For more than a century, Te Reo o te Taiao Forest & Bird has been protecting and restoring Aotearoa New Zealand's unique wildlife and wild places – on land and in the sea.
Forest & Bird is Aotearoa’s oldest conservation charity, founded in 1923.
Every day, Forest & Bird’s members, supporters, and staff provide the voice for te taiao nature and put in the hard yards to protect it.
With 45 branches, 37 reserves, and more than 120 national and local frontline conservation projects, we are protecting nature across all corners of Aotearoa.
We deliver boots-on-the-ground conservation mahi – from planting to pest control – and speak up for nature in the courts, the media, and at all levels of government.
Forest and Bird planters at Paremata Reserve
Our community
Our 45 branches operate at place. Strongly connected with their local environment and community, branches coordinate and carry out vital restoration projects.
Members also engage with local and regional councils to speak up for nature in planning forums and educate their communities about conservation and environmental issues.
Our wider community of supporters has grown to number more than 100,000 New Zealanders who care passionately about New Zealand’s nature and want to ensure our taonga are protected for future generations.
Pest free Hibiscus coast volunteers with traps
Our branch committees and members coordinate and carry out restoration projects in their local areas. They're people who care passionately about New Zealand’s unique natural environment and want to ensure natural taonga are protected for future generations.
Young members of Forest & Bird members help to plant native trees.
Empowering the next generation
The responsibility for protecting nature and our environment will one day pass to our children. Forest & Bird is developing a new generation of nature lovers and conservation leaders through our popular programme for nature-loving tamariki 13 years and under, Kiwi Conservation Club, as well as Forest & Bird Youth, a growing network of Youth Hubs for rangitahi.
Forest & Bird Youth Auckland members set up tracking tunnels
Our history
Since 1923, Forest & Bird has played a crucial role in preserving New Zealand’s environment and native species. We've helped establish conservation protection for one-third of our country’s land mass, put an end to logging our publicly owned native forests and helped prevent species such as the kākāpō, kea and kōkako becoming extinct.
Find out more about our history
Our staff
Our team is spread across the motu, from Ōtepoti Dunedin to Te Tai Tokerau Northland. A specialist legal team and team of conservation managers advocate for legislation and policies that better protect nature. Branch volunteers on the ground carry out essential conservation work like trapping and weeding, and help people connect with te taiao nature in so many ways. We also have staff heading special numerous projects around the motu.
Our staff lead impactful public awareness campaigns – from peaceful protest marches to Bird of the Year – and share the wonder of our unique environment. We also publish two magazines, Forest & Bird and Wild Things.
Our CE Nicola Toki leading the March for Nature protest on 8 June 2024
How we’re funded
Our funding comes overwhelmingly from ordinary people – folks from all walks of life from across New Zealand (and beyond) who love and cherish nature and want to protect it.
We rely on the support of our members and supporters through membership fees, regular giving, donations and bequests. We also apply for grants and project funding to help deliver specific conservation work.
Forest & Bird provides the voice for nature and shares the wonders of our natural environment across Aoteaora. We speak for our many threatened species and treasured places, from endangered Maui's dolphins to high-country tussock lands.
Our branch committees and members coordinate and carry out restoration projects in their local areas. They're people who care passionately about New Zealand’s unique natural environment and want to ensure natural taonga are protected for future generations.
The responsibility for protecting nature and our environment will one day pass to our children. Forest & Bird is developing a new generation of nature lovers and conservation leaders through our children’s club, Kiwi Conservation Club, as well as Forest & Bird Youth.
Help us to help nature
We rely on your support through membership subscriptions, donations and bequests to be a voice for nature. Help us help nature.
