Announcing four Our Land and Water webinars, weekly on Mondays at 12 noon from 30 November
What will the food and fibre producing landscapes of New Zealand look like in a future where scientists, farmers, growers, iwi and businesses have worked together to respond pragmatically and effectively to environmental degradation?
A series of four webinars will discuss this idea over summer, hosted by the Our Land and Water National Science Challenge. The ‘Better Together’ webinar series will share New Zealand research that is bringing together people, data, business and communities to responsibly care for our land and water.
“It has been a year of change and challenge for everyone in New Zealand’s agri-food and fibre system, but it has also clarified how we are stronger together,” says Jenny Webster-Brown, director of Our Land and Water.
“Our Land and Water is a mission-led science organisation. Our vision is for healthy, resilient land and water: an environment that will take care of us far into the future. To move towards this future, we need to work together to create and apply practical, common sense solutions.”
Our Land and Water (Toitū te Whenua, Toiora te Wai) is one of 11 National Science Challenges that focus on defined issues of national importance, identified by the New Zealand public.
The National Science Challenges were designed to take a more strategic approach to the Government’s science investment by targeting goals that, if achieved, will have major and enduring benefits for New Zealand. For Our Land and Water, this means tackling the biggest science-based issues and opportunities facing our country in the area of primary production, and the complex relationship it has with our precious land and water.
The role of Our Land and Water’s research is to connect and work with land stewards, iwi and organisations to design practical new options, incentives and pathways towards a better agri-food and fibre system, removing barriers and making it easier for farmers to innovate and diversify.
“The cause of environmental degradation is not individual farmers but an agri-food and fibre system that considers all farms separately, despite their cumulative effects on water quality,” says Dr Webster-Brown. “What we need now is a new, collective approach in our solutions.”
“We need to bring together people from all parts of the system, and all the evidence we have, to provide confidence that decisions on land-use change and management will take care of te Taiao – our surroundings, our communities, and the wellbeing and health of children and future generations.”
The Better Together webinar series
All webinars are free and open to anyone interested, but registration is essential using the links below.
- The vision: More diverse, resilient, healthy landscapes by 2030
Monday 30 November, 12–1pm
- The challenge: What the data tells us about our water
Monday 7 December, 12–1pm
- The solutions (part 1): Connecting communities for effective farm plans
Monday 14 December, 12–1pm
- The solutions (part 2): Bringing people together for diverse land use
Monday 21 December, 12–1pm
There will be a Q+A session at the end of each webinar. Questions can be submitted in advance via email.
Webinars will be run through Zoom. People without a reliable internet connection will be able to listen via a phone number provided by Zoom. Please register using the links above.
A recording will be available the day after the webinar, shared via Our Land and Water’s Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn pages.