Tapuae Roa and Taranaki 2050 Roadmap lead group Ngā Kaiwhakatere o Taranaki, and programme coordinator Venture Taranaki, are hitting the road this April for a regional roadshow, to share progress updates on, and provide a chance to ask questions about action plans and the Roadmap.

Accompanied by a printed progress update report, the Tapuae Roa and Taranaki 2050 Roadshow will be held over four separate sessions, ranging across all three of our districts, and will see members of lead group Ngā Kaiwhakatere o Taranaki, Venture Taranaki, and guest speakers deep dive into the implementation of Tapuae Roa and Taranaki 2050 actions. The topics covered will be specific to the district the event is being held.

"The roadshow is an opportunity for the community to engage with regional leaders about what has been acheived so far to support the development of our region and our progress towards a low-emissions future," explains Justine Gilliland, Venture Taranaki Chief Executive.

"Good progress has been made, and the Taranaki community might be surprised to hear just how much is happening," continues Justine.

"For example, the launch of Ara Ake last year, the release of the Taranaki Hydrogen Roadmap, and the partnership of Hiringa Energy and Ballance Agri-Nutrients are significant inititiaves for our energy sector. Our food and fibre sector is making progress with the Branching Out programme and recent land and climate assessment, particularly looking at options that could extend our economic base, as well as creating catchment communities around the Maunga and exploring regenerative agriculture."

"Late last year we launched the Investment Prospectus, and we’re very near launching the Taranaki Story, which will assist local enterprises and kaupapa, providing them with free-to-access tools and resources, as well as a refreshed position as to who we are as a region. The PowerUp entrepreneurship and innovation programme is also underway, and has been a huge success already, with all 50 available workshop spots snapped up by budding local entrepreneurs."

"We’ve also seen environmental investment in the likes of Taranaki Taku Tūranga, and the establisment of the Taranaki Trails Trust."

"There has been a lot of great mahi happening around the region and some incredible initiatives that our community is working on, but there is still a large programme of work to be done. The focus remains to continue to bring people together and to gain support to move the mahi forward." says Justine.

"That further progress is reliant on and subject to investment, which the region has bid to Government for, as part of its commitment to a ‘just transition’ for the region, to sit alongside what the private sector and regional community are already doing or committing," concludes Justine.

New Plymouth has an evening session on 13 April, and a day session on 20 April. The roadshow then travels to Hāwera for an evening session on 20 April, and ends in Stratford for an evening session on 27 April. Registrations can be made through the Venture Taranaki Facebook page or by searching Tapuae Roa on Eventbrite.

Further information

The Tapuae Roa strategy, published in 2017 followed by the release of the action plan in 2018, focuses on growing the talent, entrepreneurial mindsets, skills and capabilities of the wider Taranaki community as the foundation of a truly modern economy.

The co-designed Taranaki 2050 Roadmap was finalised in August 2019, with 12 Transition Pathway Action Plans published during 2019 and 2020, and sets out the vision for Taranaki’s low-emissions future.

Tapuae Roa and Taranaki 2050 Progress Update: April 2021

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