Scaling Up Conservation in the Southern Lakes (EP32 with Paul Kavanagh, Southern Lakes Sanctuary)

The Queenstown Lakes District is one of the most spectacular places on Earth - a picturesque landscape of mountains, lakes, and remote valleys where nature still feels wild.

But beneath the beauty lies a conservation challenge: around 40 native species in the region are threatened or at risk of extinction.

For decades, local communities have stepped up to protect these landscapes and wildlife, powered by volunteers putting in the hard yards. Now, Southern Lakes Sanctuary is helping to take that effort to the next level, supporting the mahi of six long-running conservation groups representing nearly 100 projects, landowners, businesses and hundreds of volunteers across 198,000 hectares, with plans to scale to 850,000HA over time.

In this episode, CEO Paul Kavanagh pulls back the curtain on what happens when communities get the ba ...