18/08/2026
Good to see the mahi of the Whanganui Kūaka Collective recognised! ( The Duncan Pavilion has been proud to host their events)
Champions of kū aka honoured with award
Collective links communities along an 11,000km flyway
Noam Mā nuka Lazarus
In a political climate that makes it more important than ever for researchers to be connecting with diverse publics, this collective demonstrates exactly how this can be done with integrity and incredible generosity. Dr Amanda Thomas
Three years of connecting communities from Alaska to Aotearoa for bird conservation have earned a Whanganui group a major geography award.
Kū aka Collective has won the New Zealand Geographical Society’s (NZGS) 2026 Award for collaborative research involving geographers.
The group formed around a shared vision: raising community awareness about a tiny but relentless shorebird at the Whanganui estuary.
The kūaka, bar-tailed godwit, makes the longest known non-stop flight of any bird.
Annually in September, it arrives after a migration of more than 11,000km along the East AsianAustralasian Flyway (EAAF). It returns to the Northern Hemisphere from early March.
The EAAF, a major global bird migration route, stretches from Alaska and Siberia through Asia to Australia and Aotearoa and is home to more than 50 million migratory water birds from 250-plus populations.
The Kūaka Collective provides events and education to engage Whanganui communities in protecting the kūaka population.
Sarjeant Gallery curator and Kūaka Collective member Cecelia Kumeroa said the award validated their hard work and reflected national support for the local birding community.
The Whanganui uri (descendants) includes Kumeroa, senior environmental studies lecturer Dr Billy van Uitregt, writer Tania Te Huna and Angutekaraq Estelle Thomson, president of the Native Village of Paimiut Traditional Council in Alaska.
They use art, storytelling and science to amplify the work of Paul Gibson, a Whanganui author and renowned bird photographer.
Gibson documented the life and habits of AJD — a male kūaka who has returned to Whanganui since at least 2008 — named after his threeletter alphanumeric tracking tag.
“When he lands and is spotted, Paul literally goes out every day to observe his behaviours. So it’s that kind of commitment over months that actually establishes that knowledge about the bird.”
Kumeroa bought one of Gibson’s first books years before she met him, she said.
“That was lovely, to make that connection . . . beautiful photography, and through his careful kaitiakitanga of watching these birds, observing them, getting to know their behaviours and their maramataka, he shared this gift with everybody.
“He put out that book and, through that book, we started to garner a lot of knowledge.
“These birds are heavily dependent on us keeping these environments pristine for them to be able to make their journeys.”
The group was nominated for the award by Dr Amanda Thomas and will receive it at the NZGS conference in Palmerston North in December.
In a letter announcing its selection, NZGS said the group’s work was exemplary in two ways:
Its success in forming global connections to feed knowledge and science.
Its production of a “diverse range of research outputs”.
These included waiata, academic presentations, bus shelter artworks, a mural at Whanganui Sailing Club, a short documentary and a children’s book.
“In a political climate that makes it more important than ever for researchers to be connecting with diverse publics, this collective demonstrates exactly how this can be done with integrity and incredible generosity,” it said.
The collective said kūaka faced mounting pressure from the loss of feeding habitat along the EAAF route, and the uncertain impacts of climate change and avian influenza (bird flu).
Its relationships across the East Asian-Australasian Flyway began with a trip to Alaska in 2023, where ties were forged with the Paimiut Yup’ik community at the kūaka departure point.
A 10-day wānanga, attended by Australian First Nations representatives, was held in Whanganui in March 2024.
The collective’s network has since expanded to include Canada, South Korea, China and Pacific collaborators.
It has presented its work at international forums in Beijing, Norway and the United States.
At a Wellington conference in February, it contributed to setting standards for indigenous leadership in cryospheric research, the study of Earth’s glaciers, ice sheets and other frozen water environments.
