The Waitaki District Council’s assets committee recently recommended the council allocate $25,000 from its waste minimisation reserve to fund the programme.
Waitaki Community Gardens manager Sophia Leon de la Barra lobbied the council for funding for the programme. With another facilitator, Bianca MacNeill, she began implementing the garden’s Kids Growing programme, teaching "gardening, cooking and hands on science" three years ago.
"I’m pleasantly surprised that the council is willing to invest in our children’s education," she said.
"Now, it’s really a matter of finding the best vehicle for delivering that education, whether that’s through Enviroschools or Kids Growing."
The garden’s own programme had grown from one school to 13 in the area and included schools from Hampden to Kurow and as far north as Glenavy over a period when the council "basically indicated they weren’t interested".
According to the Enviroschools website, there are 66 Enviroschools in the Otago region, with a total of 14,054 pupils involved.
There are 11 schools in the Central Otago district, nine in Clutha, 13 in the Queenstown-Lakes district and 33 in Dunedin. Council assets group manager Neil Jorgensen said the Waitaki district had supported the programme "maybe five to eight years ago". The council had not yet discussed the plan with the Waitaki Community Gardens.
