The conference, organised by Victoria University of Wellington and the MacDiarmid Institute of Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, is set to explore the power of individuals and community-based movements to make positive changes.
A place to live: for a life worth living will be opened with a public talk by Dame Anne Salmond, 2013 Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year.
It builds on themes from the Transit of Venus Forum (2012) initiated by renowned New Zealand physicist the late Sir Paul Callaghan, who grew up in Whanganui, continuing the conversation he started about how science can support economic development.
It also follows on from the Valuing Nature Conference held in Wellington last year, co-hosted by Victoria University, which explored the value of natural capital and ecosystem services in the mainstream of both public and private decision-making.
Professor Charles Daugherty, Victoria’s new Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Sustainability) and Conference Co-Convenor, says the goal of this event is to stimulate ideas and motivate thinking about where and how we live our lives.
“This event provides an excellent opportunity for representatives, iwi, academics and students to come together and build awareness of New Zealand’s economic dependency on the environment,” he says.
Kiwibank is the principal sponsor of the conference, along with the Department of Conservation, the Allan Wilson Centre and Landcare Research. It is organised with support from the Whanganui District Council, the Whanganui River Maori Trust Board, and the Royal Society of New Zealand.
Conference details
When: 16–19 November
Where: The Whanganui War Memorial Centre, Watt St, Whanganui
For more information and to register visit www.aplacetolive.org.nz