Recreation Aotearoa Green Pavlova 2026

Recreation Aotearoa Green Pavlova 2026

Conference, News, Recreation Aotearoa

What a week in Aotearoa! 🌿

Otium Managing Director Kate Maddock travelled to New Zealand to join Otium NZ Director Jason Merrett at Green Pavlova 2026 — New Zealand’s premier conference for parks, play, and open spaces.

A huge congratulations to Recreation Aotearoa | Te Whai Oranga on an outstanding event centred on the theme He Taiao, He Tāngata, He Oranga | Our Places, Our People, Our Future.

Highlights for the Otium team:

✅ Presenting a session on Cost vs Impact featuring a real case study on how early, smart decision-making turns cost pressures into better design, partnerships, and outcomes.

✅ Kate participating along with PLA President Kristin Davies, Mark Bowater from Sport New Zealand, Geoff Canham from Thrive Spaces and Places and Sarah Murray from Recreation Aotearoa, on an international panel exploring the future of accessible, high-quality public space.

✅ Plenty of great conversations — old connections rekindled and new ones made.

Events like this remind us why the work we do in parks and public spaces matters so much. 💚

Recreation Aotearoa Leaders’ Summit

Recreation Aotearoa Leaders’ Summit

Conference, Recreation Aotearoa

Congratulations to Recreation Aotearoa | Te Whai Oranga on hosting the inaugural Recreation Leaders’ Summit in Christchurch last week!

We were very pleased to be involved as sponsor of the Recreation Awards Dinner and congratulate all the award winners and finalists. It was a fantastic event and a fitting way to celebrate with our industry colleagues.

Our biggest takeaway from the conference was how lucky we are to have so many amazing people who care deeply about the spaces and experiences that strengthen our communities.