Since its election year - what about sustainability policy from the 4 main parties?

I was going to follow up this week on the feeback that has been coming in from last weeks blog and some other things that have come uo from it regarding packaging but since I've been on leave from work this week I haven't had a chance to sort it all out, so I thought I'd just think politics!

Before heading to the links below, I would encourage you to become familiar with the concept of strong sustainability where the environment encircles everything with social and economy inside as opposed to the model where all 3 circles meet somewhere in the middle. 

I am not a hugely political person, but but with the general election coming up, I thought that it would be a good opportunity to encourage people (including myself) to review the main parties sustainability policies, so I did some hunting to get you started.  if this lights a flame or you feel this will be a main decider for you in terms of which way you vote, I suggest contacting the political parties directly for more information:

• National Party - if you visit their main policy page there is nothing that I can see specifically relating to sustainability and the environment, except right down the bottom in a section titled "other initiatives" and this includes a link to the page titled: Environment – Practical solutions, better protection  - this is a one page document about what National have done. 
• Labour Party - I struggled to find details of their current policy or 2011 election manifesto, but you can download their 2008 policy here.  It is 561 pages .  Click to page 201 for the environment section. 
• Green Party - The Green Party policy can be accessed at this link. 
• Maori Party - Again I had some difficulty finding current policy.  This is a link to the 2008 election policies and there is reference to the environment.  The link to specific policies did not seem to work, but you may have better luck. 

Apologies if I have left any of the parties out that you might affiliate too.  I have chosen to stick to the 4 main parties that are likely to gain the majority of seats in the next parliament as they are the ones who will have the say into New Zealand's environmental and sustainability policy. 

If you can access or supply me with better links to policies I will happily update the links too.

The purpose of this article is purely to draw your attention to the policies of the 4 main parties, in reference to sustainability, so that you can make your own decision on where to cast your vote if this topic is of major concern to you.  This may even stimulate you to ask your local representatives to answer some questions. 

Have a great and sustainable weekend.

Kind Regards
Francesca Matthews
Otago Polytechnic School of Veterinary Nursing Sustanability Champion