What Does a Healthy Ecosystem Look Like in Aotearoa New Zealand? (with Wayne O’Keefe)

• 🎧 Episode overview

  What does a healthy ecosystem actually look like in Aotearoa New Zealand?

  And what role does the endangered kōkako bird (Callaeas wilsoni) play in the conservation landscape?

  In this episode, we are joined by Wayne O’Keefe, who wears many hats in the conservation space, including ongoing efforts to help develop intergenerational forest corridors through KEEP, the Kōkako Ecosystem Expansion Programme.

• 🔑 Key topics covered

  Here are some of the things we discussed:

  • How and why kōkako are such a great indicator of forest health.

  • Why protecting kōkako really means looking after all the other species in the forest.

  • Why kōkako need at least 2000 hectares of connected forest to have a resilient population.

  • How this need evolved into creating ecological corridors that connect existing forest remnants through KEEP.

  • What 65 million years of isolation has done to New Zealand’s flora and fauna.

  • What a healthy ecosystem looks like in Aotearoa New Zealand.

  • What conservation means to Wayne.

  • And much more…

• 🧑‍🦱 About Wayne

  Having moved to Aotearoa, NZ in 2001, Wayne quickly developed a passion for our unique biodiversity. Since starting his contracting business in 2002, he has been fortunate enough to work in the community conservation space, supporting and guiding conservation groups and landowners to achieve their conservation goals.

  This has helped him to develop a broad understanding of coastal and forest ecology and the challenges we face in caring for them. He is a self-confessed native plant geek and has a particular interest in native forest establishment. Wayne has held roles with the QEII National Trust, Trees that Count, Tane’s Tree Trust, Bay Conservation Alliance, and Whakatāne Kiwi Trust.

  🔗Learn more:

  • KEEP: www.keep.org.nz

  • Bay Conservation Alliance: www.bayconservation.nz 

  • Tane’s Tree Trust: www.tanestrees.org.nz

• 🎙️ About the podcast

  The People Helping Nature podcast is brought to you by Conservation Amplified, a registered New Zealand charity.

  We are on a mission to help make conservation mainstream by amplifying the awesome stuff people are doing to help nature all around Aotearoa New Zealand.

  Because when people are aware, connected to the ecosystems around them and care enough to take positive action, only then will we see lasting change.

  Listen in and follow us to start or deepen your journey.