Here you will see information about WoAA networking events and other relevant industry activities. If you are hosting an industry event and would like us to share it here, please get in touch!
Updates shortly for 2027 events.
Upcoming Events
Past Events
2026 Pre-Conference Networking Event
13 October 2026
Celebrating Connection, leadership and wāhine in aquaculture
What an incredible evening!
The 2026 Women of Aquaculture Aotearoa Networking event brought wāhine together from across New Zealand's aquaculture sector, and created a vibrant atmosphere of connection, learning, and celebration.
Guests heard from Parliamentary Under-Secretary Jenny Marcroft, who shared her perspectives on the opportunities and future direction of New Zealand aquaculture. Her address set the scene for an engaging panel discussion exploring how women are helping shape the sector through leadership, innovation, sustainability, workforce development and industry growth.
The panel featured leaders from across aquaculture, business, education and sustainability, sparking thoughtful discussion and valuable insights. The audience embraced the opportunity to ask questions, share experiences and connect with colleagues.
Thank you to:
Belinda Van Eyndhoven - Head of Sustainabilty; Westpac
Dr Marina Azevedo - Formulator, BioMar Australia
Jocelyn Mikaere – Manutaki/Director; Ahurea
Shenae Wales - Aquaculture Tutor - Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology
Debbie Pannell - Owner and Managing Director - Marlborough Oysters and FlipFarm
A highlight of the evening was celebrating the nominees for the 2026 Women of Aquaculture Aotearoa Awards. It was inspiring to recognise the women whose leadership, service, innovation and commitment continue to strengthen our sector and support others to succeed.
A huge thank you to our principal sponsor, Westpac, for its continued support and commitment to advancing wāhine in aquaculture. We also extend our sincere thanks to BioMar and Aquaculture New Zealand for helping make the evening possible.
Building on the success of last years conference event, we hosted another pre-conference event the evening prior to the 2025 Aquaculture Conference.
What a spectacular evening we had! A huge thank you to everyone who made it possible!
We heard from Karen Olver about the ambitions of Women in Seafood Australasia (WISA) for NZ wāhine of the seafood sector. Go HERE to learn more about becoming a WISA Member!
We also heard and inspirational talk from the wonderful Dame Sophie Pascoe about her career as a high-performance athlete and the challenges she has faced along the way.
We joined in celebrating the deserving nominees for the inaugural WoAA Awards.
Finally, we were able to try NZs first ever farmed trevally thanks to the wonderful team at the Bioeconomy Science Institute!
A huge thank you to our sponsors for this event:
BioMar
Westpac
Aquaculture New Zealand
Bioeconomy Science Institute
2025 Pre-Conference Networking Event
This year we were able to host a networking lunch at the NZMSS conference held in Blenheim.
It was an energising and interactive session dedicated to connecting wāhine across our marine and aquaculture communities.
A heartfelt thanks to AQNZ and the MFA for their support. And a shoutout to the hard work of Emily Benjamin (UoA) and Nicola Russel (MFA) that made this event possible.
NZMSS Networking Lunch
Pre-Conference Networking Event 2024
We held our first ever pre-conference event before the 2024 AQNZ ‘Accelerating Aquaculture’ Conference in Nelson. This event was generously sponsored by BioMar.
Around 100 wāhine joined us from both around Aotearoa and from overseas! We had a wonderful evening getting to know more of the amazing women of our sector, as well as hearing some valuable insights from our speakers and panelists.
There was a clear appetite for discussions and we believe we are just getting started! Thank you all for a wonderful first year. Let us continue to learn from each other and work together to make this industry even better!
Nāku te rourou, nāu te rourou, ka ora ai te iwi
Sponsored by
Inaugural WoAA Event
Our fabulous Inaugural event was held at the Tasman Bay Cruising Club and was attended by nearly 60 women from around Te Tau Ihu.
It was fantastic to have so many wāhine together networking and getting involved. The event was incredibly positive and we look forward to more in the future!
Kohikohi ngā kākano, whakaritea te pārekereke, kia puāwai ngā hua
Gather the seeds, prepare the seedbed carefully, and you will be gifted with an abundance of food.
This event was made possible by our generous sponsors, New Zealand King Salmon and Talley’s.
Sponsored by
