This was an all day event outlining the way forward for planning and management of a range of activities including protecting the special environment of the Hauraki Gulf . The tool to do this is the Spatial plan which is to be called Sea Change and this was launched this evening by Nick Smith.
Spatial plans have been used overseas and their objective is to involve all stakeholders in the planning and management of important areas rather than leaving that entirely to market forces.
At the end of the Forum it was time for the Jim Holdaway awards for leadership which went to
Dr Rochelle Constantine for her advocacy for the Hauraki Gulf Brydes whale population.
Keith Woodley for encouraging awareness of the shorebirds of the Firth of Thames and the environment on which they depend.
Chris Gaskin for his advocacy for seabirds and conservation and notably the recent research project that confirmed the breeding place of the NZ storm petrel
Photos and more to follow.....................