Who is Stephie Claridge?
Stephie is the 17-year old who dreamed up and is running this project.
Stephie Claridge has a passion for native flora and fauna, especially New Zealand's amazing birds. She has a strong sense of community and a deep belief that one person can make a difference.
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Stephie began her community leadership journey in Guides and Rangers, recently having completed her Queen's Guide award, the highest youth award in GirlGuiding New Zealand. While a Ranger, she trained as a leader and has been helping with Devonport Brownies for over a year. She has been part of the Devonport and Hauraki Guides leadership team for three months and has been involved with helping to run Guide camps for the last two years. She loves sharing her passion for the outdoors and our native bush and birds with the Guides.
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So what are her environmental credentials? As a 12 year old Guide she attended her first tree planting day - the first of many - with the Kaipatiki Project. Increasingly fascinated by native birds, in 2014 she learnt as much as she could about them as a trainee guide on Tiri Tiri Matangi. In 2015 she was one of two Takapuna Grammar School students who took part in MADMarines on Motutapu (a marine sustainability hui), and also completed the Project Jonah Marine Mammal Medic course.
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In April 2016, Stephie was a participant in the WWF-NZ Youth Environmental Leaders programme launched by Kaipatiki Project, which she followed up by completing their Trainee Planting Co-ordinators course. These courses gave her the skills and inspriration to develop and implement her own environmental project.
Stephie is quiet and modest; although she has put together the rest of this website, didn't know how to tell visitors who she is, so has left that to her supporters. Anna Halliwell, Projects Manager at Kaipatiki Project, says "Sometimes it is the softest voice in the room that can inspire and educate in the most memorable way. Stephie is passionate about connecting young people with their environment – we think she will be an environmental force to be reckoned with one day”. The Jutland Restoration Project is probably just the start.
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Sue Claridge
About Us
The Jutland Restoration Project aims to restore an amazing patch of coastal forest facing the city in Hauraki, Auckland.
The Jutland Restoration Project plans to return this piece of urban bush to its former glory, to encourage native birds and animals back into the reserve, and in the hope that it will become a vital stepping stone in the Wild Link Corridor from Tiri Tiri Matangi to Rangitoto. This will be done through plantings, clean-ups, weeding and pest control days, of which all but pest control will have half-day events open to the community involvement.
