Four $5000 Northland Regional Council scholarships open for environmental students

Previous Northland Regional Council Tū i te ora scholarship recipient Huia Clarke spent the summer with the council's hydrology team. Photo / NRC

Northland Regional Council is seeking to boost future environmental leadership with scholarships for tertiary students.

The regional council is offering four $5000 Tū i te ora scholarships that assist with tertiary study costs and offer three months’ paid fulltime 2026/2027 summer work experience with the organisation.

Two of the four scholarships are specifically for Māori who have whakapapa with Te Tai Tokerau.

This year’s individual scholarships have increased in value to $5000 for the first time.

They were previously worth $4000 from 2023 to 2025, and $3000 from 2020 to 2022.

The increase comes with a reduction in the number of scholarships offered from six last year.

Northland Regional Council (NRC) chair Pita Tipene said they provided value for recipients and the council.

“These scholarships celebrate the council vision of ‘Tiakina te taiao, tuia te here tangata - Nurture the environment, bring together the people’,” Tipene said.

“Being able to empower our future environmental leaders by providing some financial relief and offering summer paid work experience is a good thing in the current climate.”

This year’s winners will have the opportunity to work across different areas of the council - climate action, biodiversity and science, rivers and natural hazards, civil defence and Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnerships and engagement.

Their summer work will be from mid-November 2026 to mid-February 2027.

Paid summer work was included in the scholarship package for the first time for 2023 winners.

Tipene said the scholarships were a way for winners to get a foot in the door for potential future employment.

Applicants must be enrolled or have an intention to enrol in a recognised tertiary course of study relating to the council’s environmental and regulatory functions.

They must be studying at an undergraduate or higher qualification level and be enrolled or intend to enrol for semester two of 2026.

The council works in areas including biodiversity and biosecurity, climate change, environmental planning and policy, environmental science and data analysis, flood and natural hazard engineering and management, geographic information systems (GIS), land management and water management.

The council has awarded a total of $132,000 for 38 winners to date.

The scholarships have recognised, encouraged and supported students since 2019.

Applicants must be New Zealand citizens or permanent residents who live in Northland or have family that does, or who whakapapa to Te Tai Tokerau - within the council’s geographic area.

Applications close on May 11.

■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.