Laying the groundwork: Introductions

Hi everyone! My name is Alanna and I'm a Loomio Helper. Feel free to ask me questions about how to use Loomio. I'm here to help and support in any way I can.

I'm really keen to see people discussing and collaborating about an alcohol management strategy that works for our community!

Welcome to the second group of 50 people meeting online to talk about the range of issues around alcohol use in Wellington City. Along with Alana I am here to support your discussion, and answer questions about Loomio as you get used to it and generally be helpful. This group can grow up to 50 people as well so make sure your friends and networks know how easy it is to connect to the group

As you arrive here you will see some proposed options for discussions you might like to join, these discussion areas have created really useful collaboration in the first group. Don't feel limited by these discussions though, feel absolutely free to begin your own discussion topic using the 'start a discussion' button at the top of the page.
Please feel free to email me if you would like more direct help,
[email protected]

Hi Vivien I was going to ask, where are "the proposed options for discussions you might like to join"?

But then I found a list of discussions when I clicked on the title at the top: Wellington Public Collaboration: Alcohol Management Strategy (2)

I didn't however see any with active discussions.

I confess to signing up as an outsider (from Waiheke), looking to see how Loomio might be taken up within the Wellington community.

I'm happy to contribute but it doesn't seem right to initiate, and I hope you forgive my slightly back seat position ;-)

By way of introduction, about who I am:
www.about.me/jmsinnz

HI. I am Giselle Bareta, an adviser at WCC. I've worked in Local government for the past 16 years. My background is in alcohol management and city safety related projects. Some of the key projects I have been involved in are:

Development and review of Council's current Liquor Licensing Policy

Operational experience managing the District Licensing Agency

Development, implementation and evaluation of the Council's Liquor Control Bylaw

Social marketing campaigns such as the 'Whatever you're up to...Stay Safe in the City' campaign

Community safety related reviews and projects.

I have a sound understanding of the regulatory framework surrounding the sale and supply of alcohol and best practice in the field of alcohol harm reduction.

I can support Public Discussion Group members tease out some of the more complex issues and work through ideas that will help inform development of a sustainable strategy for Wellington City.

Hello everyone I'm Sophie Jerram and I'm an instigator of public art projects - especially those that reinvigorate the city. So I bring connection into communities from visual and performing arts and from the suburbs of Brooklyn and Berhampore. I'm very committed to true democratic process and love Loomio. What I'm most interested in is where responsibilities begin and finish - both at a metaphorical level and a regulatory one. Where does the individual right to drink alcohol butt up against the right of the local council to designate a no-drinking area? And how do these rights work in the context of liquor licensing? I am really wanting to get some clarity here so that we can discuss genuine rights and obligations.

@jamessamuel , yes you are part of a very new group, we are just getting underway so the discussion threads have not yet built any momentum. Thanks for introducing yourself and making your relationship to the discussions clear, that is really useful

@sophiejerram your area of interest sounds very relevant and really interesting. If you wanted to use an existing discussion probably the closest one is" finding the balance - social and economic outcomes of alcohol use' -https://www.loomio.org/discussions/2515
however it feels to me like you are starting from more of a rights and responsibilities approach and you may want to begin a new discussion - which ever you prefer

Hello group, I am here because I want to be engaged in clear-sighted dialogue on this subject with others who care about and are affected by the results of a new Alcohol Management Strategy for Wellington. I'm not sure how long this Loomio discussion will go on for, but I am keen to be better informed through different points of view and would like to have an on-going involvement one way or another.

I could be coming from a range of perspectives but this is the first one. I live on the cusp of Te Aro/Aro Valley, very close to the Wellington CBD, and am involved in a range of community groups and projects as a private citizen. I walk through the city at night (often alone, but before midnight - the witching hour) because it is usually the best way of getting from A to B. Glad to report I have never, in more than a decade, been troubled on the street or threatened by people under the influence of alcohol or any other drug.

However, in our district we are faced routinely with the morning-after effects of alcohol consumption - broken bottles, rubbish, cans, vomit etc. Sometimes vandalism occurs. Especially on weekends yelling & squealing in the street or noisy partying is a problem for some residents. I believe that alcohol consumption plays a major role in the late night noise factor. One neighbour is concerned about people drinking & lighting fires in their small backyards, creating a potential fire risk for our cramped housing. Tagging, of course, is another on-going concern here, but I'm not sure if alcohol is connected.
A major part of my concern is for the people who drink to excess; issues around safety and addiction.

I'm really interested in the bigger picture, because I don't see how a bit of tweaking here, and a compromise there will make any difference. What does it take to turn a booze, binge and barf culture around? I'm curious...

I'm also curious about the figure of the social cost of alcohol-related accidents in Wellington city being 1.5 million (I forget the period covered), as claimed in the WCC notes that accompany the Public Collaboration info for this strategy. How was this figure arrived at?

Hi, I'm Nick. I'm a 24 year old architecture graduate working in the city (opposite The Mill..!). I'm into the old addage 'everything in moderation'. I love so many of Wellington's fine bars and love a casual drink from time to time.

As a teenager I didn't quite know where I stood when it came to drinking.. growing up in rural NZ it was pretty shameful to turn up to a party with a mere 6 pack.. I then did a high school exchange to France where faces would drop if I turned up at the door of a house party with a staggering SIX beers! I learnt in that year that the French's attitude to alcohol is a healthy and beautiful one, and one we could perhaps aspire to in NZ. I do believe NZ has a massive drinking problem.

I'm mainly here for the discussion on some form of reputation-based online system that could encourage responsible alcohol management by licensed premises, as this idea happens to align with an online start-up I'm working on... Interested in possible partnerships.

I believe in shared responsibility and holistic responses to complex problems like these. My architecture thesis was on tenant participation in WCC's Housing Upgrade Programme - I love the challenge of how to find meaningful responses to complex problems by harnessing a vast array of people's ideas and input.

Enjoying the discussion so far..

Nick