Climate Action Innovator Award
2021 AWARD FINALIST
Sponsored by Waka Kotahi / New Zealand Transport Agency
In 2018, Wellington wildlife sanctuary ZEALANDIA introduced Aotearoa New Zealand’s first fully electric passenger minibuses. The buses have reduced the organisation’s carbon emissions and carried close to 40,000 visitors to and from ZEALANDIA free of charge. The sanctuary has also replaced one of its petrol quad bikes with an electric quad vehicle.
In June 2019, ZEALANDIA installed seven electric vehicle (EV) chargers in its visitor centre carpark. Vehicle charging is offered at no cost to visitors, facilitating fast, accessible charging for EV owners and encouraging greater uptake of low emission vehicles. ZEALANDIA now has 10 electric chargers and is one of the major charging stations in the Wellington region.
These initiatives have helped ZEALANDIA to achieve Toitū carbonzero certification for six consecutive years. Other organisations now contact ZEALANDIA to learn about introducing electric vehicles into their own fleets.