PROGRAMME
In association with
PRE-CONFERENCE: WEDNESDAY 28 OCTOBER 2026
1:15pm-4:15pm The Original Canopy Tour (or Ultimate Canopy Tour) (OPTIONAL PRE-CONFERENCE ACTIVITY)
*ticketed directly through Rotorua Canopy Tours at a 10% discount. Use code NZAC10
This optional pre-conference activity will take you on a guided tour deep into one of the last pockets of pre-human wilderness in Aotearoa. Over three hours, you’ll fly on six ziplines, including a 220-metre canopy ride, cross two swing bridges, and explore treetop platforms up to 18 metres high. Launch from a 1,000-year-old rimu tree and see for yourself what a predator-free New Zealand could look like.
4:00pm-6:00pm Early Arrivals Meet-up
In town early? Join NZ Arb Board members for an informal drink at Craft Beer Kitchen, Eat Street. (Cash bar. Drinks Specials. Light snacks provided).
DAY 1: THURSDAY 29 OCTOBER 2026
8:00am Registration desk and indoor/outdoor trade zone open
Arrival tea/coffee available
10:00am-10:30am Mihi and conference opening | Welcome and housekeeping
• Conference hosts and MC duo: Bruce MacDonald and Chelsea Robertson
• Nicky Gibbs | NZ Arb President
• Rick Jobbitt | ArbEco
Platinum sponsor address: Gareth Jones | Asplundh
10:30am-11:15am International Keynote
"Future-Proofing the Urban Forest: Tree Selection for a Changing Climate”
• Dr Andrew Hirons | Myerscough College (UK)
11:15am-12:00pm International Keynote
“Ethics in Arboriculture: Reclaiming Our Responsibility”
• Em Roberts (USA) | Clackamas College (USA)
12:00pm-12:15pm
“Your Association, Your Future – Shaping Tomorrow Together”
• Nicky Gibbs and Ben Worth | NZ Arb Board of Directors
12:15pm-1:00pm Lunch Break (INDOOR / OUTDOOR TRADE ZONE)
ROOTS OF RESILIENCE
1:00pm-1:40pm
“Joined at the Bark, a Closer Look
at Inosculation”
• Menno Kluiters | Curator | Eastwoodhill National Arboretum
UTLITY ARBORICULTURE IN ASSOCIATION WITH POWERCO
1:00pm-1:40pm
“From Silence to Safety: How Open Communication Mitigates Harm in Utility Arboriculture”
• Daryl Marshall | National Safety & Compliance Manager | Asplundh (Aus)
2:20pm-3:00pm
“Utility Arboriculture in Action”
• Josh Butterill | Delta
3:00pm-3:30pm Afternoon Tea (INDOOR / OUTDOOR TRADE ZONE)
NZ ARB QUICK CUTS 20x20
3:30pm-5:30 NZ Arb Quick Cuts 20x20
The inaugural NZ Arb Quick Cuts 20x20 session: A fast-moving showcase of arb stories, projects and ideas. Each presenter has 20 slides, shown for just 20 seconds each—giving them 400 seconds to inform, entertain and make an impact.
Welcome and Introduction (MC: Mark Roberts)
“Big Trees with a Big Crane; 10-days of crane work next to State Highway 1”
• Richard Wanhill | Arb Innovation
“A Tree for Every Backyard: The Journey of Free Tree Day”
• Mark Armistead | Tauranga City Council
“A Field Guide to Identifying Aotearoa New Zealand's Native Tree Roots”
• Dane Sale | Young Horticulturalist of the Year Arb Industry Finalist 2026
“Treenets: A New Way to Experience Trees”
• James Issacs | TreenetsNZ
“Tree Management in Christchurch Botanic Gardens”
• Brittany Walker | Christchurch City Council
"Where Trees, People, and Knowledge Connect"
• Taneora Martin
"Training in Treework"
• Chris van Drimmelen | Treescape
A Modern-Day Arb Approach: Trust your gut and cover your butt with quantifiable data."
• Jesse Coleman | Kōwhai Treecare
“One Conversation Worth Having”
• Scott Geddes | Auckland Tree Services
Risky Business: Why TRAQ Matters
• Mark Roberts | Kōwhai Treecare
6 minutes 40 seconds slots still available ….got a Quick Cuts talk in you?
ARB BUSINESS STREAM
3:30pm-4:10pm
“Cutting Tension: De-escalation Skills for Arborists”
• Brad Dannefaerd | CERT Systems Ltd
4:10pm-4:50pm
“When the Team Outgrows Their Management"
• Nic Thomson | Iceberg
5:30pm-7:30pm Industry Welcome & Cimber Gear Check (INDOOR / OUTDOOR TRADE ZONE)
DAY 2: FRIDAY 30 OCTOBER 2026
8:00am Registration Desk and Indoor / Outdoor Trade Zone Open
7:30am-8:30am Breakfast session: Career Pathways Breakfast in association with Arb Innovations, and NAOTY Quiz
9:00am-9:45am International Keynote
“Better Decisions in Arboriculture: The Value of Collaboration”
• Em Roberts (USA) | Clackamas College (USA)
9:45am-10:15am International Keynote
“Applied Tree Biology: Turning Science into Better Arboricultural Practice”
• Dr Andrew Hirons | Myerscough College (UK)
10:15am-10:45am Morning Tea (INDOOR / OUTDOOR TRADE ZONE)
10:45am-11:25am
“Problems with Tree Risk Assessment – An Australian Perspective”
• Mark Hartley (Aus) | Owner, The Arborist Network
11:30am-12:10pm
“Connecting Science and Practice: Forest Pathology for Urban Tree Care”
• Darryl Herron | Pathology Diagnostics and Collections | Bioeconomy Science Institute
12:10pm-12:50pm
“Engaging with Communities to Implement the Christchurch City Council Parks Planting Program: From Consultation through to getting trees in the ground”
• Toby Chapman | Christchurch City Council
12:50pm-1:20pm Lunch Break (INDOOR / OUTDOOR TRADE ZONE)
1:20pm-1:50pm
NZ Notable Trees Trust talk: “What the Planning Act and Natural Environment Act will mean in practice"
• Kate Stubbing | Partner, Cooney Lees Morgan
1:50pm-2:20pm
NZ Notable Trees Trust talk: “Enhancing the New Zealand Tree Register: A Lyttleton Case Study”
• Ra Hammer | The Tree People
2:20pm-2:50pm
“How to maximize the benefits of our green assets and work around them in Auckland, New Zealand”
• Regine Leung | Senior Arborist | Auckland Council
3:20pm-3:30pm Conference Close
3:30pm Afternoon Tea (INDOOR / OUTDOOR TRADE ZONE)
3:30pm-6:30pm NZ Notable Trees Trust Tree Tour
Join us for a guided visit to the renowned SCION ARBORETUM and its outstanding collection of exotic timber species. Delegates will explore some of the arboretum’s most remarkable specimens, with opportunities to remeasure the legendary Pinus montezumae—currently a world champion tree—and, time permitting, locate and measure what may be the tallest Pinus torreyana in the collection.
Debrief afterwards at Eastwood over beers and pizza with an eclectic group of scientists, mountain bikers, and adventurous locals.
*Cash bar. Light snacks provided.
Evening Free Evening – Drink Specials* (CRAFT BEER KITCHEN, EAT STREET)
*Show your nametag and get $10 pint of 15 tap beers and ciders at the Craft Beer Kitchen and The Beer Garden, Eat Street
SATURDAY 31 OCTOBER 2026
6:00-11:00 NZ Arb Industry Awards Dinner, in association with Treescape | Te Puia