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Kaitiaki Action Projects

After experiencing their local marine environment and the fully protected marine reserve, participants are encouraged to lead action projects and become kaitiaki of their marine environment. 

Over the years, students have been involved in a range of action projects to promote marine conservation, from writing letters to their local authorities and Members of Parliament, presentations in front of assemblies and public events, investigating where marine protected areas would go, supporting marine reserve proposal groups and addressing local issues in their community such as sand dune erosion.

The action component of the EMR programme is an essential factor in the student's learning process and one which helps us to assess the effectiveness of the programme at meeting the projected learning and conservation outcomes. By encouraging students to undertake action, which is based on their own experience, EMR aims to empower students and encourage support for marine conservation.

Students become kaitiaki of the sea and together, they make a difference!

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Learn more about some of the incredible action projects students have undertaken as part of their Mountains to Sea programme!

Northland Region

2022/23 | Jermaine Pira | Nga Kaitiaki o te Ahi (NKOTA)
Action Project Details

More info coming soon

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2022/23 | Xander Vanstones | Hikurangi
Action Project Details

Xander and his sculpture and Brian Stafford-Bush from the Bobby Stafford-Bush Foundation.

More info on Xander's action project to come.

2021/22 | More info coming soon!
2021/22 | More info coming soon!

Auckland Region

MTSW 2

2022/23 | Maelee Mariner | Papatoetoe West
Action Project Details

"For my project, I did an art project based on the little mermaid, but my twist was that I used trash art medium collage - I used rubbish that I found at home or at school to make it. I made a collage to show that things in real life aren’t as how they are romanticised in the movie." - Maelee 

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For their excellent mahi, Maelee was awarded a spot on the 2023 Annual Poor Knights competition trip

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2022/23 | Ollie Smith | St Thomas's School
Action Project Details

More info coming soon!

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2022/23 | Emme Curran | Hobsonville Point Primary School
Action Project Details

More info coming soon!

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2022/23 | Emme Curran | Hobsonville Point Primary School
Action Project Details

More info coming soon!

Coromandel Region

2022/23 | More info coming soon!
2022/23 | More info coming soon!
2022/23 | More info coming soon!
2022/23 | More info coming soon!

Taranaki Region

MTSW 2

2022/23 | Rimu Taiapa | North Taranaki Home Educators
Action Project Details

More info coming soon

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2022/23 | Maheli Madagedara | Highlands Intermediate
Action Project Details

More info coming soon!

2021/22 | More info coming soon!
2021/22 | More info coming soon!

Gisborne Region

MTSW 2

2022/23 | Aio-Bebe Hollis | Te Kura o Manutuke
Action Project Details

 "Ko au te moana ko te moana ko au is the name of my poster. I am a proud young Maori girl born and raised on the shores of the Gisborne East coast beaches. Our moana is everything to us, it is our food source, our spiritual source, our connection to who we are as people of the land. Therefore kaitiakitanga is our duty hence the name ko au te moana ko te moana ko au. I have also incorporated Hinemoana in the background. She is the female element, another divine guardian of the ocean. In the top right corner is a brief karakia, words of safety, precaution and protection often used by whanau before entering the realm of Tangaroa. The proverb under EMR is an old saying used to remind us of our actions, responsibility as people of the land and how we must uphold the health and wellbeing of our whenua." - Aio-Bebe Hollis

For their excellent mahi, Aio-Bebe was awarded a spot on the 2023 Annual Poor Knights competiton trip

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2022/23 | Margot Faye Manson | Wainui Beach School
Action Project Details

More info coming soon!

2021/22 | More info coming soon!
2021/22 | More info coming soon!

Wellington Region

MTSW 2

2022/23 | Charlie Kiriona | Poroutawhao School
Action Project Details

Charlie Kiriona did a beach clean up with sustainable coastlines. With some of the items he found he created his piece "Te Maro o Tangaroa". "This kaupapa [EMR] has been something Charlie has really tried hard to participate in" says teacher Krishna, due to his passion for the ocean and diving in it with his whanau. Seeing him create art from potentially harmful objects found in the marine environment is inspiring.

For their excellent mahi, Charlie was awarded a spot on the 2023 Annual Poor Knights competiton trip

MTSW 1

2022/23 | Hawea Sullivan | TKKM O Nga Mokopuna
Action Project Details

 Hawea Sullivan volunteered to be trained in the LoveRimurimu freediving course for seaweed plant-outs and monitoring. One of the youngest students involved in LR, but has great leadership and is always keen to participate. Hawea has been part of the Love Rimurimu education programme for the last 3 years, thanks to support from WWF New Zealand and The Tindall Foundation.

For their excellent mahi, Hawea was awarded a spot on the 2023 Annual Poor Knights competition trip

MTSW 4

2021/22 | Greta Bond | Kelburn School
Action Project Details

Greta beautifully captured the life she found when snorkelling next to Taputeranga island at Island Bay.

For their excellent mahi, they were awarded a spot on the 2022 Annual Poor Knights competiton trip

MTSW 1

2021/22 | Hemaima-te-wai MacDougall | Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngā Mokopuna
Action Project Details

Hemaima-te-wai MacDougall represented Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngā Mokopuna at the Poor Knights thanks to her involvement in the LoveRimurimu project. The tauira have been researching the physical, biological and chemical aspects of Te Whanganui-a-Tara and presented their findings to local seaweed scientists, citizen science groups, mana whenua and the wider community. This action project gives tamariki a voice when deciding where Love Rimurimu will be conducting seaweed restoration mahi.

For their excellent mahi, they were awarded a spot on the 2022 Annual Poor Knights competiton trip

MTSW 1

2020/21 | Bill Kelly | Brooklyn School
Action Project Details

Hailing from Brooklyn School the inspiration for Bill’s winning art piece actually came from early this year when Bill attended one of our Princess Bay Community Snorkel days for the first time. All abuzz with the myriad of underwater marvels he’d seen during his dive, Bill jumped straight into a bus designing competition created by Metlink: On Our Way. A no-brainer for Bill, he drew himself amongst the seaweed and all the colorful fish he saw in Taputeranga Marine Reserve. Lo and behold, the underwater themed masterpiece won the competition. Bill is very involved with his local community through the Vogelmorn Bowling Club and is working to get his community to join him at the next South Coast Clean-up. Keep a weather eye out for Bill’s solar powered number one bus, it’ll be running the route from Johnsonville down to Island Bay.

For their excellent mahi, they were awarded a spot on the 2021 Annual Poor Knights competiton trip

MTSW 4

2020/21 | Evelyn Williamson | Kapiti Primary School
Action Project Details
The selected winner in a team of five tamariki from Kapiti Primary School who’s winning action project involved a lot of fish counting. Evelyn Williamson, Hayley Murphy, Tara Maxwell, Jack Horgan and Carmel Hiiti have been partnering with Ben Knight from Guardians of the Kāpiti Marine Reserve to monitor fish populations within the marine reserve boundaries. The Big BRUVer project uses video captured from underwater baited cameras and a scientific monitoring method called max fish counts, to capture data on whether our fishy friends are flourishing. This data will provide insight and be used to help inform future management within this marine space.

For their excellent mahi, they were awarded a spot on the 2021 Annual Poor Knights competiton trip

MTSW 2

2019/20 | Meadow Hussey | Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngā Mokopuna
Action Project Details

Meadow was selected for her environmental action and dedicated mahi, was Meadow Hussey from Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngā Mokopuna . She created a presentation about seaweed as kaimoana to help inform her community about its myriad of uses and health benefits. Not only that, during a community action day she then whipped up some utterly scrumptious creations to prove the point. In her own words, the Whāinga of her project was:

For their excellent mahi, they were awarded a spot on the 2020 Annual Poor Knights competition trip

MTSW 1

2019/20 | Rebecca Press | Koraunui School
Action Project Details

Our second winner, for her stunning artwork and the inspiring message that accompanied it, was Rebecca Press from Koraunui School. If you see her around be sure to ask her about seaweed, her knowledge on the subject is rather impressive. In her words, the message behind her artwork was:
“I want people to think about how they should look after the ocean and stop creating rubbish. I wanted to show people what kinds of things they can see in Marine Reserves where the environment is looked after.”

For their excellent mahi, Hawea was awarded a spot on the 2020 Annual Poor Knights competition trip

Nelson/Tasman Region

2022/23 | Flynn Brydon | Hira School
Action Project Details

More info coming soon!

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2022/23 | Hugh Robinson | Brooklyn School
Action Project Details

More info coming soon!

2021/22 | More info coming soon!
2021/22 | More info coming soon!

Otago Region

2022/23 | Sophie McWilliam | Waikouaiti School
2022/23 | Cormac McAvinue | Ballaclava School
2021/22 | Sophia Niblock | University of Otago
2021/22 | Jade Gutsell | Catlins School
2018/19 | Thomas Pope
2018/19 | Jonah Coleman