3. About Hinewai
The people in the video work in a nature reserve called Hinewai, on the Banks Peninsula in New Zealand. Hugh Wilson is a botanist and has been the manager of the reserve since its foundation in 1987.
In the next video clip, we’re going to listen to Hugh explaining the purpose of Hinewai Reserve.
a. Write down a list of 15 words that relate to nature reserves and that you’d expect to hear in Hugh’s explanation.
b. Now listen and check how many of your words he uses.
c. Listen again (5:10 to 6:35). Can you pick out the correct words to complete the transcript?
So Hinewai Reserve is a result of the Maurice White Native Forest Trust. We look after 1500 hectares. That’s quite a big area: several catchments. The whole idea was to make it 1.______ for nature to speed up the regeneration of the native forest and restore the native biodiversity as much as is possible, because we’ve lost some things 2.______.
Conservation was our first goal, to restore the biodiversity on which we’re all 3.______ dependent, and we sometimes forget that. Some people say “well, why are you restoring the forest?”. In a way, saying “why are you doing it?” is like saying “why should you love your mother?” – that sort of 4.______. We’re totally, totally dependent on vegetation and the wildlife that supports our own lives. We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for plants and vegetation and animals and birds, and so on.
So our 5.______ goal is conservation, but from the very beginning we decided that people would be able to come here freely, whenever they wanted, without asking, could just come and walk our tracks, and there’s many many kilometres of walking tracks now. So it’s really like a little mini national park, right on the 6.______ of Akaroa itself.
Answers: here.
Discuss: Why does Hugh make the comparison between looking after nature and loving your mother?
d. Let’s look at these three verbs: conserve, restore, regenerate.
Which word or words:
- means ‘keep things as they are now’?
- can mean ‘grow back or repair itself naturally’?
- usually imply that effort is needed?
- can be used to describe work on a historical building?
- is often used when referring to a city or district that has experienced an economic upturn?
Answers: here.
Englishin3d 