Share your skills with others

The Valley Project is teaming up with the Sustainability Project to run a two-week Dunedin Summer School offering community education for everyone at the start of next year.

A similar event has been running in Oamaru for the past nine years and now the idea is coming to Dunedin.

Summer School facilitator Melissa Pronk expects there will up to 60 different classes on offer.

Previously these have ranged from skills such as sewing, knitting and making bread; hobbies and interests such as keeping bees and chickens; health and nutrition such as how to grow food and make fermented food; sustainable education such as eco-building techniques; and processes such as how to build a composting toilet or get a resource consent approval for a straw-bale house – along with many others!

Melissa is looking for people in the community who are interested in running a class and sharing their skills.

The Dunedin Summer School will run from 17 January to 2 February.

Exact details of classes, such as times, location and cost, are up to tutors, but the aim is to keep it affordable for the community. Each tutor keeps the class fees and pays a registration fee of between $30 and $50. Some people may choose to run their classes for free or a koha.

The Valley Project community rooms will be available as a possible venue to book.

In Oamaru about 300 people took part in the event and Melissa is excited to see how it will go in Dunedin.

“It is not only a chance to learn a new skill but also a chance to network and meet new people in your community.”

There would be some purely social events during the Summer School, including an opening evening with nibbles and a film screening.

If you are interested in running a class or would like more information contact Melissa at communityclassroom.nz@gmail.com or go to bit.ly/DunedinSummerSchool to register.