In this episode, Jack catches up with Cat Dillon, Chief Executive of WAI Wānaka, to talk about a creative partnership bringing art and environmental action together in the Upper Clutha.

WAI Wānaka works to protect and restore the region’s freshwater environments through science, education, community action and advocacy. Now, the organisation has teamed up with renowned local artist Andrew Tischler, whose landscapes capture the places WAI Wānaka is working to protect.

Cat shares how the partnership came about and the incredible impact of Andrew’s painting The Source, which sold earlier this year for $50,000, providing significant support for WAI Wānaka’s freshwater programmes.

The collaboration is continuing, with Andrew creating a new series of paintings inspired by the Upper Clutha and surrounding landscapes ahead of a special fundraising event in November.

Jack and Cat also talk about what WAI Wānaka actually does on the ground, why protecting our lakes, rivers and waterways matters, and the simple ways locals can get involved, from community projects and clean-ups to citizen science.

It’s a conversation about art, our environment, and what can happen when people use what they’re good at to help protect the place they call home.