Our History

Ko Taropehu te maunga - Taropehu is our mountain.

Ko Oruamo te awa - Hellyer’s Creek is our river.

Ko Te Hau Kapua te takiwā - We work out of this area.

Ko Pākaurua te rohe - Birkdale/Beach Haven is our base.

Ko Te Rōpu Kaipātiki tamore mātou - Kaipātiki Project is our foundation.

No reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa - We stand strong and acknowledge those who have come before, those currently here and those coming in the future.

This pepeha was kindly gifted to Kaipātiki Project by Matua Pat Ruka.

The story begins in 1998 with Jenny Christianson, the passion driving the project to ‘weed the bush’ on the banks of the Kaipātiki Stream on Auckland’s North. She soon had a band of merry men and women who volunteered their time and energy. During this time we had many homes - from Jenny’s house, to where we are now tucked into the lower reaches of the Kāipatiki Stream in Birkdale, surrounded by the Eskdale Reserve Network and friendly neighbourhoods.

Our Progress over Time

Growing sustainable future for people and nature

We began in 1998, when a small group of volunteers came together to protect a local forest fragment. Their passion soon inspired neighbours to join in restoring nearby bush reserves.

Today, we’re growing a sustainable future by empowering communities, connecting people with nature, and supporting low-impact living.

With our dedicated volunteers, we run a thriving native plant nursery, growing over 40,000 plants annually for local restoration. We also lead forest, stream, and estuary regeneration days, promote zero waste, and support local food initiatives.

We signed the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Declaration: a commitment to the advancement of the SDGs in Aotearoa. The Declaration recognises the urgent need to foster collaboration and support pathways towards the SDGs in Aotearoa, with Te Tiriti o Waitangi underpinning our actions. The SDGs are designed to be "A blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all people and the world by 2030".

We have steadily grown over the years, and as Auckland’s North only EcoHub, we continue to inspire communities to regenerate local bush reserves and live sustainably.

Every year, our projects protect and restore the biodiversity of the Kaipātiki area and the wider Auckland North.

Our nursery grows 40,000+ eco-sourced native plants annually for community regeneration projects, private backyard programmes, the Auckland Mayor’s Million Trees project and other inspiring destinations. Our work is regularly recognised and used as case studies.

Every year we deliver sustainable living events, experiences and educational opportunities for everyone.

We have a reciprocal relationship with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, with a shared methodology to our plant nurseries, and shared learning programmes for staff, volunteers and community.

We maintain a community-driven, eco-sourced, chemical-free kaupapa.

We do a wide range of things to make it easy for you to live well within our Earth's limits:

Join our volunteering whānau to get up close with nature. From bush restoration, weeding and trapping to growing and planting, many hands make light work.
Learn about sustainable living and conservation at the hub of our operations, our Auckland North Environment Centre. We have a range of courses for all ages – including for schools and preschools. Feel great while learning with others and helping our natural world.
We hold events across the region.
Our native plant nursery sells native plants in bulk or tailored to meet your needs.
Help Aucklanders reduce food and garden waste working with Compost Collective.
Support local communities in catching rats and possums, and remove invasive weeds working with Pest Free Kaipātiki.
Engage youth and community science in Kaipātiki Stream Care programme

We have a dedicated crew of staff, tutors, Board members and volunteers who help Kaipātiki Project achieve its objectives.

Kaipātiki Project partners with a range of organisations. We’re very grateful for the support of our generous funders.

Support us in getting communities and local businesses to waste less, clean up our streams and live more sustainably.

We believe that working together, we can restore our native plants, birds, bugs and fish.

Celebrating 25 Years!