Conservation, community and connection came together at The Hotel Britomart in Auckland for a special networking brunch exploring how collaboration can turn shared environmental values into greater impact.
At the heart of Conservation in Action were husbands Jerad and Ike Haldan, the couple behind the Otago Peninsula Eco Restoration Alliance — The OPERA.
Together, they are helping restore native habitat on the Otago Peninsula while creating a future for conservation that combines tourism, wildlife protection and large-scale ecological restoration.
As an openly gay couple working in the sector, their story is also a reminder that LGBTQ+ leadership reaches well beyond traditionally Rainbow spaces.
For Jerad, however, the focus of the Auckland gathering was straightforward: bringing passionate people together and seeing what becomes possible when they stop working in isolation.
Conservation Through Collaboration
Jerad was joined by Andrea Egan of the United Nations Development Programme, with the brunch bringing together a small group of conservation-minded people to exchange ideas, learn about existing projects and explore opportunities to work together.
“It’s incredible to get together with a group of like-minded individuals and consider how together we can achieve even more for conservation than each of our groups would be able to achieve working alone,” Jerad said.
“There are a lot of passionate people working to achieve meaningful outcomes for a better tomorrow, and we were proud to have the opportunity to hear about some great work being done and consider how we can achieve even more together.”
That spirit of collaboration reflects Jerad and Ike’s work through The OPERA.
Formerly known as Penguin Place, the Otago Peninsula site combines wildlife conservation with an ambitious programme of native habitat restoration.
Since taking over the property, the couple have been working towards a long-term vision of restoring significant areas of the land while supporting species including the endangered hoiho, or yellow-eyed penguin.
From The Big Screen To Real-World Action
The brunch continued conversations sparked by the New Zealand premiere of Open Planet Studios’ documentary How to Live on Earth.
Presented by Benedict Cumberbatch, the film explores humanity’s relationship with nature and looks at examples of people around the world finding ways to work with the natural environment rather than against it.
The documentary is now available to watch free on YouTube, making its message accessible well beyond those who attended cinema screenings and premieres.
For Jerad, the message connects naturally with Conservation in Action.
“A better tomorrow starts with committed individuals working on meaningful outcomes today,” he said.
“There are a lot of passionate people endeavouring to make the world a better place now and for future generations. But the reality is that we can achieve even more when we combine our strengths than we could on our own.”
LGBTQ+ Leadership Beyond Rainbow Spaces
Jerad and Ike’s conservation work also offers a broader example of LGBTQ+ visibility.
Queer leadership does not only exist within Pride organisations, advocacy groups or explicitly LGBTQ+ businesses.
It exists in science, conservation, tourism, education, community building and countless other sectors where Rainbow people are shaping the future alongside everyone else.
For Jerad and Ike, being part of the LGBTQ+ community is one aspect of who they are.
Their work through The OPERA is ultimately about something much larger: protecting ecosystems, restoring land and leaving something healthier for the generations that follow.
That visibility matters precisely because it does not need to be the sole focus.
It shows LGBTQ+ people participating fully in conversations about the biggest challenges facing society.
Building A Better Tomorrow Together
Jerad says gatherings such as Conservation in Action can provide the foundations for relationships that extend far beyond a single morning.
“Gatherings like we held today provide us a pathway to collaboration and an opportunity to amplify our shared outcomes,” he said.
That might mean sharing knowledge, combining resources, introducing organisations to new partners or simply discovering that somebody else is working on the same problem from a different direction.
The brunch demonstrated that networking can be far more than exchanging names and business cards.
Done well, it can connect people, organisations and ideas capable of creating tangible change.
For Jerad and Ike, that belief sits at the heart of both their conservation work and their wider approach to community.
A better tomorrow is rarely built alone.
