Creating Change

The holistic, long-term Enviroschools journey creates fertile ground for a range of learning and action.

When tamariki/ students connect with their place and its people, and then plan, design and take action, they are creating change.

Through this empowering experience, they will become life-long change-makers.  The collective exploration is based in the concept of ako, where all participants are simultaneously learners and teachers, and everybody learns from each other.  It is a process of co-creation between people and all of the elements and energies around us. Caring for our place and the whole planet becomes a living curriculum where skills and competencies are gained through experience and mahi within meaningful community settings.

In the following stories you can see how Enviroschools participants are learning with their heads, hands and hearts – connecting with nature, exploring indigenous wisdoms, forming relationships with tangata whenua, collaborating with people in their diverse communities, and finding out about their own qualities and passions.  Learning and action in Enviroschools does not just have environmental outcomes but social, cultural and economic benefits too.

Enviroschools Big Picture at Settlement Road Early Learning

We recognised the potential of the Enviroschools "Big Picture" and wanted to introduce it to our tamariki as a way of seeing the Guiding Principles through their eyes. What beautiful moments we experienced as our tamariki took ownership over the “Big Picture” and used it...

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Green Week 2025 a huge success

Green Week 2025 was a new initiative led by Horowhenua College Envirogroup leaders, Ashlee West and Liam Roach. The idea came about from a "protect my backyard" portfolio that the Year 9 students engaged in a couple of years ago. They believed that it would...

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The Linton Kindergarten Lizard Garden comes to life!

After taking part in their regional Enviroschools ECE teacher Hui in May 2025, pouako from Ruahine Linton Kindergarten left with a goodie bags filled with ideas and projects - one being how to create a Lizard Garden.  This sparked curiosity in their tamariki and there...

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Karamea Area School’s Mural Shines

The completed mural is a true representation of everything that both the Enviroschools Kaupapa and Karamea Area School’s pedagogies stand for. It includes speciality community input, integrated curriculum through the arts programme, provided student empowerment, as well as a visual representation of what the school...

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A commitment to change and bringing the whole school along

Four senior classes at Boulcott School undertook the Hutt City World of Waste tour in the hope that together they could encourage change across the whole school. They took their learning back to school and have come up with next steps for their school community...

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