We Need an Army of Weedos - Geoff Reid (One for Nature)

Geoff Reid is a filmmaker and restoration advocate in Aotearoa New Zealand. In conversation with Matthew Monahan.

TOPICS
00:00 Introduction
05:51 The impact of invasive species
07:34 Invasive plants
09:40 The ethics of species preservation
13:29 Invasive species as biological pollution
18:45 Projects Geoff has worked on
24:59 Mud farming
26:59 Forest collapse
28:37 Unsustainable development
30:45 Dumping dead calves
32:08 The Tīmata Method
44:06 Reputational conflict and damage
48:37 Funding for the work
53:25 Vision and leadership
55:26 Conclusion

EPISODE RESOURCES

THE REGENERATION WILL BE FUNDED

SOCIAL

PODCAST

[GeoffReidNZ]

HUGE gratitude to you, Matthew, and Ma Earth for inviting me to be part of this podcast series. It's been an enriching experience diving into these discussions. Your platform is invaluable in giving voice to people's passions and perspectives. Keep up the fantastic work!

[cribbeard]

what a wonderful interview! nice Glerups, Matthew (I have two pairs myself), but I was especially drawn to Geoff's barefooted honesty, raw integrity, and beautiful articulation of some of NZ's most pressing environmental, biodiversity, and ecological issues. 27:01-28:30 & 45:50-46:04 🤌 thank you for the hour of education and inspiration. I'm ready to be a Weedo and start my online training asap!!

[roodieroo]

Awesome and important korero! Love the aesthetics too Well done team!

[megm.c]

wild ginger is something Im battling in Far north....what a mission, Im stunned at how fast that stuff spreads. And now pampas is roaring in at breakneck speed, pines are being clearcut and the hills are becoming weed banks, where I had pines on neighbouring farm, it is now thick with flowering pampas....this is a national emergency I think...and I think we have an army willing to do the mahi if we could get the Govt to help with costs, the people will do the work. We care and we want to help our beautiful corner of paradise

[stephenking]

This is such a vital topic for NZ. Without the leadership, skilled dedicated army of Weed Warriors and resources, we will lose our unique NZ nature to a sea of weeds. From the alpine tops to the coast, it's all threatened. What rats did to the Huia, weeds can do to our unique native ecosystems.
Good on you Geoff !!

[Imitatenature]

Such an important topic with immediate action that can be taken in our own backyards. We can all be stewards of Earth. Get to know your natives and the weeds that threaten them. Get out in your local forest and build a relationship with the creatures that make up its ecosystem.

We can plant native plants and trees all day but it won’t be regenerative or sustainable if we don’t tackle these weeds. To protect what we love requires us to become warriors and fierce defenders of our forests from those who extract, cut down, pollute, and take over. Theyre not all humans and humans aren’t bad for the planet, we’re a part of it. Needing the right ecosystems to thrive. So many are at risk right now. This is a call to action. We all have a role in restoring and protecting our precious ecosystems that are not separate from us.

[gandalfandferg]

The sale of "biological polluting" plants is what makes my job as a weeder harder. Worse still is the continued sale of plants that spread myrtle rust into natural systems from the suburbs is going to cause massive population declines of threatened species.

[bobbyhorowitz]

I fear climbing asparagus will smother all NZ forests in 100 years. I’m doing my bit but like Geoff says, we need an army

[stephenking]

Stewardship of nature is fundamental to being a human. It is evident to some extent among land users and lovers of all types; farmers, biologists, hunters, recreationalists. It is a core human function written into the earliest story of Genesis written 3500 years ago. It's part of respecting the place we live in. We ignore the principle of stewardship at our peril.

[tbagginsx]

Great film, so informative and well presented. Not sure about the calves, I mean it is very sad but animals do die on farms and they need to be put somewhere in those rare instances. They're not realistically going to have a funeral service. This film was awesome though