$50k from $1m Air NZ nature funding pool to go to Gisborne

Air NZ chief sustainability and corporate affairs officer Kiri Hannifin said the company hoped the 'Every Corner Project' be a great example of what business and Kiwi communities can do together to nurture the environment. Photo / Supplied

Applications have opened for $1m in community nature project funding nationally, of which $50,000 is for Gisborne.

Air New Zealand says the ‘Every Corner Project’ will help restore and regenerate the country’s natural environment.

The project is funded through the airline’s Climate and Nature Fund and aims to support grassroots efforts by communities to improve, protect or restore environments across New Zealand.

Applications for the funding will be assessed by the airline’s 20 regional airport teams, who will oversee applications within their broader region to ensure funding reaches even remote communities beyond Air NZ’s network, according to a statement from the company.

From Thursday, registered charities, schools/kura, iwi and hapū can apply for funding to support projects such as:

• Planting native trees and plants
• Establishing native gardens, food gardens or beehives
• Reducing food waste from landfills, for example by composting
• Nature and/or climate education
• Predator control
• Restoration/regeneration of oceans, beaches, mangroves, wetlands and waterways.

Applications, which must be made online on the Air NZ website, close on March 31.

Recipients will be announced by May 9.

Air NZ chief sustainability and corporate affairs officer Kiri Hannifin said all parts of Air NZ’s business were intrinsically connected to and reliant on nature.

“The Every Corner Project recognises the growing role Air NZ wants to play in supporting local communities to drive meaningful change for nature,” Hannifin said.

“As an airline, we have a comprehensive programme of work focused on decarbonising our own operations, but we also want to help make a lasting difference outside of aviation in the regions we serve.”

A key focus of the Every Corner Project will be to ensure funding reaches regional and rural communities that often have limited access to sustainability funding.

“Every part of Aotearoa has its own unique environmental challenges and opportunities,” Hannifin said.

“We’d love the Every Corner Project to be a great example of what business and Kiwi communities can do together to nurture our very unique and precious environment now and into our future.”