Award-winning New Zealand writer and photographer, Neville Peat is well underway researching and writing for his latest project “The Invading Sea” and says he couldn’t do it without the financial contribution he has received from Copyright Licensing New Zealand (CLNZ).
In 2016, Neville was presented with the CLNZ Writers’ Award at the inaugural Writers Forum in Auckland. Neville received $25,000 towards his project, one of the highest non-fiction prizes in New Zealand literature. The book will cover the highly topical subject of climate-change science, focusing on sea-level rise and what New Zealand can do to prepare for it.
Funding for the award comes from CLNZ’s Cultural Fund which derives revenue from CLNZ’s licensing activity in New Zealand. The licensed copying of copyright material helps to fund the creation of new work.
“It was a huge surprise to hear I had won” says Neville. “Most New Zealanders live close to the coast and love the beach, so my aim for this book is to try and give people information about global warming – from the science of climate change to planning and policy solutions. This story has a clear message and one I hope will educate people on how we can prepare for a time when the seas are higher.”
Neville believes that without the financial contribution he has received from CLNZ, he wouldn’t be able to undertake this kind of project. “The funding from CLNZ totally enables me to do this project. It’s not just a desk job, I need to get around the coastline, interview people and get to the frontline of our coastal vulnerability.”
I certainly wouldn’t have tackled a project like this without the financial support of CLNZ.
Neville sees this book as giving back to New Zealand – in a way, contributing to New Zealand’s future. “With this project, it feels like the money I received from CLNZ is helping make New Zealanders more aware of the environmental challenges ahead of us.”
He continues, “CLNZ collects licensing fees from people and organisations copying licensed material, and distributes it back to the people who create the work, which then gets reinvested in to new work, and the circle continues.”
CEO Paula Browning agrees, “the awards and grants the CLNZ Cultural Fund provides contributes to the New Zealand publishing industry by giving writers time to write and by investing in other projects that support New Zealand writing and publishing. We’re delighted that this award went to a New Zealand writer who is able to bring a complex subject to both New Zealand overseas readers”.
Did you know?
$185,000 was distributed from the CLNZ Cultural Fund in 2016.