DesignwithNature

WildLab is a group of designers and researchers committed to growing a world where people and nature thrive together.

We collaborate with community groups, iwi, farmers, business, and government agencies. Together, we create regenerative landscapes, strategies, experiences, and communication tools that connect them and their partners with te taiao and nature.

Connect with what we do . . .

Our Projects

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Wild Heart Project Punakaiki Storytelling
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A series of interpretation panels brings local nature stories to life, guiding volunteers through the plant nursery, sharing the project’s mission, and helping them become storytellers themselves—turning each visit into an engaging, educational exploration of this coastal restoration effort.
Antarctica New Zealand’s Scott Base Waste Reduction
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This review identified ways to reduce environmental impact at Scott Base—including comparing air- vs sea-freight emissions, cutting food waste to 20%, improving storage and stock control, optimizing recycling systems, and ensuring unnecessary items are returned efficiently to New Zealand.
Air New Zealand Long-haul Catering Weight and Waste Reduction Project
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This study analysed long-haul operations to reduce catering-related waste and carbon emissions. By streamlining food, bar, dry goods, and equipment services—and optimising facilities across global hubs—it identified efficiency gains that cut 3,950 tons of CO₂-equivalent per year while lowering costs.
Ararira Wetland Community Restoration Project
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A restoration design reimagines a degraded wetland into an inspiring outdoor classroom where planting events connect people with place. The landscape's patterns evoke inanga, tuna, and a lazy river, nurturing both ecological renewal and a community of learners and stewards in a shared space.

Field Notes

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Being Landscape
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This article reimagines landscape not as a static scene to be observed or preserved, but as an active, lived relationship between people and place. Drawing on personal experiences, design research, and fieldwork,a case for more participatory approaches to conservation is made—ones that foster mutual shaping between people and landscape, and enable deeper belonging through embodied practice.
The Story of the National Parks of Aotearoa New Zealand
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In September 2017 we brought the story of the national parks of Aotearoa New Zealand to Beijing, China. It was hosted at the Museum of Chinese Gardens and Landscape Architecture, and shows the ways the National Park idea has evolved over the last 130 years in Aotearoa New Zealand.
WildLab Field Guide to Designing Great Storytelling Panels
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For over a decade we’ve been designing storytelling panels that connect people with nature. This guide shares the principles behind our work—how good design and strong stories can inspire, build connection, and help communities bring the values of Te Taiao to life.
New Land
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This exploratory map invites us to see Aotearoa’s public conservation lands—covering a third of the country—not as fixed or finished, but as places full of fresh potential. Re-imagined as a newly discovered archipelago, it prompts us to ask how we might live differently within these lands. Could they foster new forms of innovation, economy, and culture grounded in restoration, care, and a deep engagement with nature?

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Southern Faces
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Southern Faces, the third-ever climbing guidebook for Otepoti Dunedin-arriving after a 25-year wait since the last guidebook. This beautifully designed book by Riley Smith celebrates the last five decades of local climbing and the immense growth of the scene since the previous guide, Dunedin Rock (2000). The 250-page guide provides essential safety insights, historical context, and highlights the unique climbing culture of Dunedin. From beginner-friendly climbs to the region's most intimidating routes, Southern Faces is a must-have for everyone keen to explore what the south has to offer. It's packed with photos, including great shots from the days of lycra through to some of the latest efforts at Lover's Leap. $8.50 shipping across Aotearoa.
$ 50.00 NZD
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WildLab @ 2020-2025