XV ANZSEE Biennial Conference
Regenerative Futures, Imagining Alternatives, Transforming Systems
Wed 30 Sep – Sat 3 Oct 2026, Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand-Aotearoa
Held in Partnership with the Wellbeing Economy Alliance of Aotearoa (WEAll-A)
Register/get your tickets here for special discounted rates and the pre-conference Masterclass registration
Great news! Early bird rates will continue until the conference to deliver further benefits to attendees.
General Description and Keynotes
The ANZSEE 2026 conference will bring together people from government, education and research, practitioners, consultancies, and NGO and community sectors, helping solve problems at local-regional-global scales drawing from ecological economics and its trans-disciplinary perspectives.
With a natural focus on Oceania as a region but also on local issues and those that permeate the globe, the conference will help synthesise global “post-growth” and “planetary boundary” discourses with a specific focus on the unique social-ecological and political vulnerabilities including those of the Pacific. The gathering will center on the integration of Indigenous stewardship and decolonised economic frameworks to address climate adaptation, while prioritising island and maritime resilience over traditional growth-centric metrics.
We have a great line-up of keynote speakers:
- Professor Bob Costanza, Professor of Ecological Economics, Institute for Global Prosperity, University College London; Founding President, International Society for Ecological Economics (ISEE); Founding Editor-In-Chief Ecological Economics, Societal Addiction and Recovery: Creating a New Science of Collective Behavioural Traps and Transformative Recovery
- Professor Anitra Nelson, President-Elect International Society for Ecological Economics (ISEE), Honorary Principal Fellow, University of Melbourne, Welcome to XV ANZSEE Biennial Conference – Regenerative Futures and Across Oceans from ISEE’s President-Elect
- Professor Erik Gomez-Baggethun, Professor in Environmental Governance at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), Senior Associate at the University of Oxford, The Plurality of Values and the Valuation of Nature
- Professor Maria Bargh, Professor of Politics and Maori Studies at Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington, Hidden and Diverse Economies (TBC)
- Professor Joshua Farley, L4E Ecological Economics Lead, Gund Institute for the Environment, University of Vermont, Taking Complexity Theory Seriously and Non-market Food Systems
- Dr Marjan Van Den Belt, Ecological Economist, Global Council Member Wellbeing Economy Alliance, Ministerial Appointee of Lincoln University Council, World Oceans Assessment UNCLOS Expert Pool – Aotearoanomics: A Place-Based Economy So That Nature and People Thrive
- Emeritus Professor Murray Patterson, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Massey University, Honorary Keynote Address, ANZSEE 2026 Conference Dinner
- Dr Mike Joy, The Morgan Foundation Senior Research Fellow in Freshwater Ecology and Environmental Science, School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences, Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand Freshwater Management
Themes
| No. | Theme Title | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beyond Growth and Wellbeing | Post-growth economies, alternative wellbeing measures, macroeconomic reform |
| 2 | Indigenous and First Nations Economies | Decolonisation, treaty rights, traditional knowledge, land and water stewardship |
| 3 | Island and Ocean Resilience | Blue economies, sea level rise, Pacific sovereignty, island biodiversity |
| 4 | Intergenerational Justice and Stewardship | Just transitions, youth, equity, rights of future generations |
| 5 | Climate, Cities, and the Built Environment | Energy, transport, housing, urban ecology, cost of living |
| 6 | Ecological Limits, Governance, and Policy | Planetary boundaries, ecosystem services, institutions, environmental law |
| 7 | Transformative Knowledge — Education, Methods, and Technology | Pedagogy, research methods, STI, arts, and transdisciplinarity |
| 8 | Other Issues in Ecological Economics | Open theme for emerging, cross-cutting, and novel contributions |
Fees
The organising committee has made a decision to continue the early bird rate and remove the standard rate to provide immediate further discounts to members and non-member attendees.
However, joining anzsee provides a saving in net rather paying the non-member rate. To save further – join anzsee here: https://anzsee.org.au/getting-involved/
| New Zealand Dollars | ||||
| Early-Bird Discount extended to 29 Sep 2026 | ||||
| Member (ANZSEE or WEALL-A) | Non-Member | |||
| Full Conference – Standard | 620 | 740 | ||
| Full Conference – Concession/Students | 310 | 370 | ||
| Day Rate – Standard | 310 | 380 | ||
| Day Rate – Concession/Students Day Rate | 150 | 190 |
- The Full Conference rates cover both days of the conference and all inclusive sessions plus morning and afternoon teas and lunch. The Day Conference rates cover a single respective day of the conference and morning and afternoon teas and lunch on that particular day.
- The dinner, field trips, masterclass and film night require separate registration.
General Program
The following provides a general outline of the planned program of activities. A detailed program will be available shortly.
Wed 30 Sep
- Day: Ecological Economics Masterclass (see below for details – separate rego)
- Evening: TBA
Thu 1 Oct
- Day: Conference welcome, keynotes and concurrent sessions
- Lunch: Art Exhibition, Posters and Performance
- Dinner: XV Anzsee Biennial Conference Dinner 2026 (separate rego)
Fri 2 Oct
- Day: Keynotes and concurrent sessions, close
- Lunch: ANZSEE AGM & Elections (all members and observers welcome)
- Evening: ‘Cost of Growth’ film night (separate rego)
Sat 3 Oct
- Day: Field work/trips
- Evening: TBA
Pre-conference Masterclass in Ecological Economics
‘GROUNDED ECONOMICS’ – An Ecological Economics Masterclass
- Wellington · 30 September 2026 · Massey University Te Aro Campus
- An ANZSEE pre-conference short course for postgraduates and professionals.
- Spend a day learning ecological economics the way it should be taught — outdoors, in place, and in conversation with the people who shaped the field.
- Walk and talk your way through the foundations of ecological economics, ecosystem valuation, degrowth and complexity theory, and applied policy — across Massey University’s Wellington campus and waterfront, opened with a Maori Marae acknowledgement and grounded throughout in Aotearoa’s landscape.
- Numbers limited – Register here.
Conference Dinner
- The conference dinner will be held on the evening of Thursday 1 October at the Southern Cross.
- Our honorary address is planned to be provided by Emeritus Professor Murray Patterson for his significant contribution to Ecological Economics in Aotearoa-New Zealand. He was previously the Director the Centre for Ecological Economics at Massey University.
- Registration for the dinner is required separately from the main conference. A registration link will be provided here soon.
Film Night
- A film night is being planned showing ‘The Cost of Growth’ Friday 2 October with a location, timings and registration to be provided soon.
Field Trips
We are in the process of finalising our field trip offering. Currently there are three options:
- Coastal Field trip led by Prof. Marjan Van Den Belt and
- Freshwater Field trip led by Dr Boyd Blackwell and possibly Dr Mike Joy and
- Zealandia EcoSanctuary – Urban Ecological Renewal – TBC.
More details to come including a link for registration.
Key Dates & Submission of Abstracts and Ideas
| Ideas/abstracts | Open | 1 Oct 2025 |
| Close | Late abstracts considered | |
| Submission review | Completed | |
| Response from ANZSEE | Completed | |
| Registration | Registration open | 1 Jul 2026 |
| Online rego closes | 29 Sep 2026 |
Though submission of abstracts and ideas has officially closed, we will consider late submissions.
Please submit your abstracts and ideas on this Google form. We suggest preparing a word document and copying across into the form. Include a title, theme & sub theme alignment, authors/persons and affiliations,150 word abstract, 6 keywords and 100 word bio for each author.
Abstract submission can be used for presentation, paper (refereed or not), or idea on a special session, panel, field trip and other activity or idea of any kind. We particularly welcome new and novel ideas including decision-making and community engagement, performance, music, and other creative approaches.
Register your interest for the Conference
If you would like to receive updates on the conference please register your interest here.
More details on the conference to come…
