestyle block)
Ignite the Char-B-Que and BIG 600l kiln, learn how to feed the flames and trap the carbon

At lunchtime (12-1)...

Enjoy a BBQ lunch cooked on the Char-B-Que
Learn all about the magic of biochar and how to use it to fight climate change, feed your garden and to save your bum (literally) in a civil defence emergency as a great emergency toilet

After lunch (1-2)...

Quench the Char-B-Que (pour cold water on) and learn how to process your char by drying and crushing it
Grab some biochar to take home (BYO container e.g. ice-cream tub or a small bucket

Enjoy your choice of afternoon (2-4) activities while keeping the big kiln burning, including...

Make your home fireplace mini kiln using a biscuit tin (please bring a tin if you have one or koha for some extra we will source and bring from op shops)
Visit the exhibit on Biochar as a natural building material and learn about sustainable homes and buildings from local expert Blue (Kakariki Earth/ Natural Build Otaki)
Attend the advanced session for those interested in hiring and operating the kilns in future
Have plenty of time to kōrero and wānanga with other attendees.

Finally, at 4 pm we will quench the big kiln and call it a day!

Important things to note:

Sustainability: We encourage carpooling to the event. Please bring your own reusable cup for hot drinks

Health and Safety: Please note there will be tree nuts and hazards onsite such as hot kilns and flames. So please take the necessary precautions by wearing non-flammable (cotton, wool, natural) materials and bring any personal medication that you need. We will have a health and safety volunteer onsite.

Family Friendly: It is a family-friendly event (kids under 18 are free) but they must be supervised by their parent or guardian at all times due to the hazards on site.

Workshop Leaders

John Wraight - CharPae

Our CharPae Operations manager and ‘inhouse’ Biochar subject matter expert John Wraight has been making and using Biochar for many years and has delivered a number of successful workshops using these kilns. He is a BioChar Network member. He leads local CharPae burns, Char-B-Ques and kiln hire.

Blue Forsyth - Kakariki Earth Ltd

Blue is a passionate advocate for affordable, healthy and sustainable housing, especially using natural materials. His special interest is in developing methods of earth and straw bale construction suited to our challenging economic and climatic conditions. He has been active in earth building for over 30 years. Blue has been promoting the earth and straw bale building options through both formal and informal courses and workshops. He developed and tutored a part-time Certificate course in Natural Building through the Aoraki Polytechnic in Timaru for several years. He has served on the committee of the Earth Building Association of NZ and in 2008 he was awarded the Elisabeth Drupsteen Award for services to earth building through his company, Kakariki Earth Ltd, Blue offers a range of services to those wishing to pursue natural building options, from friendly support, education and consultation to materials testing and construction.

Holly Norton - CharPae

Our CharPae Project manager has been co-leading workshops with John over the past year. She is newer to biochar but with lots of experience in sustainable business, procurement, and construction and she is passionate about kai production. She is this event's coordinator should you have any questions.