We’d love to hear from you
Let us know how we can help
We understand that attending events can sometimes pose challenges. If you or someone you know might face obstacles in participating, please let us know.
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Your insights are invaluable, and we’re committed to exploring solutions to make the event accessible to everyone who should be at the conference. We hope to increase attendance from countries and regions that are traditionally poorly represented at this symposium for whom weed biocontrol is just as important.
logo explanation
The white spots in the lower right of the leaf depict a stunningly successful biocontrol programme for Aotearoa New Zealand (AoNZ) with the white smut fungus (Entyloma ageratinae) released against mist flower (Ageratina riparia).
The beetle and leaf area eaten in the shape of AoNZ depict an emerging success against tradescantia (Tradescantia fluminensis), due to the combined impacts of three species of beetles and a fungal pathogen. The beetle also marks the place where the Symposium will be held in Rotorua.
The kōwhaiwhai pattern to the left was gifted to Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research (MWLR) to represent protection from biological threats, which is one of MWLR’s responsibilities as kaitiaki, or guardians, of the land. Kaitiaki can be depicted in the form of a manaia (a creature with a bird beak, human body and fish’s tail) which can be a spiritual guardian against evil. It also incorporates Takarangi, a traditional design that depicts Ranginui (the sky) and Papatūānuku (the land) as their children push them apart. The koru (spiral) represents life which flows, intertwines and connects. The kōwhaiwhai pattern also depicts the unique geothermal area in which Rotorua resides, where steam emerges from the ground and the largest geysers in the Southern Hemisphere can be found.
To hear how to pronounce ‘kōwhaiwhai’ or other Māori words visit https://maoridictionary.co.nz/word/10924 and click on the speaker symbol.