32. Wilding Pine Control with Pete Oswald

Today on the podcast I am joined by Pete Oswald. Pete grew up on a high country farm in the Awatere valley in Marlborough, he got into cutting down trees young to fund his highly addictive, big mountain, free-skiing habit. Skiing then turned into a professional career which has taken him all over the world and he shifted out of competing into brand partnerships where he made content for some of the big global names like Icebreaker.

Between just being an all round ethically conscious human, suffering some climate guilt over the travelling he did through his skiing career and as a father raising his own children Pete has always been involved in sustainability initiatives. Whether that be through him and his wife’s greeting card and paper goods business Little Difference, his Ski for Trees initiative or now as the project manager for the Central Otago Wilding Conifer Control Group where Pete has come back full circle into cutting down trees - but this time in the name of preserving and regenerating our natural environment.

We cover why Wilding Conifers are such a big problem, we discuss the practical support available to farmers from the Wilding Conifer Control Group, the importance of learning from the past, the impact of empowering communities as well as the challenges associated with government funding structures, carbon tunnel vision and afforestation with exotics into farmland…she’s a big one! So settle in an enjoy today’s episode…

Episode Resources:

Central Otago Wilding Conifer Control Group

Wilding Pine Network

Little Difference

Ski for Trees Initiative

Pete Oswald | LinkedIn

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