NZ Landcare Trust’s new Tairāwhiti/East Coast Catchments Coordinator Sam Gibson has hit the ground running and is already knees deep in catchment work around the region.
Sam, who is born and bred in the region, comes from a strong background in environmental work and is happy to be back working on home soil.
“My last role saw me travel around the country a lot, and it’s really good to be at home more and working on our land, for our people, in our region,” Sam says.
“I have accumulated a skill set through my work and am excited to be bringing it home to make a difference here. I want to see more people connecting with our landscapes, working on our land and caring more about it.”
Sam’s background includes working as a technical trapping expert for Goodnature Traps Ltd, and he has an extensive conservation background specialising in large landscape predator control and ecosystem management. He has a background with the Department of Conservation and as a private contractor which has given him a diverse range of skills.
In just the short time he has been with the Trust, Sam has started working with a number of groups including the Eastern Whio Llink in the Upper Waioeka, and is working with the Waimata Catchment Group to run a trapping and predator control workshop next month.
Trust CEO, Dr Nick Edgar, says the demand for the Trust to have a presence in the Te Tairāwhiti region had been strong in recent months and it was one of the first areas looked at when new funding for the Trust from the Ministry for Primary Industries Productive and Sustainable Land Use fund was announced.
“Sam is one of seven new staff members we have brought on with this funding, and that will double the impact we can have around the country, which is great,” Nick says.
NZ Landcare Trust is a national, independent, non-Government organisation that focuses on healthy waterways, profitable farms and connected communities – through action on the ground. It has been operating since 1996 and now covers most of the country.