Engagement Institute Calls for Stronger Community Engagement in New Zealand’s Environmental Reporting

Engagement Institute has called for meaningful engagement, accessibility, Māori partnership and public accountability to be embedded in proposed changes to New Zealand’s environmental reporting system.

In a submission to the New Zealand Parliament’s Environment Committee on the Environmental Reporting Amendment Bill, Engagement Institute welcomed the overall direction of the reforms while identifying opportunities to strengthen public participation in how environmental information is collected, prioritised and reported.

Environmental Reporting Is More Than a Technical Exercise

Decisions about what we measure, which indicators are prioritised and how findings are communicated influence what becomes visible — and ultimately, what can inform decision-making.

Engagement Institute’s submission describes environmental reporting as “public information infrastructure” and argues that communities should be able to contribute relevant knowledge, understand how reporting priorities are chosen and see how environmental evidence informs decisions.

This means creating opportunities for engagement early, while priorities are still being shaped, rather than consulting once key decisions have already been made.

Making Participation Accessible

The submission also highlights an important principle for engagement professionals: making information available is not the same as making engagement accessible.

Barriers including disability, language, literacy, location, digital access, cultural safety, consultation fatigue and lack of trust can all affect people’s ability to engage.

Engagement Institute recommends accessible and plain-language information, multiple ways for communities and stakeholders to engage, and distinct, appropriately resourced engagement with iwi and hapū that recognises Te Tiriti relationships, tikanga, mātauranga Māori and Māori data sovereignty.

Closing the Loop Builds Trust

Another key recommendation is greater transparency about what happens after environmental evidence and community input are gathered.

Engagement Institute has recommended that the Government publish a coordinated response following each state-of-the-environment report, outlining proposed actions, decisions not to act and the reasons behind them.

For engagement practitioners, the principle is a familiar one: closing the loop matters. People should be able to see what was heard, what changed, what didn’t and why.

The submission reflects a broader priority for Engagement Institute: ensuring engagement expertise is considered at the strategic and governance level and that meaningful community engagement is designed into decision-making systems from the beginning.

Read Engagement Institute’s full submission to the Environment Committee.

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