Sian wins Forest and Bird award
A strong commitment to young people and a love for the environment has paid off for young conservationist Sian Moffitt who was recently awarded the Forest and Bird Te Kaiarahi Rangatahi o te Taiao youth award.
Sian was nominated for the award by one of her student counsellors and Wellington Youth Hub co-coordinator Grace Scott in recognition of her leadership in developing a desire to protect nature among other young New Zealanders.
The former Victoria University of Wellington student, the recipient of Forest and Bird’s undergraduate scholarship in 2016, led the formation of Forest and Bird’s Wellington Youth Hub and remains involved as a national co-ordinator with the Forest and Bird National Youth Committee.
Sian, 21, is the first female to win the award and also the oldest. Until 2019 the award was exclusively for under-18s but Sian and her group pushed to have the age limit taken up to 25 to include their entire network.
Sian started her conservation work while studying for her science degree, working to open the Wellington Youth Hub and running events to engage participants.
One of their main goals was to reach a wider age range by raising the age limit from 18 to 25.
Wellington Youth Hub coordinator Gracie Scott said Sian had inspired many young people in Wellington to become involved in conservation.
“She has a really strong focus on inclusivity and encouraging others to get involved and I think that’s why she’s so good at what she does,” Gracie said. “She’s reached a lot of people in the Wellington youth community, it’s pretty amazing.”
Sian says extending the age enabled the group to reach further to bring in more university students and other young people with jobs as well. She says it’s a great opportunity for people to reconnect with the environment and meet other like-minded people.
“There were certain obstacles involved in running events for 14 to 25-year-olds with the age groups being so diverse, but it is a great opportunity to mix the younger ones with the older and give them the chance to look up to each other and we haven’t had any issues.”
After setting up the youth hub in 2018, Sian led the planning of many events, including an evening giving more than 100 young people a chance to network with around 30 environment-related organisations and businesses.
She also organised presentations, workshops and working bees for the youth hub and has used her photography skills to publicise conservation events and issues.
“I’m a person who’s been extremely lucky with the opportunities I’ve had and so it’s just a matter of giving back those opportunities to young people because I know how much it’s changed my life,” Sian said.
“I want to be able to encourage people to become passionate for the environment, especially at a young age, because I believe there is a dramatic difference between those who have connected to nature early on compared with those who haven’t.”
Now back in Taupo¯ after she finished her studies in Wellington, Sian is the education co-ordinator for Kids Greening Taupo¯ . She has been involved with Kids Greening Taupo¯ since 2015 when she was in Year 13 at Tauhara College.
She came along with them as photographer at first but it wasn’t until she got the opportunity to be involved in a Sir Peter Blake Trust Young Environmental Leaders Forum that gave her the opportunity to spend a week in Rotorua learning about the environment that she realised that was where her future path lay.
“It made me realise that I wanted to be involved in the environment and with young people.”
Sian’s passion for nature and conservation was also sparked by her grandmother, who signed her up for Forest and Bird’s Kiwi Conservation Club for children.
Sian said she was honoured to receive the award, saying her greatest satisfaction comes from working with other young people and enabling them to grow their leadership skills and passion for nature.