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Take action: Volunteering in conservation
ZEALANDIA Ecosanctuary

Take action: Volunteering in conservation

Lynn Freeman has been a volunteer at Zealandia for many years and is our most recent recipient of our Faye Schaef Award. This award is given to a volunteer who exhibits the qualities and characteristics of kindness, generosity, modesty, dedication, friendliness and approachability. She is a staunch advocate for Zealandia and wildlife and is a true asset to our community. She shares her volunteer journey below.

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I wear two Zealandia caps. One is pristine and I wear it when on official business as a night guide assistant. I’m proud to wear it. But I’m even prouder of my original, now battered, faded, sat on by a curious kākā, smacked into by a passing kārearea, pooped on, rained on (often), and snowed on (once) while feeding the takahē. It tells my story better than I can in words.

Watching two people intently recording the bands of incoming and outgoing kākā at the upper dam feeders around 16 years ago, changed the course of my life. We got to talking, in between form filling. They were taking part in a monthly kākā census. The Zealandia population was still quite small then, and closely monitored. Judi and Linton (now my good friends) were persuasive. They needed more volunteers. As well as the census, those feeders need to be refilled and cleaned, and vollies were monitoring kākā nest boxes nestled off track around the valley and helping with banding chicks.

That chance meeting led to a happy obsession with these gregarious, characterful manu. I’ve watched over generations of kākā from egg to fledgling to parent. Occasionally, from conception to egg to fledgling to parent.

You both give and receive as a volunteer. You receive far more than you give.

Zealandia is a sanctuary not just to the flora and fauna within the fence, but also to its 500 volunteers. I may enter through the double gates angry or sad but never leave it that way. We all need a happy place, especially now.

Not every volunteering gig has this as an added benefit. It’s no doubt why we are over-subscribed now with people wanting to volunteer at Zealandia.

But as a volunteer, wherever you land, you will become part of a family. You have a shared purpose. You work together during good times and bad.

It’s a commitment, volunteering. Like any commitment, you need to really think about it before signing up. New Zealand is particularly reliant on its volunteer ‘workforce’. Many places and organisations, like Zealandia, simply couldn’t operate without their dedicated volunteers.

If you’ve read this far, it sounds like the time might be right for you. Here’s the most important advice that I can share. Go in search of a volunteering role that will light your fire. Don’t sign up for something that you feel you should do. That’s unlikely to last. When you find the right opportunity, just be clear about what’s expected, especially the skills and the time involved. You can be time-poor and still volunteer. If you are time-poor, fitting in some volunteering might be just the ticket. It can be much needed balance to a busy life.

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