Climate Change Champions
The NZVA Climate Change Champions meet online once a month to attend monthly meetings with our Climate Change Ambassador, Jane Ough. Climate Change Champions can be veterinarians, veterinary nurses, veterinary technicians, practice managers or anyone else who works in the veterinary industry. The monthly meetings are an opportunity to:
- share what your organisation is doing to reduce your impact on the environment
- receive advice and support from other veterinary professionals.
Meeting summaries
Recorded meetings
| Friday 11 April 2025 - Professor Emeritus Ralph Sims discussed the co-benefits of reducing carbon foot-, hoof- and paw-prints. |
| Friday 14 March 2025 - Professor Alan Brent discussed why farming under solar makes sense. |
| Friday 14 February 2025 - Alec Tang shared insights from his work driving enduring change and embedding climate change and sustainability into core organisational strategy. |
| Friday 13 December 2024 - Michael Brown from Water Cremation Systems NZ joined the group to discuss lower emission options for disposing of pets' bodies. |
| Friday 8 November 2024 - Sally Herbert from Lightforce Solar joined us to talk about solar, the cheapest low-emission energy available. |
| Friday 11 October 2024 - The group discussed a Vets for Climate Action webinar about environmentally sustainable options for dog food. |
| Friday 13 September 2024 - Veterinary epidemiologist and data scientist, Tom Brownlie, discussed how artificial intelligence (AI) can offer the veterinary profession a more sustainable future. |
| Friday 9 August 2024 - Kristen Baxter, Senior Manager, Sustainability Integration at Zoetis, discussed decision-making around environmental sustainability. |
| Friday 12 July 2024 - The group discussed ways New Zealand veterinary services can help companion and production animal clients reduce the increasing risks of climate change. |
| Friday 14 June 2024 - Jane Ough shared her upcoming plenary session for the 2024 NZVA and NZVNA Conference, and the group discussed waste management protocols. |
| Friday 10 May 2024 - Peter Savage, Director of Sustainable Finance at BNZ, discussed how climate change is affecting businesses and how banks can support sustainable business initiatives. |
| Friday 8 March 2024 - Niki Harré, author and professor at the University of Auckland, gave a presentation on managing difficult conversations around climate change so we can encourage collective action. |
| Friday 9 February 2024 - Gina Kemp and Shanaea Baker from Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) discuss animal welfare emergency management and our changing climate. |
| Friday 3 November 2023 - The team at Holistic Vets do a walk-through of their clinic and share some of the climate change initiatives they've implemented. |
| Friday 1 December 2023 - Dr Jeremy Watson discusses how his practice became the first veterinary clinic in Australia to be registered carbon neutral. |
