Carbon Forestry 2026 is the annual meeting point for New Zealand's carbon and environmental forestry sector, running 4-5 August 2026 at the Distinction Hotel in Rotorua under organiser Innovatek Ltd.
Carbon Forestry 2026 is the annual gathering point for New Zealand's carbon and environmental forestry sector, running 4-5 August 2026 at the Distinction Hotel in Rotorua. The programme tackles the issues that matter to local and international forest managers and investors: government policy, Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) regulation, carbon markets, certification, and the fast-emerging voluntary market for biodiversity and nature-based credits. In August 2025 the event drew more than 300 industry leaders, corporate emitters and investors in person and online, and the organiser positions it as the place to learn about this expanding investment class as forestry takes a central role in New Zealand's climate response.
The conference is produced by Innovatek Ltd, the Rotorua-based forestry events and media company, with company Director John Stulen leading the programme and speaker line-up. Innovatek cites 25 years of running independent, sector-focused events across its Carbon Forestry, ForestTECH, HarvestTECH and WoodTECH communities. Te Uru Rakau / Ministry for Primary Industries is the Event Premium Sponsor and facilitates the pre-conference ETS User Forum, with further support from a broad group of sector sponsors including Trimble Forestry, Anderson Lloyd, Ekos, Marex and the Bioeconomy Science Institute (Scion).
The audience spans forest managers and investors, farm, iwi and land managers, consulting foresters, accountants and investment managers, legal and financial professionals, large carbon emitters, and policymakers. The two-day agenda opens with a pre-conference ETS User Forum facilitated by Te Uru Rakau, then moves through sessions on the natural capital asset class, climate policy settings, ETS implementation, carbon value forecasting, international carbon buyers, and voluntary and nature-finance markets. Day two features a Ministerial Address by Hon Simon Watts, Minister of Climate Change, alongside speakers from the Climate Change Commission, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Ekos, Marex and Stand Forestry, and closes with a workshop on managing fire risk in carbon forests co-facilitated by Te Uru Rakau and Fire and Emergency New Zealand.
The conference is held at the Distinction Rotorua Hotel, 390 Fenton Street, set in garden grounds a few minutes from the Rotorua city centre. The organiser notes free on-site parking is available but limited, with hotel guests given priority. Discounted delegate accommodation is offered at the Distinction itself, and the boutique Avero Rotorua sits about 100 metres away, directly opposite the hotel carpark, within easy walking distance of the sessions. Rotorua is served by Rotorua Airport with domestic connections, placing the venue within a straightforward transfer of both the airport and the wider Bay of Plenty.
As a repeat 300-plus-delegate business conference anchored to a single Rotorua host hotel, Carbon Forestry 2026 is a solid example of a specialist primary-industry event driving regional business-events demand outside the main-centre convention circuit. Its consistent return to Rotorua, government and ministerial engagement, and multi-year sponsor base make it a reliable annual fixture on the North Island MICE calendar.
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