
Within four weeks of the September 4 2010 Canterbury Earthquake a new, loosely-knit community group appeared in Christchurch under the banner of “Greening the Rubble.” The general aim of those who attended the first few meetings was to do something to help plug the holes that had already appeared or were likely to appear over the coming weeks in the city fabric with some temporary landscaping and planting projects. This article charts the first eighteen months of Greening the Rubble and places the initiative in a broader context to argue that although seismic events in Christchurch acted as a “call to palms,” so to speak, the city was already in need of some remedial greening. It concludes with a reflection on lessons learned to date by GTR and commentary on the likely issues ahead for this new mini-social-environmental movement in the context of a quake-affected and still quake-prone major New Zealand city. One of the key lessons for GTR and all of those involved in Christchurch recovery activities to date is that the city is still very much in the middle of the event and is to some extent a laboratory for seismic and agency management studies alike.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Westende Building, one of the first rebuilds within the cordon".
A photograph of a sign on St Asaph Street. The photograph is captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Darkroom Bar, 336 St Asaph Street".
A photograph of a sign on St Asaph Street. The photograph is captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "The Archive, 336 St Asaph Street".
A photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "The Lotus Heart, vegetarian restaurant, tea house and gift shop at 363 St Asaph Street".
A photograph of street art on a wall near Brighton Mall.
A photograph of street art on a building between Brighton Mall and Beresford Street. There is a shopping trolley in front of the artwork.
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Fire Station outside Kilmore Street".
A photograph captioned by Paul Corliss, "Christchurch North Methodist Church, corner Harewood Road and Chapel Lane".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Cafe Metro, a re-established cafe in Papanui Road. Formerly, it was sited on corner of Colombo and Kilmore Streets in town".
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