A Gribble Family Trust wetland restoration planting day in Whanganui, with support from Brunswick School.
A Gribble Family Trust wetland restoration planting day in Whanganui, with support from Brunswick School.
Thirty-six community projects will share $341,772 in climate and biodiversity funding.
Horizons Regional Council chairwoman Rachel Keedwell said she was pleased Horizons could provide support to communities through the Kanorau Koiora Taketake – Indigenous Biodiversity Community Grant and Pūtea Hapori Urupare Āhuarangi - Community Climate Response Fund this year.
“Theimpacts of climate change are intertwined with impacts on our native biodiversity, and it makes sense that we have grants to cover both these areas,” she said.
“We are in the middle of a biodiversity crisis, so we welcome actions that help people to look after our taonga that make Aotearoa New Zealand so unique. Our Kanorau Koiora Taketake – Indigenous Biodiversity Community Grant is one way we can achieve this.
“Cyclone Gabrielle has made it really clear that helping communities become more resilient to the effects of the climate is essential. Our Pūtea Hapori Urupare Āhuarangi - Community Climate Response Fund is a way to kick-start action at the grassroots level.
“This year, we received a record number of applications regionwide across the two funds, and my only disappointment is we don’t have enough to fund them all,” Keedwell said.
Applications received are reviewed and decisions for which receive the final funding are made by a panel of councillors. This year, a total of $341,774 has been awarded from the two funds, including to six multi-year projects from previous years.
“We look forward to seeing the outcomes of these projects and watching our communities build their capacity to take action on topics where it really will make a difference,” Keedwell said.
