Healthy Homes Initiative
Current Projects
We want to share our expertise so that more people have access to sustainable living advice.
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Healthy Homes Initiative
Sustainability Options, alongside Tauranga Community Housing Trust (TCHT), delivers the Health New Zealand/Te Whatu Ora Healthy Homes Initiative in the Bay of Plenty and Lakes regions.
The Healthy Homes Initiative (HHI) is a nationwide award-winning health prevention initiative with the aim to decrease hospitalisations and increase the number of children living in warm, dry, and healthy homes.
Our existing efforts have led to a decrease in hospitalisations, an increase in school attendance, and an increase in employment in adults.
20 Degrees Vision
Led by Sustainability Options, the 20 Degrees collaborative vision works to improve living conditions for whānau across the Bay of Plenty by contributing to their health and well-being through home assessments, repairs, education, and collaboration. With this mahi, we are creating healthier homes throughout the Bay of Plenty.
Our lead team member Jo has been facilitating a series of 'Green Drinks'. These are free networking events, intended to bring together thought leaders to spark kōrero and connect people on a range of sustainability kaupapa/topics.
Examples of Green Drinks kaupapa that has been covered:
Kai security, sovereignty and resilience in the Bay of Plenty
The societal and environmental impacts of AI
Regenerative farming - protecting water quality, restoring wetlands, enhancing biodiversity, building climate-resilient profitable farms
The Partnering For Nature initiative - connecting businesses with local, meaningful natural projects
Wednesday Challenge - sustainable transport for the Bay of Plenty region
WSP - repurposing demolition waste
Tauranga City Council's new Greenstar 6 rated administration building
If you’d like to host or present, get in touch with Jo at jo.wills@so.org.nz or text/call her at 021 277 7042.
Building Materials Repurposing
Over 50% of New Zealand’s landfill waste comes from construction and demolition — but that is starting to change thanks to smart collaboration and a focus on waste avoidance.
Sustainability Options have been working with Tauranga businesses, the Tauranga City Council and the Western Bay District Council on some small projects to salvage construction waste and to redirect it to whānau who are seeking to improve their housing conditions.
In one situation we worked with Fosters to repurpose insulation from a mall redevelopment. In another we worked with a home owner to support in the removal and demolition of a home and to repurpose various materials from that home, to homes that could use these.
We are always looking for opportunities to repurpose demolition waste that will go towards helping whānau have a warmer, drier, healthier and more energy efficient home. Storage of these materials is a big challenge for us.
Towards A Purposeful Economy &
Inner Development Goals Hub
In 2025, Jo led the 'Towards a Purposeful Economy' forum. This forum was for learning, dialogue and decision-making for those interested in understanding the scope for change in businesses within the current economic model. This event brought together people who want to be doing something more for economic systems change.
We believe that a profitable business has agency and influence, allowing business leaders the chance to contribute to addressing the social and environmental challenges we collectively face. Economies are not predetermined by Nature, they are human systems intended to serve the wellbeing of all, with as little harm as possible.
The forum used the lens provided by the Inner Development Goals, as well as the resources of Wellbeing Economy Alliance (WEAll) Aotearoa, and Future Fit, to provide attendees a space to explore themselves and their business through a different lens. Attendees also heard from thought leaders on climate resilience, regenerative economic models, social equity and the benefits of combining profit and purpose.
Following this event, we're excited to announce the new Inner Development Goals’ Purposeful Economy Hub, in Tauranga! This hub is linked to an international network, which we are excited to bring to Tauranga, to spark more discussions on how profit and purpose can go hand in hand. The hub will bring together people who believe business can be in service to people and the planet as well as be profitable.
The Purposeful Economy Hub invites conversation and connection – to create business action towards climate positive change, social equity, and thriving communities. To find out more on how to get involved, get in touch with Jo Wills for more information: jo.wills@so.org.nz or text/call her at 021 277 7042.
Special thanks to Tauranga City Council for their enthusiastic support of the forum, and Priority One for having Jo lead a session at the DayBreak Festival!
Social Return On Investment (SROI)
Our lead team member Lee has been taking part in training with Social Value Aotearoa to explore Social Return on Investment (SROI). This is a powerful tool that enables us to better understand the impact of our mahi on the people and communities we are seeking to help.
There’s growing interest in SROI in business/government/philanthropic collaborations. For us, it helps answer two key questions: What difference are we really making? How can we improve our impact? SROI helps us go beyond inputs & outputs to quantify the outcomes & impacts that matter most. It’s a way to reflect, learn, and ensure we do even better. But like many purposeful organisations, we don't want the cost of considering SROI to be disproportionate to our actual work on the ground helping people. So we have learned the skills internally, and are now in the process of implementing this impact model to our mahi.
We’re excited to keep learning, improving, and sharing our insights. If you’re a business or organisation thinking about your social impact, we’d love to connect.
Home Performance Advisor (HPA)
HPA is an independent national education organisation that provides varying levels of training to increase the competency of people providing home performance advice to New Zealand householders. Jo is contracted to co-manage and oversee the Home Performance Advisor (HPA) training service, while Nik is contracted to be one of the HPA trainers. Both Jo and Nik travel throughout the country to deliver this training on behalf of the HPA organisation.
Paper Roads and Public Land opportunity
Paper roads and other underused public land - including non‑designated Crown parcels held by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) and underfunded Department of Conservation (DOC) land - offer a chance to restore native ecosystems at scale.
Sustainability Options is envisioning working on projects that could range from organising funding towards the revegetation of roadside strips, to reforesting larger LINZ or DOC blocks. The vision is to help benefit communities and the environment. Native restoration increases habitat and species resilience, sequesters carbon, stabilises soils and reduces runoff, and delivers social gains like education, recreation and stronger iwi and community partnerships.
By structuring projects with partners, funders and businesses, we can generate long‑term value through mechanisms such as carbon credits, sponsorships and philanthropy, feeding revenue back into the mahi we do around free sustainable living and housing advice (including our 20 Degrees programme).
We are looking to formally engage with LINZ, DOC, iwi, councils, businesses and philanthropists to pilot and scale restoration on underused public land. If you are interested in discussing this kaupapa, please get in touch with Phil at phil.gregg@so.org.nz.
Powerco
It's a huge pleasure to have partnered with Powerco over the years. Our relationship with Powerco dates right back to 2013 when we first partnered in conducting some in-depth research on the impacts of 'energy demand shifting'. This research evolved to consultancy around energy use in households, and in 2016 we partnered with Powerco on the installation of a solar EV charging station in downtown Tauranga. Our latest activity with Powerco dates back three years, where Powerco have sponsored our 20 Degrees vision in the Tauranga community. In 2026, Powerco engaged us to use our expertise to deliver 'energy literacy workshops' to Tauranga, Wairarapa, Manawatu and Taranaki communities and community providers. It makes complete sense if you are associated with the energy industry - growing energy literacy, helping people understand their energy use, and how better to manage it, is a hugely responsible and sustainable activity to be undertaking.
Unison
In 2026, we have had the great opportunity to partner with Unison Networks. Like Powerco, they are genuinely interested in helping households to better understand energy use and to better manage their personal energy use. Unison have sponsored our 20 Degrees vision work in Rotorua and have also engaged us to introduce the 20 Degrees vision to the Taupō community. In addition, Unison have sponsored us to deliver community energy literacy workshops to the Rotorua, Taupō and Hawkes Bay communities.
Energy Wellbeing Partnership
with Meridian
Sustainability Options is proud to partner with Meridian as part of their nationwide Energy Wellbeing Programme. This is an initiative that helps households across Aotearoa who are experiencing energy hardship. Through this partnership with the Community Energy Network, we walk alongside referred Meridian and Powershop whānau to help them better understand and manage their energy use.
Our mahi includes free in-home assessments, practical energy advice, and the installation of energy-saving devices funded by Meridian. It’s a wrap-around service focused on lasting change: helping whānau create warmer, healthier homes while reducing energy stress. You can learn more about the programme on Meridian’s website here.
Tauranga EDA service
Sustainability Options offers free eco-design assessments for homeowners, builders, and architects looking to create a healthier, more energy-efficient home in Tauranga. Tauranga City Council funds this initiative. The conversations we have with householders largely centers around building performance, sustainability, energy and water efficiency, and considerations of what the future looks like. Whether it's designing a new build or upgrading an existing home, this service helps people to make informed choices - for a warmer, drier, healthier, and more sustainable property.
CONTACT US
Phone:
07 544 1882
Mobile:
022 156 1027
022 497 2529
Email:
20degrees@so.org.nz
Address:
59 Seventh Avenue, Tauranga
F.R.O.G.
Forever Reliant On Good
We operate by being forever reliant on good - doing mahi for the good of others and for the good of our environment. Along the way, hoping we inspire others to incorporate the FROG into their organisation too.