The Art of Practical New Zealand Environmentalism

The Art of Practical New Zealand Environmentalism

AKA Letters to my brother

The series of articles are personal. Letters to My Brother refers to me. Yet it is, along with its familial handle, Catherine Smith's very well-informed, road tested, experienced and committed account of practical hope. Hope here is conjured in the New Zealand and Antarctic environment, settler and Maori communities, in governments and in pressure on them, in families and churches. This is an artistic, hopeful and thoughtful reflection on a life-time's practical engagement by Catherine. It is local but much more.

Articles written by Catherine Smith and Jim Prentice

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Catherine Smith

Catherine Smith, retired vet and environmental activist talks about lobbying, input into animal welfare and environmental legislation, and of course compromising - getting your feet wet. That’s how she reacted with opportunities for change in New Zealand’s political, natural and community landscapes.

Practical New Zealand Environmentalism

Letters to My Brother

My sister Catherine Smith moved by scientific, veterinary and personal understandings provides a set of general outlooks and practices of hope regarding specific parts of the New Zealand environment.

Values through Grace

A Poem by Bruce Mason

When we get together as an extended family, my husband (who is very fond of poetry) recites this poem before meals. I feel it imparts to us, our children and grandchildren a sense of being part of an inter-connected whole…. A subtle reminder! It was written by Bruce Mason (1921-1982), a famous NZ playwright who influenced the cultural landscape of the country through his contribution to theatre.

Restoring Biodiversity on the edge of Lake Taupo

The Structure, Methods and Results of the Pukawa Wildlife Management Trust – A Success Story.

Restoring Hamilton's Gully Systems

While I do not live on the edge of a gully, I applaud this initiative and provide plants through the nursery I volunteer at.

Digging In

Restoring Biodiversity on a Regional Scale The Hamilton Halo Project

I support this project through lobbying for its continuation and working on various projects that are part of the whole vision.

Cooperating on Water New Zealand

How to Co-operate on Water Management in New Zealand.

http://www.landandwater.org.nz

Greening Hamilton Helpful Authorities

Restoring Biodiversity

I have become involved in this project as a way of contributing to the greening of Hamilton.

Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Park

Biodiversity in the Waikato Region

It is not easy to unravel concepts such as biodiversity, sustainability, and natural ecosystems services. But being able to understand what each term means, and its relationship to the others, is critical to recognising how future generations would be able to exist on planet Earth.

Mitigation & Valuing Dollars for the Environment

One way of protecting and enhancing our environment for future generations lies in submitting a economy - based proposal in favour of an environmental spin off.

Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment

As an independent Officer of Parliament, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has wide-ranging powers to investigate environmental concerns.

A NZ Parliamentarian and a US Senator

NZ Government Valuing Nature Conference

A Bee's Value

I would like to have attended this conference and am proud to think it was held in Wellington. The initiative for the Valuing Nature conference organised by the Government’s Natural Resources Sector and Victoria University in association with the Sustainable Business Council, came from last year’s Transit of Venus Forum.

Hamilton Nurturing The Cultural & Ecological Past

Hamilton‚ a city of some 140‚000 people‚ has very few remnants of the original large‚ semi-swamp lowland forest which covered much of what are now eastern suburbs between 5000 and 19‚000 years ago.

Sharing Values and Building Friendships

Feeling Connected by Getting Involved

With so much movement of families away from their ancestral homes‚ it is easy to feel a sense of loss and transience.

James Prentice

My sister lives in New Zealand and I live in Australia. No doubt both our lives are testaments to the forbidding colonising domination of homo sapiens-European ones more recently. More to the point, I see her every so often and our lives seem so very different, yet we both are activists.

Family and Community Engagement

Fostering Values by Doing

Many of us don't live in the same town as our offspring and their children but skype, email and the old fashioned phone call means distance is no barrier to communication (and influence)..

Antarctica

Antarctica: a pivotal touchstone

In 2006, I had the opportunity to journey south by ship from Bluff, New Zealand across the Southern Ocean to Antarctica.

Article Index

The Art of Practical New Zealand Environmentalism