Do you know an Outdoor Access Champion?
Herenga ā Nuku Aotearoa, the Outdoor Access Commission, is seeking nominations of people and groups who champion public access to the outdoors. Nominations are open until 3 November 2025.
The Outdoor Access Champion Awards have been running since 2013. They recognise those who have made significant and lasting contributions to public access to the outdoors in New Zealand, whether through securing new legal access, championing public rights of access, trail building, or contributing to an understanding of access rights and responsibilities.
These awards are New Zealand’s way of thanking some of the wonderful people who have helped open the great outdoors to the public.
We encourage people to think about their local champions — individuals and groups — and put forward a nomination for consideration. Nominations for 2026 are open until 3 November 2025. Our Board will select and announce the successful nominees in November 2025, and we will present the awards in 2026.
Guide for making nominations (PDF handout)
The 2025 award recipients were:
- Arthur Blondell, a dedicated community volunteer, who spent 12 years building and maintaining the 7km River Track, commonly called Arthur’s Track.
- Steve Gwilliam, who has helped design and construct more than 20 projects, comprising more than 130km of Northland’s trail network.
For more information or to answer any questions, contact us at partners@herengaanuku.govt.nz or 04 815 8513.