Talking Taiao

Behind every garden is a person, a journey and a reason for growing. In this episode, Sophie talks with two of our Taranaki Sustainable Trails garden hosts Mary Mattock of Bluebells and Beetroot and Emma Boyd of Wild Table. Together they share their journey to becoming hosts, the lessons the whenua has taught them, plus the practical skills and sustainable gardening tips they’re sharing with visitors. A kōrero about growing, learning and finding ways to live more lightly with te taiao. Find out more about the sustainable trails at www.sustainabletrails.org.nz 🌿🌱🪏

What happens when a lifelong passion for te taiao becomes a career in waste minimisation, sustainability and environmental science? This week Sophie chats with Taranaki environmental champion Kimberly Hope, a trustee of Sustainable Taranaki. Kimberly shares her journey from a deep-rooted love of the environment to working in local government and consultancy, the lessons she’s learned about creating real change in our communities, and what inspired her to join the board of Sustainable Taranaki. We’ll also dig into some of the success stories and surprising moments from her mahi.

Carl has been teaching horticulture for five years at WITT. He is looking back on his journey, all the way from Australia to the beautiful Taranaki soil! Dig in this episode to learn about the different Horticulture programmes at WITT, but also why (and how) assessing your soil is key in growing food and all plants! Carl will be running a workshop during the 2026 Sustainable Trails: "Soil Health: Know What You Need" on Saturday 7 November. Visit WITT's website to learn more about the Horticulture programmes and www.sustainabletrails.org.nz to book your spot at Carl's workshop!

This week Sophie chats with Sustainable Coastlines co-founder Sam Judd ahead of the Hirepool Big Clean Taranaki, happening across the region from 14–20 September. Sam has spent years bringing people together to tackle plastic pollution and care for our coastlines, from community clean-ups here in Aotearoa to working internationally on solutions to marine litter. Together, Sophie and Sam explore why getting people out onto the whenua and moana can create genuine behaviour change, build stronger communities and help people see themselves as kaitiaki of the places they love. Register your group here: https://app.sustainablecoastlines.org/big-clean-taranaki ♻️🤲🌊

Co-hosts Sophie and Elric are looking back on a LOT of Talking Taiao episodes! From gardening to waste, transport to conservation, and much more, they are sharing their experience of meeting and discussing with our community doing some good in Taranaki! Explore all our previous episodes on www.artmedia.org.nz/programme/talkingtaiao and on www.sustainabletaranaki.org.nz/talking-taiao-sustainable-podcast-in-taranaki 💯👀🔙🥳