The Rise of Catchment Groups in Aotearoa NZ (EP28 with Sam the Trap Man)

Written By Callum Armstrong

  • Nature doesn’t stop at the fence-line, so why should conservation?

    Throughout Aotearoa, catchment groups are changing the conservation narrative. Farmers, foresters, iwi and communities are working together at landscape scale - proving that when landowners are given structure and support, they become powerful custodians of nature.

    The results ripple well beyond any single farm gate. From 6,000-hectare predator control projects to riparian planting that cools streams, this work flows from the headwaters to the moana, making towns more resilient to cyclones, waterways healthier, and ecosystems more connected.

    But catchment groups are more than conservation alone. In remote communities they’re taking on roading contracts, generating local jobs, and providing disaster resilience - building social fabric as well as ecological health.

    In this episode, Sam “The Trap Man” Gibson shares how catchment groups evolve, what they need to thrive, and why their growth could be one of the most important shifts in Aotearoa’s conservation story.

    • What catchment groups are and how they’ve grown in NZ

    • Why bipartisan political support makes them unique in the conservation landscape

    • How incentives work better than penalties in driving on-farm change

    • Kiwi surveys on dairy farms sparking wider ecosystem restoration

    • Cyclone Gabrielle recovery as proof of community resilience

    • The role of paid coordinators in keeping groups alive and thriving

    • Catchment groups as job creators and anchors for rural communities

    • How catchment groups combine into catchment collectives, achieving conservation and resilience at regional scale

    • How this movement ties into Predator Free 2050 and climate resilience

    • Sam’s documentary Think Like a Forest and the vision of Recloaking Papatūānuku

    • And much more…

  • Sam/Hamiora Gibson (better known as Sam the Trap Man) is a trapper, conservationist, communicator, and community leader. Through roles with NZ Landcare Trust, Mountains to Sea, and regional councils, he has spent years supporting and establishing catchment groups throughout New Zealand.

    With over a decade of experience spanning DOC, Goodnature, and community-led projects like Eastern Whio Link, Sam has designed predator control networks, coordinated large-scale conservation initiatives, and helped rural communities turn their aspirations for biodiversity and resilience into action.

    🔗Learn more:

  • 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.

Callum Armstrong
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Bringing Conservation Into the Classroom (with Sally Clegg, Trees for Survival)