CAMPAIGNS
In December 2024, a wildfire tore through over 1,000 hectares in Canterbury’s Craigieburn Basin, prompting the creation of a community-led restoration trust with a 100-year vision to restore the land. Motivated to turn devastation into momentum, the Trust conceived Feel the Burn, a fundraising trail run. My colleague, a communications graduate, and I, a communications intern at the time, were tasked with leading the campaign and bringing it to life.
The Challenge
With no audience, no brand, minimal budget, and a remote location, our goal was to drive participation while establishing long-term credibility for the Trust.
As co-lead, I worked across both strategy and execution, shaping the campaign narrative, building the brand identity, leading social content, and supporting partnerships and media outreach. This was a fully pro bono project, meaning we owned everything from idea to delivery.
With planning underway in October 2025, we had a relatively short lead time (further compressed by the Christmas and New Year period) to deliver a successful event by 24 January 2026.
The Approach
We anchored the campaign in a simple idea, “The valley burned, so we run to restore”, and focused on three strategic pillars:
Social-first storytelling to build emotional connection and drive registrations. This involved getting creative with opportunities for people to engage and ensuring high-impact photography and design were used to capture attention and communicate both the damage and the need for restoration.
Partnerships and ambassadors to extend reach and credibility through trusted voices, including local businesses willing to provide in-kind support and influential NZ running figures who share much of our target audience
Earned media to build legitimacy and legacy beyond the immediate community.
The Result
366 participants at the inaugural event
$37,500 raised in direct entry fees
200k+ social video views and a highly engaged audience
National media coverage (Seven Sharp + The Press)
The digital-led campaigned was a standout success, building a recognisable brand, an engaged community, and a repeatable platform to support long-term restoration. This achievement was recognised by the Public Relations Institute of New Zealand, winning the category of Best Use of Small Budget for Impact in 2026.
Feel the Burn
New Zealand Chinese Language Week
A nationally recognised week designed to celebrate cultural diversity and promote Chinese language learning and education across Aotearoa New Zealand.
Part of a small project management team (under 10 people) for the 2025 and 2026 campaigns, I was actively involved in all stages of delivery. Leading content creation and design across website and digital platforms I played a key role in bringing the campaign to life at scale, shaping a cohesive and engaging presence that would support broader campaign rollout.
I engaged directly with thousands of supporters, encouraged and promoted community-led celebrations, conducted outreach to local and national government, and led interactive activations including giveaways and competitions to drive participation. One of the most rewarding initiatives was supporting the annual distribution of over 4,000 trilingual children’s books to schools across Aotearoa, extending the campaign’s impact far beyond the week itself.
Key NZCLW initiatives also include Chinese Language Superstars - young Kiwis learning a Chinese language or dialect - Youth Ambassadors from the Chinese Bridge competition, and nationwide “Videos of Support” from councils, politicians, and businesses.
Each year launches with a private opening ceremony at Parliament’s Beehive where sponsors, partners and supporters gather to commence the week.
Further initiatives alongside the core campaign included:
10 for 10 (2026): A revived programme offering 10 young New Zealanders a funded cultural and professional exchange in China, supported by a high-reach digital campaign and detailed project coordination. The programme was later postponed due to rising costs from the war in the Middle East.
National Dumpling Day (2025): A nationwide “design-a-dumpling” competition which sees NZCLW partner with restaurants across the country to create one-off dishes for the public to taste and vote on, supported by large-scale promotion and influencer activity.
Language Forum (2025): In partnership with the University of Auckland and the New Zealand Association of Language Teachers, NZCLW co-hosted Language Learning for New Zealand’s Future, exploring the value of second language education in Aotearoa. The forum resulted in a formal report and recommendations presented to the Minister of Education, advocating for language learning as a compulsory component of the refreshed curriculum.
It was incredibly rewarding to see the level of impact NZCLW had on the lives of Kiwis across all ages and backgrounds.
NZCLW 2025 saw 1.7M reached through traditional media & over 535K views on Instagram and Facebook alone.
