Focus area 1: Encourage all Aucklanders to be stewards of the natural environment, and to make sustainable choices

Aucklanders interact with the natural environment each and every day.

Icons to represent sustainability, an apple for food, a recycle bin for zero waste, a bicycle for travel, a tap for water, a lightbulb for energy and a tree for nature.

Sustainable whanau icons

Early Māori expressed their culture and whakapapa in the natural environment. This included the meaning and significance of cultural practices, physical landscapes and their wāhi tapu.

This continues with all people of New Zealand.

In our own ways we all value and enjoy the natural environment. We must therefore all engage in its protection and conservation and act as stewards of the natural environment. It also means we have to ensure our many interactions with the natural environment are sustainable.

As the impacts of climate change become clearer, this will become more and more important.

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Map published 5 June 2018

How this can be done

This approach needs to be part of our daily decisions, whether we are acting as individuals or as businesses and industries. As our population grows, so does our shared responsibility to take care of the natural environment.

Our choices and behaviours have a direct impact on the natural environment, whether they are, for example:

the choices we make about the food and other products that we consume and use
how we travel to work or school
the products we use to construct and maintain our buildings
the way we manage manufacturing processes
how we deal with waste, by reusing or recycling resources
choosing to buy and use fewer non-recyclable products.

We all can, and must, shift from simply using and drawing on the natural environment to becoming active stewards of it.

Find out more about what you can do for the environment.

See how we'll minimise and manage our waste.

Related information

More information about this outcome

Photograph of the Onehunga foreshore restoration project, there are people milling around the foreshore and boats on the shore.

Focus area 2: Focus on restoring environments as Auckland grows

Focus area 3: Account fully for the past and future impacts of growth

Photograph of the One Tree Hill summit and obelisk from inside Cornwall park.

Focus area 4: Protect Auckland’s significant natural environments and cultural heritage from further loss

A waterway with ducks runs through urban area.

Focus area 5: Adapt to a changing water future

Focus area 6: Use green infrastructure to deliver greater resilience, long-term cost savings and quality environmental outcomes

Photo of the beach and sea taken from high up on the hills.

Implementing the Environment and Cultural Heritage outcome

Conceptual graphic of Auckland landmarks such as the ferry terminal building, the sky tower, and a volcanic cone.

Environment and Cultural Heritage explained

Graphic depicting Auckland's natural environment.

Direction 1: Ensure Auckland’s natural environment and cultural heritage is valued and cared for

A sketch showing a vibrant Auckland with a strong Māori identity. It includes a waka in the Auckland harbour.

Direction 2: Apply a Māori world view to treasure and protect our natural environment (taonga tuku iho)

A visual showing a productive Auckland. It shows a cruise ship pulled up in the harbour, the port and cargo boxes.

Direction 3: Use Auckland’s growth and development to protect and enhance the natural environment

Direction 4: Ensure Auckland’s infrastructure is future-proofed

Focus area 1: Encourage all Aucklanders to be stewards of the natural environment, and to make sustainable choices

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