Sustainability is part of the Te Papa ethos. We are located on the edge of Wellington harbour – a large body of water used for beach recreation, water sports, and fishing. The harbour is home to, or is visited by, many marine species, including penguins, seals, dolphins, and occasionally whales. We have a natural environment department that studies marine and land environments. We are bound to the natural environment and care deeply about it.
We have worked hard over the years to make our place and what happens here as environmentally friendly as possible – and we have great plans for the future.
Energy efficiency
We have carried out extensive energy efficiency measures. The result has been a downward trend in energy consumption despite enlarged gallery space and increased use of Te Papa as a venue – both of which have required more electrical equipment.
Energy savings since opening have resulted in a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of almost 14,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalents.
Other sustainability initiatives
Other sustainability initiatives include water conservation, an extensive recycling programme, and the use of environmentally friendly building and cleaning products. (We use plain water and microfibre cloths for general cleaning wherever possible.)
Global best practice
Te Papa won EnergyWise awards for energy management in 2000, 2004, and 2007, showing that we’re on the right track. We strive to achieve international best practice for galleries, museums, and exhibition areas in matters of sustainability. We have benchmarked status under the Green Globe Company Standard and carry out our environmental action plan in line with the requirements of this programme.