WildLab

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.

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Te Araroa Map Series and Toolkit

Be among the first to explore Te Araroa in a whole new way. This new six-map series brings the whole trail together, beautifully designed for walkers, section-planners, and everyone who’s part of the Te Araroa journey.

$58.00

Love Our Huts T-Shirt Fundraiser

Wear your support for FMC's Love Our Huts campaign with these awesome T-shirts! $20 from each purchase goes to supporting the great work Federated Mountain Clubs do.

$48.00

Southern Faces - An Introduction to Rock Climbing in Ōtepoti Dunedin

Southern Faces is a comprehensive climbing guidebook for Ōtepoti Dunedin, created to fill a 25-year gap in local climbing information. Designed and edited by WildLab's very own Riley Smith, the project brought together climbers, designers, mana whenua and scientists to produce an accurate and visually engaging resource. It combines detailed route descriptions, maps and access notes with essays and photography that highlight the region’s geology, ecology and climbing culture.

$48.00

Southern Faces Tees - Pinnacle

Tees feature Dave Brash’s original topos from his 2000 classic Dunedin Rock - cheers Dave! These shirts are a tribute to the cliffs, climbs and community that continue to shape the climbing story of Ōtepoti. There are three awesome designs to choose from!

$48.00

Our Projects

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Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu Social Housing

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A small urban pocket transforms into a vibrant, native‑plant sanctuary around three homes, offering more than housing. Thoughtfully designed landscapes, with decks oriented toward Aoraki, welcome native birds and foster ecological renewal—turning a modest development into a green, community‑inspired haven.

Greenhill Lodge Masterplan

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The Greenhill Lodge masterplan creates a welcoming retreat where gardens, pathways and views flow together with the surrounding landscape. It brings together planting, architecture and outdoor spaces to offer guests a richer connection with nature while enhancing the lodge’s character and sense of place.

Kiwi Ranger Programme New Zealand

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Kiwi Ranger is a hands-on education programme designed by WildLab to connect tamariki and their whānau with the natural world through playful, site-specific activities. From tasting honeydew to sculpting driftwood and exploring barefoot, each location offers a unique, sensory experience. The programme ran at 16 sites and was the nationwide pilot for DOC's Kiwi Guardians initiative.

Matakana Coast Tracks and Trails Strategy

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The Matakana Coast Tracks and Trails Strategy provides a roadmap for how the community can channel its energy and commitment into creating a truly connected regional network. Through careful analysis and collaborative planning, the strategy sets out a vision for trails that link coast, forest, and community, strengthening both place and people.

Field Notes

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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?

Behind the Image

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This column, some years back for Wilderness Magazine, takes a look at our love of pristine wilderness photos—those calendar shots with no people, no huts, no mess. But behind every image is someone swatting sandflies, hauling gear, and eating tuna from a foil pouch. Maybe it’s time we showed that too

Forever Wild

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This recent column reflects on how moments in wild places shape who we are. It traces the history of New Zealand’s protected lands and how they came to be, while noting the pressures they face today. It asks us to consider the shared responsibility we all have for ensuring these places remain fully protected both now and into the future.

Social Natures

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How do landscapes and people shape each other? From stone walls built after forests were cleared, to regenerating bush reclaiming old farmland, it reveals how places are formed through work, memory, and material. Rather than viewing nature and architecture as separate, it shows them as deeply entwined—built from shared histories, changing relationships, and ongoing conversations.

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Our Projects

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