Across New Zealand, farmers and rural communities are facing increasing pressure. Declining water quality, reduced biodiversity, soil erosion, and rising input costs are becoming more common — alongside greater vulnerability to both droughts and intense rainfall events.

These challenges are not isolated to individual farms. They are symptoms of wider changes in how water moves through our landscapes, how vegetation functions, and how soils retain moisture and nutrients. Addressing them requires thinking at a catchment scale, while working practically at the farm level.

A catchment-scale conversation for farmers and communities

This May, a series of events in the Rangitīkei will bring together farmers, community members, and organisations to explore practical approaches to restoring landscape function through rehydration and regenerative land management.

Organised in collaboration with the Rangitīkei Rivers Catchment Collective (RRCC), these events include a public meeting and dinner on 20 May, followed by a hands-on field day and workshop on 21 May. 

Event details

Public Meeting & Dinner (Free event)

Date: Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Time: 6:00 pm
Location: Argyle Hotel, Hunterville (venue may change depending on numbers)

The public meeting will focus on raising awareness of current catchment-wide challenges — including:

• Reductions in biodiversity and what this means for land and communities
• Declines in water quality and natural fertility
• Increasing vulnerability of land to storms, droughts, and climate variability
• Rising weed and soil erosion, and the impacts on productivity and input costs
• How land and livestock management practices contribute to these challenges
• Practical approaches at farm and community level to improve landscape health
• Increasing weed infestation and soil erosion

Dinner is provided at no cost.

This evening provides a rare opportunity and space for discussion about practical actions at both farm and community levels where we’ll explore the state of our landscapes and how farmers and communities can respond collectively. 

Guest Speakers

Speakers will include representatives from Mulloon Institute and Ata Regenerative, with an additional speaker to be announced.

Carolyn Hall – CEO Mulloon Insistute

Carolyn Hall, BSc, M Sus Dev, GAICD, EIANZ, leads the globally recognised Mulloon Institute as CEO, pioneering landscape rehydration that transforms degraded ecosystems into thriving, climate-resilient environments.

Drawing on three decades of expertise in biodiversity and habitat restoration, Carolyn builds the trusted partnerships essential for tackling complex environmental challenges. Her collaborative approach has established the Mulloon Institute as a world leader in repairing landscapes and strengthening resilience across rural and First Nations communities. 

Driven by an unwavering belief that sustainable agriculture, environmental restoration and respect for Country and culture can coexist, Carolyn champions solutions that create a shared future where both landscapes and communities flourish.

Dr Hugh Jellie – Founder of Āta Regenerative

Dr Hugh Jellie is the Founder and Chief Executive of Āta, with a background in veterinary science and over two decades of global experience in agriculture. His work is driven by a commitment to addressing the environmental and social impacts of industrialised farming and supporting more resilient, regenerative systems.

Through extensive research and firsthand experience across farming regions worldwide, Hugh focuses on helping New Zealand farmers and organisations adopt regenerative approaches that strengthen ecological health, support communities, and enable the production of high-quality food.

Workshop & Field Day (Limited Numbers)

Date: Thursday, 21 May 2026
Time: 8:30am
Location: Rathmoy Farm, Hunterville

The field day and workshop will offer farmers and organisations hands-on guidance, with practical demonstrations covering landscape rehydration, water retention and infiltration, reading landforms and flows, and regenerative land management practices. 

Participants will gain skills and insights to plan and implement restoration projects on their own properties, contributing to healthier, more resilient landscapes across the catchment.

This hands-on day held at the beautiful Rathmoy Farm is designed for farmers and organisations wanting practical guidance on implementing landscape rehydration and regenerative land management approaches.

What you’ll learn at the workshop

Participants will gain practical insight into:

• Understanding landscape rehydration as a pathway to restoration
• Reading landforms, flows, and infiltration patterns
• Assessing hydrological health in the field
• Basic hydrology considerations for planning rehydration works
• Farming practices that support water cycling and soil health
• Practical steps to begin rehydration projects on-farm

Secure your spot for the workshop and field day by contacting sian@rrcc.co.nz or call 0272101186.

Why landscape rehydration matters

Landscape rehydration focuses on slowing, spreading, and storing water in the landscape. Work we have conducted in NZ reveals our soils are not only drying out but losing the capacity to infiltrate and retain water – this is reversible through land management and design. By improving infiltration and reducing runoff, farms can increase soil moisture, improve pasture growth, stabilise soils, and enhance resilience to both dry and wet conditions. Over time, these changes can also support biodiversity, improve water quality, and reduce reliance on external inputs.

Monitoring across New Zealand shows:

• Reducing biodiversity
• Declining water quality
• Reduced resilience to climate challenges
• Increasing reliance on inputs
• Loss of natural fertility
• Increasing weed pressure
• Ongoing soil erosion

These trends are interconnected  and largely influenced by how land and livestock are managed.

Designing for landscape recovery

The challenges seen across the Rangitīkei are well understood — declining water cycles, soil degradation, erosion, and reduced ecological function. The next step is not only to identify these issues, but to actively design for their remediation.

Landscape rehydration is fundamentally a design-based approach. It considers what a healthy, functioning landscape should look like, and then works backwards to create the conditions that allow that system to re-establish itself.

This includes shaping how water moves through the landscape, how vegetation is established and managed, and how land use patterns support infiltration, soil health, and ecological recovery.

Rather than treating symptoms in isolation, this approach focuses on restoring function — rebuilding the landscape so that water, soil, plants, and livestock interact in ways that strengthen resilience over time.

From individual farms to catchment-wide impact

While these outcomes benefit individual farms, the greatest impact occurs when efforts are coordinated across catchments. Small changes in multiple locations can collectively improve water cycling, reduce sediment loss, and strengthen landscape health at scale.

These events provide an opportunity to understand the challenges, learn from practical experience, and explore how farmers and communities can work together to build more resilient landscapes for the future.

About the organisations

Ata Regenerative (New Zealand)
Ata Regenerative works with farmers and rural organisations to support regenerative farm system design, ecological monitoring, and land management training. Their work focuses on improving soil health, strengthening water cycles, and supporting long-term farm resilience. Ata also delivers Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV) monitoring across farms in New Zealand to help measure ecological health over time.

Mulloon Institute (Australia)
Mulloon Institute is an Australian not-for-profit organisation focused on landscape restoration and rehydration. Established in 2011, the institute undertakes research, education, and on-ground projects aimed at improving water cycling, soil function, and landscape resilience. Their work includes catchment-scale rehydration initiatives designed to support both environmental outcomes and productive agriculture.

Who should attend

This series of events is designed for anyone with a direct interest in the health and resilience of rural landscapes.

• Farmers: Gain practical insights and hands-on techniques to improve water retention, soil health, and pasture productivity on your own property.
• Catchment Groups: Learn how coordinated actions across farms and communities can strengthen water cycling, reduce erosion, and improve ecological function at a catchment scale.
• Rural Professionals: Agronomists, farm consultants, and advisors can explore innovative approaches to support clients and local landscapes.
• Council & Government Staff: Understand on-the-ground challenges and solutions to help inform planning, policy, and support for sustainable land management.
• Environmental Organisations: Discover practical methods for restoring ecosystems, improving biodiversity, and enhancing resilience in rural catchments.
• Community Groups: Engage with initiatives that build awareness, foster collaboration, and strengthen the connection between communities and the landscapes they rely on.

Attendees will leave with a better understanding of both the challenges facing the Rangitīkei catchment and the practical steps that can be taken locally to restore landscape function and resilience.

Join the conversation and register your interest

Join the conversation, hear from global leaders in landscape rehydration, and explore practical solutions for healthier, more resilient landscapes.

Places for the field day are limited, and strong interest is expected from across the Rangitīkei catchment.

• RSVP for the public meeting and dinner here.
• Secure your spot for the workshop and field day by contacting sian@rrcc.co.nz or call 0272101186.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Opportunity to engage with Mulloon Institute (NZ visit – May 2026)

As part of the Mulloon Institute’s visit to New Zealand during the week of 18 May, there is a unique opportunity for organisations who wish to better understand our joint approach to landscape rehydration and catchment-scale restoration to meet with us.

Organisations who are interested in understanding how this approach to landscape rehydration and catchment-scale restoration could benefit their own work, region, or operations are invited to get in touch to arrange a conversation.

📩 Contact: hugh@ata.land