Happy 3rd birthday, Wairau Nature Network! 
Three years ago today, we started with an idea and a bunch of passionate people who thought we could do something bigger by working together.
Our birthday celebration ticked all the boxes of what we set out to achieve: fantastic conversations, new connections and partnerships, inspiration from others, and a little bit of reaching for the stars!
A huge thank you to everyone who has been part of the Wairau Nature Network journey so far. You are what makes this network work.
We were lucky to hear from two fantastic speakers:
Mike Aviss from Marlborough District Council dug deep into the past in his talk “Looking Back to Move Forward”, helping us imagine what the Wairau lowlands might once have looked like. And it’s a sobering story – with very little original vegetation remaining, there are just seven pre-European-aged kahikatea trees left on the lowlands. Seven. That really brings home how much has been lost.
Robbie Holdaway from Mount Impey Conservation Estate then blew us away with what can be achieved when you combine vision with intensive management. Across 3,000 hectares of remnant and regenerating forest, the family-run project is restoring an incredible landscape – one that absorbs an estimated 7% of Marlborough’s viticulture carbon emissions, and tomtit are now fighting over territories!
Here’s to the next three and to seeing just how far we can take this.
Many thanks to our event sponsors Small Town Winery and Marlborough District Council