The New Zealand Conservation Authority is backing Eugenie Sage’s proposal to revitalise the economy with nature-based jobs.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, NZCA chairperson Edward Ellison pledged support of the Greens $1billion economic stimulus package.

“This investment will ensure biodiversity gains that will benefit the future of tourism, a greener economy that can adapt to climate change, and meaningful and satisfying work that will provide jobs and wellbeing for many New Zealanders,” Ellison wrote in the letter.

He added: “The accessibility and ease of creating these conservation jobs is paramount. They will be able to target all regions around Aotearoa, both urban and rural; they do not require the support of major infrastructure and expenditure; and the transferability of skills involved means an immediate start for those that have lost their livelihoods in the sudden collapse of the tourism industry.”

Ellison would like to see post-Covid Aotearoa moving towards predator-free status with the input of tangata whenua and communities.

“We have a great capacity as a nation to learn from this calamity, and in the rare and induced slowdown take stock of what is good for our future and build on that positively for the long term good of Aotearoa,” he said.

The open letter has not yet received a response.