In Kawatiri Westport, Kawatiri Nature Environment & Communities Trust (KNECT) is inspiring tamariki through immersive, hands-on learning at The Nurture School. Each week, students explore their local bush, take part in restoration projects, and build a strong connection with the natural world.
This year, WWF-New Zealand funding is supporting a new student-led trapping programme, giving learners a way to get involved in practical action for native wildlife while deepening their understanding of their local environment.
Through projects grounded in real experiences, the next generation of kaitiaki are learning teamwork, curiosity, and care for the place they call home.
Kirivalu Aotearoa Society Incorporated is building conservation leadership within Aotearoa’s Pacific communities through its Guardians of Tomorrow: Community Conservation Education initiative.
The first phase of the project has equipped ten facilitators, including emerging young leaders, with environmental knowledge, conservation awareness, and practical engagement skills, preparing them to share this knowledge within their communities.
“The first phase has been transformational for our facilitators,” one team member reflected. “They are gaining not just knowledge about conservation, but confidence in leading conversations and inspiring others to take responsibility for our environment.”
By investing in community leaders first, the initiative creates a ripple effect, strengthening environmental literacy, leadership, and participation in conservation, while connecting Pacific values of stewardship with action here in Aotearoa.
WWF-New Zealand’s Community Conservation Fund, in partnership with the Tindall Foundation, is proud to support these two projects, which are helping strengthen environmental education and community-led conservation across Aotearoa.