Māori Student Research Awards

Coastal wetlands and the potential of blue carbon
 

The Nature Conservancy Aotearoa New Zealand (TNC NZ) is partnering with iwi, coastal communities and the government to overcome the barriers to effective climate and biodiversity solutions through blue carbon projects.

By restoring coastal wetland ecosystems so that they capture and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, The Nature Conservancy aims to address the dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. To achieve this, TNC NZ is investing in research and data collection, running pilot projects and providing policy advice on blue carbon.

As an organisation, The Nature Conservancy is committed to working with indigenous people across the globe. We acknowledge the role of tangata whenua as kaitiaki and decision-makers of Aotearoa New Zealand and their standing as key Treaty partners and leaders across the conservation sector. 
 

Across our projects, we want to work alongside whānau, hapū and iwi to support their priorities for the wai, moana and whenua, and enable kaitiaki aspirations to uphold the mauri and health of te taiao. 

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TNC NZ is pleased to fund up to 5 Māori students/early-career researchers to attend the Australasian Mangrove and Saltmarsh Network conference in Tauranga in November.

This includes covering conference registration fees, travel and accommodation.
 

To submit your expressions of interest or if you have any questions, please email:
 

Olya Albot, olya.albot@tnc.org and 

Rachel Hall, rachel.hall@tnc.org  

By September 12th 2025 
 

Please provide: 
 

• A short biography 

• Your area of research/study (e.g. blue carbon, biodiversity, restoration, marine ecology, geography) and career stage

• Your reason for wanting to attend the conference

If selected, we would appreciate you providing a paragraph about your experience of the conference for our internal use. This may also be published on our external channels with your approval.