NZ Chapter 2026 Symposium

EIANZ New Zealand Chapter is excited to announce the return of the popular NZ Chapter Symposium! This year, the symposium will focus on the topic of new RMA legislation and how it interacts across aspects of the environment sector.

About the event:

New Zealand’s environmental profession is entering a defining moment.

Registrations are now open for the EIANZ New Zealand Chapter 2026 Symposium, taking place in Christchurch on 18 June 2026.

With new RMA legislation on the horizon, fast-track processes changing the pace of project delivery, and growing pressure across infrastructure, renewables, ecology, coastal management and urban resilience, environmental practice in Aotearoa New Zealand is shifting quickly. This is not change at the edges. It is the most significant reshaping of the operating environment for practitioners in decades.

This Symposium will bring the profession together to explore the environmental challenges facing New Zealand, with a focus on what reform means in practice, how it interacts across the sector, and why quality, evidence-based decision-making remains critical.

The program will feature speakers from across government, consulting, infrastructure, transport, energy and local government, with sessions covering:

• Resource management reform
• RMA reforms and environmental limits
• Managing contaminated material
• Ecological management in New Zealand
• Recent developments in NZTA environmental management
• Renewable energy under the fast-track regime
• Coastal hazards and future exposure in Christchurch
• Solar and avian interactions
• Blue-green networks and resilient, nature-based urban infrastructure
• Sustainability and waste

Meet the speakers:

• Phillip Burge | Environment Canterbury
• Rob Van de Munckhof | Tonkin + Taylor
• Terry Widdowson | AECOM
• Ian Bredin | AECOM
• Karolyn Buhring, Richard Jackett and Stephen Gardiner | NZTA
• Ryan McCone | Lumere NZ
• Derek Todd | Jacobs
• Claire Webb | Beca
• Leighton Gillespie | Auckland Council

Registrations are now open!

The EIANZ 2026 New Zealand Chapter Symposium will include a full day of technical content - delegates will be provided with morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea. Register via the blue box at the bottom of the page.

Join colleagues from across Aotearoa New Zealand for a day of sharp technical insight, practical discussion and valuable networking as the profession looks ahead to a changing legislative and environmental landscape.

Register now to secure your place.

CPD Points