Wao launches 'Better Together' 2024 summit

Beethoven’s symphonies simply wouldn’t have been the hit they were if played by just one singular violin. Women’s right to vote would have once seemed impossible, until the co-ordination of effective collaboration; the bringing together of minds. As Helen Keller put it, alone we can do so little, together we can do so much. And right now, as far as our future on this planet goes, there’s a fair bit to be done.

Enter Wao Summit 2024, the most impactful week for climate action and community growth in the Southern Lakes. The programme is now live, with five days of workshops, masterclasses, kōrero and a community festival, all centred around the theme of 'Better Together'. The summit is a chance to come together to amplify the impact of our lives and businesses on building a thriving future.

The summit is in its seventh year and will be held from October 29 until November 2 in Wānaka, Queenstown, Luggate, Hāwea and Online. Last night non-profit Wao Aotearoa officially launched this year's programme with an evening at Rhyme & Reason in Wānaka.

Over the years, the Wao Summit has hosted thought leaders and changemakers from all over the world. When it comes to transitioning towards a regenerative future, many of them have agreed on one point: meaningful change starts with community. The individual gets disheartened, the large entity moves too slowly to be relied upon. Community scale is where it’s at.

It’s with this in mind that 'Better Together' has emerged as this year’s theme. The programme has been curated by Wao Aotearoa director Monique Kelly, who says she’s excited about the swell of momentum in community action this year already.

“Better Together means we’re stepping up as a collective and putting resilience front and centre of the action, whether it be for climate, biodiversity, community, food or waste reduction.”

Ms Kelly explains that, beyond the obvious, there are a host of reasons for collective action being the most effective - reasons like diversity of perspectives, resource pooling and policy influence. This, she says, has been at the heart of the programme design.

She says she’s looking forward to getting more businesses involved and activated this year, and that they have huge potential to amplify community efforts.

“It’s about working at scale. Politics flip flop. Businesses can play such a big role, and provide consistency. Also, the directors are usually locals who have families, and they’re really concerned about climate change, biodiversity loss or waste. They’re in touch with the reality of what’s happening and integrating this into their businesses.”

Ms Kelly says this year’s summit will offer business owners a unique opportunity to revolutionise their approach and learn how to operate with greater purpose and sustainability.

“It provides an opportunity to upskill, and the support to do this. Like, for instance, what does it actually mean to do carbon accounting? We’ll hear from experts like Tim Jones from BCorp, and there’ll be three Green Drinks events to give people a chance to connect with and learn from each other.”

With the building sector being a major player in any climate action strategy, this will again be a big focus for the summit. The Better Building Day will offer a full day programme for builders, architects and other building industry professionals, focussing on innovative approaches to sustainable construction and design.

“There’ll be a lot of big picture thinking and workshops,” says Ms Kelly. “It will focus on how we’re actually building community infrastructure, designing out construction waste, energy efficient buildings, toxicity and climate-smart homes. We’ll explore different models and how they relate to our local communities.”

The summit will also dive deep into food resilience and food security, youth-focussed action, local biodiversity champions and plenty more. As well as expert insights, it offers practical takeaways; actionable strategies which can be integrated immediately. It’s full of opportunities for personal and leadership development, and chances to connect with like-minded people.

The summit delivers a wallop of inspiration, and an arsenal of tools to turn that inspiration into action. 

Summit Early Bird Passes are on sale now from www.wao.co.nz and available September 15. Grab your tickets and passes early to save 15 percent.

Or grab a multi pass or reserve your spot at one of our sessions and become a catalyst for positive transformation. The time is now.

Main image (Supplied/Wao Aotearoa/Deanna Gerlach): A Wao hui on tourism.