Nature and Nation: Conservation Science in Aotearoa New Zealand

• In Event: Global Animals: Science and Technology

Abstract

This paper draws on qualitative pilot research conducted in early 2018 on native bird conservation in Aotearoa New Zealand, to explore interconnections of nature, technology and the nation in this setting.

In Aotearoa New Zealand, native birds are crucial scientific subjects. Their unique vulnerability and charisma makes them poster children for conservation science, as well as for the “100% Pure New Zealand” brand. Unlike ‘traditional’ lab animals, these species are often made highly visible in the service of science: for example, Sirocco the Kākāpo (a species of endangered, flightless parrots) is a ‘spokesbird’ for his species, and has his own Twitter account. As well as being highly visible, many of these species are also the focus of intensive conservation efforts, entailing population genome sequencing, translocations, and artificial insemination, as well as more traditional ‘ranging’ strategies.

This talk mobilises the concept of imaginaries to speak to the pull of both a figure of the natural and the face of the nation in Aotearoa, where natural heritage is sustained and rebuilt through complex technoscientific means. In so doing, it highlights the ways in which conservation science is uniquely local and simultaneously global, positioning both native species and nation in an international traffic of biology, expertise, and technology.

Author

• Courtney Addison, Victoria University of Wellington