Hauraki Coromandel’s first season of GOOD FOR YOUR SOUL - Kaitiaki has delivered powerful environmental results and signalled a national shift towards tourism that restores the places it relies on. With 1,264 native trees donated, 41 business supporters, contributors from 17 countries, and 11 community-led planting sites completed, the initiative shows how tourism is a catalyst for restoration when visitors, operators and communities work with shared purpose.

Across the winter and spring planting season, volunteers, visitors, school groups and tourism operators worked side by side on restoration projects throughout the region. Seedlings sourced from Pare Hauraki Nursery are already growing for Season 2, with more operators joining the movement and new sites being confirmed.

This regional momentum reflects the wider national conversation. Tourism New Zealand’s Views on Tourism: New Zealand (YE Sep 2025) report shows increasing public appetite for environmental action, with:

• 52% of New Zealanders wanting greater education to protect the environment,
• 39% wanting tourism operators contributing to environmental initiatives, and
• 36% wanting visitors who give back to Aotearoa.
  GOOD FOR YOUR SOUL - Kaitiaki answers this call by turning community values into on-the-ground action.

Kylie Hawker-Green, General Manager at Destination Hauraki Coromandel, says:
"People visit Hauraki Coromandel for its landscapes and natural environment, so those places need to be protected. GOOD FOR YOUR SOUL - Kaitiaki was created as the action that enables tourism to give back. It brings visitors, operators and communities together to care for the whenua. Our vision is a region where biodiversity thrives and where tourism plays a direct role in leaving places better than before.”

Season 1 restoration work stretched across the region’s landscapes with several sites standing out for their scale, community involvement and impact. At Mautohe Cathedral Cove, locals, tourism operators and visitors worked together to care for one of Aotearoa’s most iconic coastal places. In Pūkorokoro, volunteers planted native species to strengthen habitat for internationally significant migratory birds. At Tangiaro, the Tamariki for Trees project brought Hillary Outdoors students and the Moehau Environment Group together to begin establishing a new reserve that will grow year by year.

Jamie Nisbett, Nursery Supervisor at Pare Hauraki Nursery, says:
“Every tree planted represents a commitment to restoring the whenua for future generations. Seeing school groups, operators and visitors planting eco-sourced native species shows that kaitiakitanga is thriving in Hauraki Coromandel.”

Tourism operators have also embraced the kaupapa, adding donation options to booking systems and supporting planting days across the region.

Mike Grogan owner of Cathedral Cove Kayaks says:
“It is a privilege to operate in this beautiful place and we need to do whatever we can to protect and preserve it. GOOD FOR YOUR SOUL - Kaitiaki gives our customers a way to contribute to the land and sea they’ve just experienced. It’s changed the way we tell our story and the way people engage with our environment.”

Season 2 planning is already underway, with new sites being confirmed for 2026, expanded predator control support, and more business supporters preparing to join. As the initiative grows, so does its impact, strengthening biodiversity, community connections and the region’s long-term environmental resilience.

Notes:

Season 1 Impact Summary:
• 1,264 native trees donated
• 41 business supporters
• Contributors from 17 countries
• $1,264 donated for predator control traps supplied by Predator Free Hauraki Coromandel Community Trust
• 11 of 17 planting sites completed
• Over one hundred volunteers involved

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