A guide to help you improve your well-being by connecting with nature

Client: Department of Conservation, Tairawhiti Gisborne 

Spending time in nature for our well-being has many health benefits. Coordinating a project to develop a resource to help you improve your well-being by connecting with nature in Tairawhiti Gisborne.

This project started in 2019/20 while I was employed at the Department of Conservation. The working party met regularly to develop the guide and agree on the content. Many ideas were floated before agreeing on its content. The guide includes five short walks, volunteer opportunities, fun activities with whanau, and discovering your wairua (spiritual) journey. 

My role

I was contracted to lead the project to completion. COVID-19 arrived in February 2020, and the country went into lockdown in March 2020, so no working party meetings were held until 2022. While Cyclone Gabrielle in February 2023 also delayed the project’s progress. My colleague Charles Barrie came back on board and took the lead in engaging with the various organizations that would champion the guide through their networks.

The content writing aspect of the project involved working with the group to identify key opportunities and writing the content to their brief. I liaised with DOC’s Creative Services team, who designed the guide and provided general editing services. There were many back and forths between Creative Services and myself. I also sourced suitable images from within the District Office and liaised with the DOC GIS mapping services to create a suitable map for the guide.

Launch of the Guide

The Guide was launched in December 2023 with a DOC media release that I drafted and I also wrote the radio promotions. Charles also wrote an article for Gizzy Local community network. Copies of the guide were made available at key locations. 

Testimonial

Thanks to Sandra Groves, one of the two project coordinators for the mahi (work) she put into creating a valuable resource to support our whanau. Trudi Ngawhare, Community Ranger, Department of Conservation Tairawhiti Gisborne