Our Vision

Project Island Song's vision is the ecological restoration of the pest-free islands of Ipipiri in the eastern Bay of Islands to create an archipelago of sanctuaries that celebrates the native subtropical habitat, lush with vegetation and alive with birdsong.

Project Island Song is a partnership between community conservation group the Guardians of the Bay of Islands, local Rawhiti hapu (Ngati Kuta and Patukeha) and the Department of Conservation.

Thanks to this incredible partnership the islands of Ipipiri are beginning to sing once again after many years of silence.

New Zealand’s native wildlife is under threat. Humans created that threat. It is up to us to help redress the balance and support natural regeneration.

Our Partnership

Project Island Song is a unique partnership between community group the Guardians of the Bay of Islands, Te Rawhiti hapū (Ngati Kuta and Patukeha) and the Department of Conservation. This partnership is dedicated to restoring ecological balance to the islands, drawing together the energy, talent and culture of local people to bring the birdsong back to Ipipiri, note by note.

Hapu profile

Ngati Kuta and Patukeha ki Te Rawhiti are the Kaitiaki, or caretakers, of Ipipiri, the eastern Bay of Islands, for Ngapuhi.

We are centred at Te Rawhiti and fully support the Guardians of the Bay of Islands and their goals.

As hapu, or sub-tribes, of Ngapuhi, Ngati Kuta and Patukeha have lived in, and around, the Bay of Islands for a thousand years and have whakapapa (genealogies) and oral history to remember this millennium.

Our Supporters

Project Island Song is reliant on funders and sponsors to keep us on the path to achieving our vision. Thank you to all those who have contributed towards Project Island Song in various ways, including the provision of free travel for volunteers going to the islands, funding project work, sponsoring volunteer lunches on planting days and much more.

With your support we can bring the islands of Ipipiri alive again with the sound of native New Zealand birdsong.



	Department of Conservation for their commitment to the Project Island Song partnership. The Bay of Islands DOC office leads island biosecurity and incursion response if any pests turn up on the islands, and provides logistical support for planting. DOC also supports our work through their Community Conservation Fund.

	Barefoot Sailing Adventures for supporting volunteer transport to the islands

	Bay of Islands Water Taxi for providing transport to the islands for our volunteers

	The Chenery Memorial Trust for supporting our volunteering and species monitoring programmes

	Copthorne Hotel and Resort Bay of Islands for supporting the island restoration, including species translocations and tree planting

	Dave Hesketh Plumbing Ltd, for supporting the species monitoring programme

	Explore Group, for providing transport to the islands for our volunteers and bird releases, and the Floating Classroom programme

	Foundation North for supporting a Project Coordinator to develop and resource a volunteer programme, raise awareness of the project with community involvement and advocacy, and promoting the ecological restoration of the islands.

	Fullers GreatSights Bay of Islands for their annual contribution of vessels and crew for the Project Island Song planting days and bird releases, a per head contribution to an island walking tour as well as the use of their facilities for meetings.

	Joyce Fisher Charitable Trust for providing the funds for us to run our Environmental Expeditions and Floating Classroom programmes, which will enable us to continue to teach and engage young people in conservation.

	Lottery Environment and Heritage Grant, for providing the funding to implement our Translocation Action Plan that prioritises species to be returned to the islands.

	Northland Regional Council for their ongoing contribution to the protection of the islands, by funding and providing technical support for the pest management of the mainland buffer zone.

	WWF - New Zealand as the Tindall Foundation's Environmental Donation Manager for the Community Conservation Fund, which supports our wētāpunga reintroduction programme.

Committee


Racheal Biggins	Rod Brown	Fleur Corbett (Co-Chair)	Barb Elboz (Co-Chair)


William Fuller	Sarah Knight	Tom Lindesay	Rana Rewha

Richard Robbins	Andrea Sim (Secretary)	Blandy Witehira