Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa,

here we are with my final update for 2021 - an extraordinary year for many reasons, not just the pandemic.

Despite the inevitable disruptions caused by Covid and the long lockdowns in some parts of the country, members are busier than ever and our profession, in my view, ends the year in very good heart. The Institute has also had a stellar year - the new executive committee is fully up and running and working hard to make a real difference for our members. I’m very proud of the mahi done this year by the Institute team. There is a great deal to celebrate.

2022 NZILA Firth Conference 
We’ve issued our ‘Save the Date’ notice. The 2022 NZILA Firth Conference will be at the Cordis Hotel in Auckland, 11-13 October. As we celebrate our 50th birthday next year, the conference theme “Ka mua, Ka muri (walking backwards into the future)” will guide us to turn our heads to the past to help inform the future of landscape architecture in Aotearoa. 

The programme will reflect on how the profession has evolved over the past 50 years, while also delving into the future challenges and opportunities ahead. Further detail about the programme and speakers will be announced in January, however we are delighted that we will be hearing from many leaders in their field including:

Dame Anne Salmond - anthropologist and environmentalist, University of Auckland;
Prof Richard Weller - Co-executive director of The Ian L. McHarg Center for Urbanism and Ecology at the University of Pennsylvania;
Judge David Kirkpatrick - Head of the New Zealand Environment Court;
Kotchakorn Voraakhom - founder of Landprocess, Porous City Network, and Kounkuey Design Initiative, Thailand.

You can find out more about the conference here.

Resene New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architecture Awards 2022
Entries are now open for the Resene New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architecture Awards 2022.  We are very proud of our awards programme which provides members and the Institute an opportunity to celebrate and reward excellence.  Please refer to the Call for Entries document for all the information you need to know about entering the 2022 awards. Entries will close on 28 January and the awards will be announced on Thursday, 13 October 2022 at the Awards Gala Dinner at the Cordis Hotel in Auckland. You can see more information here.

Te Tangi a te Manu: Aotearoa New Zealand Landscape Assessment Guidelines 
The guidelines have been finalised and will be published in the new year. This has been a huge commitment by Gavin Lister, Rachel de Lambert, Alan Titchener and the entire profession will benefit from this work. 

Registration
Congratulations to the 12 members who successfully passed the 2021 NZILA Registration interview and are now Registered Members of the Institute.

Huge thanks to John Potter (Registration Panel Chair), Martha Dravitzki (Deputy Panel Chair) and the 2021 Panelists: Helen Baggaley, Mark Brown, Melissa Davis, Bridget Gilbert, Lisa Jack, Rebecca Jerram, Tessa Macphail, Dan Males, Haylea Muir, Peter Whiting, Yoko Tanaka.