Restoring land health – Hunterville, NZ

Ata Regenerative and Mulloon Institute are partnering to help New Zealand farmers and community organisations strengthen ecological function, restore water cycles, and build healthier, more resilient landscapes. While landscape health is a catchment-wide challenge, farmers are the key agents of change.

Public Meeting

Date: Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Time: 7:00pm
Location: Argyle Hotel, Hunterville

A discussion for farmers and the wider community to understand the current state of our landscapes and explore how we can collectively respond. Topics include:

• Reductions in biodiversity and what this means for land and communities
• Declines in water quality and natural fertility
• Increasing vulnerability of land to storms, droughts, and climate variability
• Rising weed and soil erosion, and the impacts on productivity and input costs
• How land and livestock management practices contribute to these challenges
• Practical approaches at farm and community level to improve landscape health
• Increasing weed infestation and soil erosion

Workshop & Field Day (Invitation-Only)

Date: Thursday, 21 May 2026
Time: 8:30am
Location: Rathmoy Farm, Hunterville

A hands-on learning experience for farmers and organisations ready to put solutions into practice on their properties. Participants will:

• Explore landscape rehydration as a tool for restoring ecological function
• Learn to read landforms, flows, and infiltration patterns
• Assess and monitor hydrological health with practical field observations
• Understand basic hydrology calculations for planning rehydration works
• Construct and observe simple rehydration structures (e.g., leaky weirs)
• Learn land and livestock management practices that support rehydration, including perennial pastures, planned grazing, vegetation design, and soil-building systems

Why It Matters

Monitoring across New Zealand shows increasing bare soil, declining water cycles, reduced resilience to climate challenges, and pressure on productivity due to increasing inputs that damage land health. In the Rangitīkei region, challenges include:

• Water quality decline and sedimentation
• Hill country erosion and rapid runoff
• Loss of biodiversity and natural fertility

By rehydrating landscapes and adopting regenerative design, we can restore ecological function, improve water storage, stabilise soils, and support both productive and resilient land.

Hosted By

Ata Regenerative & Mulloon Institute
Stay tuned for further details and resources as we approach the events.

About the Organisations

Ata Regenerative (New Zealand)

Ata Regenerative is Aotearoa’s leading provider of regenerative farm system design, Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV), and holistic management training. Ata introduced EOV to New Zealand and monitors over 245 farms across 500,000 hectares, helping farmers measure and improve ecological health using Savory Institute‑aligned methodologies.
Ata works with living systems design, supporting transitions to regenerative, resilient farming focused on soil health, water cycling, and long‑term farm wellbeing.

Mulloon Institute (Australia)

Mulloon Institute is a globally recognised, not‑for‑profit research and education organisation specialising in landscape restoration and rehydration. Established in 2011, Mulloon is known internationally for demonstrating sustainable agriculture and land‑repair methods that rebuild natural function and strengthen resilience to climatic extremes.
Their flagship Mulloon Rehydration Initiative is one of Australia’s leading catchment‑scale restoration projects, restoring hydrology, improving water quality, and boosting productivity across 23+ properties.

Who Should Attend

Farmers • Catchment Groups • Rural Professionals • Council & Government Staff • Environmental Organisations • Community Groups

Visit the Ata events page for full details and registration.

ATA EVENTS