‘We succeed only by working together in sustainable partnership’ is the philosophy that underpins Manaaki Whenua’s approach to long-term solutions to issues such as climate change, biosecurity threats, food and nutrition security and biodiversity loss faced by our Pacific neighbours.
Working with our island country neighbours, Manaaki Whenua establishes networks that support multi-disciplinary research and cross-sector knowledge that will provide stability and protect livelihoods, underpinning sustainable career paths and workforce plans for local scientists working across government and private sectors.
By collaborating on projects, our international work is an extension of our work in Aotearoa and develops capability within country governments, research institutes and civil society. Sharing knowledge stimulates innovation as we search for sustainable ways to manage resources and live in harmony with nature.
We partner with regional, national and local government representatives and development agencies on programmes where our applied research delivers impact to communities.
In Colombia and Ecuador, our expertise in water use and land management has helped the recovery of two river basins and improved the livelihood of the local communities. In the Cook Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu, weed-busting work is underway to use natural enemies against invasive weed species. In 6 countries of the Pacific, we are working with Pacific Community (SPC) Land Resources Division and the Centre for Pacific Crops and Trees (CePaCT) on sustainable seed and plant material systems. In Tonga we are working with local soil scientists to improve soil management, testing services which will ensure agricultural sector recovery from the January 2022 eruption and tsunami.
We believe that by sharing knowledge systems, science can be enriched for the benefit of all.
