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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Pyramid Valley Vineyard Masterplan

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A regenerative landscape design that weaves water, planting, and visitor‑experience systems. It expands wetland networks to craft a "breathing" landscape that enriches terroir, storytelling and nurtures wine-making heritage.

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.

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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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

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?

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.

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.

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Our Projects

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