| our practice
     a modern, tranquil, eco-friendly healing environment

In early 2007 we moved into our very different and creative space tucked away in Church Street, in the heart of Nelson City.

Rather than build a new practice from scratch we have "recycled and re-defined" a dis-used inner city industrial warehouse and have transformed it into an airy, light-filled professional premises with a New York loft style, gallery feel.

Our entire office fitout has been done with biological and ecological principles in mind.

The result is a high ceiling reception area utilising extensive natural light from existing skylights, enclosed cosy ‘pods’ for the four consultation rooms, a tranquil gallery space for presentations, workshops, yoga and tai-chi classes, and an office and staff area with a large mezzanine storage area above.

The practice has polished concrete floors throughout, exposing the character of the original slab. The consultation rooms have natural fibre matting to soften the effect and provide a yielding surface underfoot. This gives us a chemical free, non-allergenic, sterile, easy to clean, long-life surface.

As the building is such a large space we chose to use radiant heat sources which gives a very pleasant, healthy heat which does not dry the air or create moisture as is typical of many other types of heating systems. Water is also four times more heat conductive than air so is far more efficient at transferring heat.

The boiler uses sawdust compressed into wood pellets for fuel, a byproduct of the timber industry which is considered a good sustainable and renewable source of energy. The resultant emissions are negligible and are in many ways offset by the life cycle of the trees’ growth.

Aside from the ecological benefits, there is also the convenience of a having a fully automated and thermostatically controlled central heating system.

Our eco-initiatives extend far beyond just our heating system - the health of the planet and its ecosystems are a major consideration in everything we do.

The choice of non-toxic BioPaints, solar water heating, low flush toilet systems, occupancy sensors, and the use of recycled and low off-gassing building materials are other examples.

Our stationery such as paper, files, business cards and even the pens we use are all made from recycled materials and all our cleaning products are natural and environmentally friendly.

We are committed to minimising and recycling our waste where possible. We actively promote sustainable, eco-living concepts to others.

It can often be a bit of a struggle doing things outside the square but now that we are up and running it’s been worth it. We also look forward to implementing more healthy, energy saving and eco-friendly initiatives in the future.

We are inspired by the concept that “it’s the little things that really matter” and we hope you enjoy being in our healthy, holistic, eco-friendly space as much as we do!

A great link for more local information about environmental practices is http://environmentcentre.nelson.org.nz/links.