Adam Thompson is a conservationist and sustainability advocate who has built a wide-reaching community dedicated to protecting native ecosystems. A passionate champion for two of the things New Zealand is best known for – our farming sector and our precious endemic wildlife – Adam is naturally gifted at rallying people around a cause: driving positive change with a strong focus on education and community.

His Cambridge-based nursery, Restore Native, has distributed millions of native trees across New Zealand’s North Island, transforming farms and landscapes to improve water quality, biodiversity, and soil health. As a founding member of Predator Free Cambridge, Adam actively leads community projects to protect endangered birds, restore kiwi to the Waikato, and improve predator control nationwide. His most recent community pest control project in his home town of Te Miro, hopes to bring Kiwi back to the district over the next 5 years.

Over the past few years, Adam has gone above and beyond – sending over 37,000 plants to Tairawhiti Gisborne and Te Matau-a-Māui Hawkes Bay to help cyclone recovery over the course of 2023 and 2024. Closer to home, Adam sent 100 trees to every rural school in the Waikato district – helping kids connect with their whenua. His mahi is a true gift to future generations, blending conservation with community care.

Dr Mike Joy is a leading freshwater ecologist and science communicator, renowned for his unwavering dedication to conservation and environmental protection. Over the past two decades, Dr Joy has worked tirelessly at the intersection of science and policy, developing bio-assessment tools widely adopted by regional councils and publishing extensively on freshwater ecology, data science, and conservation. His impactful advocacy focuses on educating the public about the ecological crises facing New Zealand, and urging policies that prioritise long-term environmental health over short-term solutions.

Dr Joy’s achievements have earned him numerous awards, including the Royal Society of New Zealand’s Charles Fleming Award and Callaghan Medal, reflecting his impact on public education and policy influence. Through his research, editorial roles, and public speaking, Dr Joy champions a sustainable future for Aotearoa New Zealand’s natural environment, determined to safeguard the country’s lakes, rivers, and ecosystems for generations to come.

Joel (Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa, Rangitāne o Wairarapa) and Awhina Ngātuere (Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui, Te Whānau a Apanui) from Mt Maunganui are true champions for their community, advocating restlessly to protect the air, land, and water for the people they love and wider community. For almost a decade, they’ve worked on behalf of their hapū to uncover and fight against hazardous pollutants around their marae.

Their battle began when they noticed concerning illnesses among kaumātua and tamariki, which they traced back to toxic contamination in the area. Despite resistance from local councils and corporations, the Ngātuere family persisted, educating and rallying their people and communities, engaging in numerous environment court proceedings, presenting to the United Nations, sharing their story with the media, and holding wānanga to spread awareness. Their findings – recently backed up by the discovery of harmful PFAS chemicals and ESR Health Report – highlight the severity of pollution affecting the area and residents of Mount Maunganui.

Their work has led to changes in spatial planning, socialising discussions between communities, councils, and industries for both improving sustainable practice and industrial retreat from the Mount Maunganui peninsular. Additionally, Joel and Awhina are ensuring that councils and industry alike are blending Mātauranga Māori with modern Western science to restore the land and improve environment outcomes. Through their resilience and a deep love for whānau, Joel and Awhina inspire others to take action and protect our environment for future generations.

Aisling O’Sullivan is a leading figure in Ecological Engineering, serving as the Director of the Centre for EcoLogical Technology Solutions (CELTS) at the University of Canterbury. CELTS vision is to make a measurable and sustained impact in reversing water quality within a generation. Aisling is also a teacher, inventor, entrepreneur and single mother of two. Originally from Ireland, she has called Aotearoa New Zealand home for two decades. Aisling is dedicated to ecological solutions for major environmental challenges, such as developing innovative water treatment filters from biowastes, turning wastes into valuable resources. Her groundbreaking research covers urban, mining, and rural contexts, showcasing her ability to create simple yet regenerative designs for solving complex problems.

Internationally recognised, Aisling was recently awarded the International Association for Advanced Materials Scientist Medal among other accolades including a Stormwater Superhero award from Environment Canterbury. She believes in attracting a diversity of researchers, empowering her team to make practical contributions to society and the environment while respecting the planetary boundaries. As a passionate mentor, Aisling inspires future engineers to work harmoniously with nature, embodying her motto, “It’s ‘Eco-Logical’ to engineer in partnership with nature.”