23-06-2025
Kids And Olympians Celebrate Olympic Day Planting Over 1000 Trees
Olympians past and present today joined forces with Brookby School children to plant native trees in aid of the Papakura Stream Restoration Project for Olympic Day.
Along with a group from Conservation Volunteers New Zealand, 1375 trees were planted along the Papakura Stream's banks, aiming to improve water quality, biodiversity, and ecological resilience in the area.
Read more on the Papakura Stream Restoration Project here:
The tree planting initiative was part of the International Olympic Committee's Olympic Day 'Let's Move' campaign.
The 'Let's Move' campaign highlights themes of'Move', 'Learn', and 'Discover' and aims to inspire young people to be active, explore new ideas, and connect with nature.
Today's planting was the brainchild of the New Zealand Olympians Commission. Commission Chair, Chantal Brunner, said events like today's tree planting helped connect Olympians with communities and bring to life the themes of 'Let's Move'.
'Our goal is to inspire young people and share our stories. Sport is a powerful force for good, not just on the field, but in our schools, our neighbourhoods and our environment,' said Brunner.
'Adding asustainability element to our Olympic Day celebrations is a way to give back to the places where we move, train, and grow. Today has been about protecting our environment and creating a legacy for future generations,' she said.
Two-time Olympian, Olympic Ambassador and Tokyo 2020 bronze medalist, Dylan Schmidt opened the morning by sharing the highs and lows of chasing his Olympic dream.
'I've really enjoyed sharing my story at schools across the country as part of the Olympic Ambassador Programme. It's been awesome to come back to where I spent a lot of time growing up, connect with the kids and get stuck into some tree planting to make a tangible difference in the area,' said Schmidt.
Three-time Olympian and Rio 2016 silver medalist, Molly Meech, who is completing her Masters of Sustainable Development Goals – Environmental Sustainability, said it was heart-warming to see the kids eager to be out planting trees and helping in their local environment.
'Sailing is a sport so connected to the environment and nature so to be out here today and part of this awesome initiative has been really special. I was a little bit rusty [with the tree planting] at first, but we soon got into the swing of it - the kids in our group did a great job, we had to request more trees to plant so that's always a good sign!"
The Olympians and school kids were ably guided by a group from Conservation Volunteers New Zealand who have been working with local farmers and landowners since 2021 to restore the health of the Papakura Stream.
Conservation Volunteers New Zealand's Siobhan O'Grady said while this is an 'extremely long-term project,' days like today help spread the message of conservation in the community.
'It's great to have local school kids involved in a project that's happening right here in their backyard,' she said.
'We loved having the Olympians along to get stuck into the mahi and shine a light on the work we're doing here - once our nursey gets up and running, we're hopeful of planting 50,000 trees a year to continue to improve the ecosystem of the Papakura Stream.'
Olympic Day:
Olympic Day is a global movement that unites people of all ages and backgrounds through the power of sport. On June 23, millions of people around the world take part in activities that reflect the Olympic Values of Excellence, Friendship, and Respect.
In recent years the International Olympic Committee has introduced the 'Let's Move' campaign, a global movement born from Olympic Day that encourages people to move more, every day. 'Let's Move' is about creating meaningful impact in people's daily lives through three key themes:Move, Learn, and Discover.
Moveencourages people to be active in ways that are fun and accessible, whether it's running, jumping, dancing, or planting trees.
Learnis about understanding the Olympic Values and how they can guide people to be better teammates and active members in their communities.
Discoverinvites people to explore new sports, new ideas and new ways to connect with others and with nature.
