Love Your Awa:
Using Storytelling to Inspire Environmental Action
Client
Love Your Awa Stream Workshop, delivered by Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust in partnership with Auckland Council Parks and supported by Friends of Oakley Creek.
The Opportunity
Community environmental programmes create powerful learning experiences, but much of their impact is limited to the people who attend on the day.
The Love Your Awa workshop brought the community together to explore their local stream, learn about freshwater ecosystems, and discover practical ways to contribute to healthier waterways. The challenge was to capture these experiences in a way that could extend the workshop’s reach and inspire ongoing community involvement.
Our Approach
Lovemedia developed a storytelling approach centred around two complementary videos, each designed to support a different community engagement goal.
Video One: Learning Through Connection
The first video featured Kate McKessar, a Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust facilitator who guided participants through the day’s activities.
Through the interview and supporting footage, the story explored how hands-on learning helps people connect with their local waterways. Participants tested water quality, discovered freshwater species living within the stream, and gained a deeper understanding of the role healthy waterways play in the wider environment.
The video was designed to communicate the value of environmental education and encourage more people to participate in future workshops.
Video Two: Empowering Community Action
The second video featured Wendy John from Friends of Oakley Creek, highlighting the vital role volunteers play in protecting and restoring local streams.
Wendy shared the story of Friends of Oakley Creek and the many ways people can get involved, from planting and restoration work to community events and environmental monitoring.
The video focused on building awareness of local volunteer opportunities and demonstrating how individual actions can contribute to meaningful environmental outcomes.
Outcomes
Together, the two videos created, alongside five short 30 to 60 second social videos, created a suite of storytelling assets that can be used to:
• Promote future Love Your Awa workshops
• Increase awareness of freshwater conservation issues
• Highlight the value of community-based environmental education
• Support volunteer recruitment and engagement
• Showcase collaboration between community groups and local government
• Inspire more people to become active guardians of their local waterways
By combining education, personal stories, and community action, the project transformed a single workshop into a lasting resource that can continue to engage and inspire audiences long after the event itself.
What We Learned
The strongest environmental stories are rarely about the environment alone. They are about people.
By focusing on both learning and participation, the project demonstrated how storytelling can help community organisations extend their reach, strengthen engagement, and build deeper connections between people and place.
Services Provided
• Story development
• Interview filming
• Event coverage
• Community storytelling
• Video editing
• Social media video production