Congratulations to Maurice Sinclair, our May Tidy Kiwi Volunteer of the Month

Congratulations to Maurice Sinclair, our Tidy Kiwi Volunteer of the Month for May.

Maurice is a cornerstone of the Te Ararata Stream Team, a group of volunteers who look after the Tararata Stream in central Mangere, Auckland. The group establishes native plants on the banks, involves local youth with ecological monitoring of the stream, provides habitat for native fish and pulls out litter. Check out their work here.

Maurice has been a champion of the stream for over 15 years. He’s out almost daily and participates and organises plantings, clean ups and is an expert at gathering up the notorious moth plant pods – an invasive pest plant which wreaks havoc on the local ecology.

Last year he collected a whopping 4,087 pods, taking out first place in the local council competition and making a massive difference to the local ecology. He’s out so often that he recently was the first to discover a stolen car in the river, still running just minutes after it had been dumped, arranging with Police to get it removed quickly to minimise the environmental impact.

Nominator Pragna says he’s the “eyes and ears of the stream ecology” in the area and that the team “are lucky to have him” – we agree he’s done a huge amount for this vital stream and his community, and we’re pleased to award him as May’s Tidy Kiwi Volunteer of the Month.

Whakamihi  – congratulations! As this month’s Tidy Kiwi Volunteer of the Month, Maurice will receive a Keep New Zealand Beautiful merchandise pack and a Resene paint voucher to help him continue his beautification efforts, as well as being entered into this year’s Beautiful Awards. 

Know someone keeping New Zealand beautiful? Simply nominate them to become a Tidy Kiwi Volunteer of the Month here.