Restoration planting with University of Washington Students
Students from University of Washington, Seattle helping to plant trees at Hipapatua, a riparian restoration site.
A benefit of our Student Leadership program is that we get to develop connections with their families. One former Student Leadership family from America contacted KGT about talking to a group of environmental students from the University of Washington who were in New Zealand on a field trip. It was great getting to the opportunity to talk to them. We were able to describe why New Zealand is in need of environmental restoration and how we work collaboratively with other community organisations like Taupō District Council, Waikato Regional Council, Taupō EEC, and many others, working towards common goals. We then took the students out to Hipapatua Recreational Reserve to observe the work that has been done there and to give them the opportunity to give back by joining in with restoration work. It makes us proud to think what we are doing here in Taupō could influence actions across the world.
Never ones to let a bug hunting opportunity to pass us by, we were able to find cabbage tree caterpillars, a variety of spiders, and even a skink. Unfortunately the skink was an introduced rainbow plague skink, but it was exciting nonetheless.
