Ever wanted to know what environmental activities are happening in your area?
Where your closest local community group to become involved with is?
Been wanting to learn how to take action in your backyard to enhance the natural environment?
Auckland Council’s conservation website Tiaki Tāmaki Makaurau | Conservation Auckland gives answers to all those questions and more.
Launching today, this one-stop-shop is ready just in time to support Conservation Week and its theme of experiencing nature through new eyes. Although Aucklanders are restricted in their movements as we support the government’s COVID-19 measures, there is plenty that can still be done.
While at home, check out the website and learn more about the region’s biodiversity, prepare to get involved with a local conservation group post-COVID-19, learn how to protect and restore the environment in your own backyard, and keep up to date with developments in the conservation sector.
“The newly created website helps Aucklanders to do good for conservation by providing them the tools and knowledge to take action to protect and improve the natural environment,” says Councillor Richard Hills, Chair of the Environment and Climate Change Committee.
“Since Pest Free Auckland was launched in 2017, there’s been a significant rise in the number of community groups popping up in neighbourhoods and around the region, keen to look after their environment. The information available on this website will help them do that,” he adds.
Developed over the last eighteen months the new website was funded by the Natural Environment Targeted Rate, developed in response to customer needs, and will enable more cost-effective service delivery.
“We couldn’t have done this without the support of Aucklanders. Their desire to preserve and protect their environment has driven this initiative,” says Gael Ogilvie, General Manager Environmental Services.
“Feedback from our community groups highlighted the need for easier access to resources to support their work. They told us there was little visibility of the great conservation work happening across the region and limited project collaboration. We have responded to this feedback with a website designed to maximise connectivity across the broad spectrum of conservation projects being led by mana whenua, community groups, landowners, NGO’s, philanthropics and public sector entities across Tāmaki Makaurau.
The new site provides resources readily available to groups and the public to promote and grow effective and responsible conservation practices across the region.
Already groups using the website have made flattering comments.
“This is a beautiful website with clear navigation and stunning pictures of natural beauty showing how lucky we are to live in Auckland. Let's protect this owha for future generations."
Another says, “I just love this site. The information is on point, interesting and entices the reader to explore more."
Pest Free Auckland Director Brett Butland enthuses, “Tiaki Tāmaki Makaurau is designed to bring together the vast wealth of conservation resources, without duplicating what already exists. With this site we aim to support the growing Auckland conservation community by providing easy access to the resources they need so they can spend more time on the ‘doing’ and less time on the ‘finding’.”
