Why it’s so important to work as a collective
to work as a collective
The Rangitīkei Rivers Catchment Collective has over 160 paid members across 23 sub-catchment groups, representing over 220,000 ha across the Rangitīkei, Turakina, and Whangaehu rivers catchment.
Plenty has been said about harnessing the power of catchment groups. We strongly believe that working together as a community helps with supporting farmers to go beyond the bare minimum and getting ahead of society’s expectations to restore a sense of pride in the farming sector. Meeting increasing compliance requirements becomes less of a tick-box exercise and more about making a positive difference to the environment.
We encourage groups to be based around communities, whether rural halls, or river catchments, making it easier to get the whole community involved and build on existing relationships. Community is essential for catchment groups to be successful.
Each of our sub-catchment groups is member-driven, so farmers and other stakeholders collectively identify environmental values and issues specific to their catchment, then take a leadership role in addressing those challenges.
One of the key benefits of community catchment groups is that it provides a platform for farmers and others in the community to share their knowledge and experiences and further drive on-farm innovation resulting in positive environmental outcomes.
Equally important is working together as a collective voice when dealing with government and industry. Catchment groups provide a social network for farmers and can help improve mental health, especially during times of uncertainty or stress (i.e. lockdowns and recent extreme weather events).
As a collective, we are better able to access government and other funding programmes that individuals might not be able to access otherwise.
Our work wouldn’t be possible without the support from the farmers, Ministry for Primary Industries, Nga Puna Rau o Rangitikei, Beef + Lamb NZ, NZ Landcare Trust, Horizons Regional Council, ANZCO Foods, and The Wool Company.
We also work with other organisations and can point our members in the right direction for specific queries or guidance. We’ve worked with and had speakers from Nga Puna Rau o Rangitikei, MyEnviro, Beca, AgFirst NZ, and KS Agri (to name a few) to share their expertise and insights with our members. With Rangitikei Environment Group, Rangitikei Helicopters, AgDrone, and DronezUp all providing their services and support across our Environmental Restoration Projects.
Like many working to solve the problems facing our waterways, we believe planning together is more efficient for everyone, and that catchment groups are key to ensuring a coordinated approach to providing long-term solutions.
A sustainable environment requires a community effort and catchment collectives bring different communities together to help make our many environmental goals a reality.
Help us make a difference!
If you’d like to learn more about our collective and join your local sub-catchment group, we encourage you to reach out to us at admin@rrcc.co.nz.
