25 September 2023
DOIA 2324‐0520
Public Member
fyi‐request‐24039‐[email address]
Tēnā koe
Thank you for your email on 5 September 2023 to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment,
under the Official Information Act 1982, for the following information:
Following the FIFA Women's World Cup, I'm curious to see the agreement documents, meeting
notes, email communications, memos, ministerial briefs etc held by MBIE for the Trees That Count
‐ Greatest Goal project (https://treesthatcount.co.nz/crowdfund/greatest‐
goal?offset=0&page=1&limit=10&activeTab=About
). I'm specifically interested to know: The total
goal for the project is 64,000 trees, how was the goal set? Did the FIFA organisation influence the
goal number? Does the FIFA organisation benefit (i.e. carbon offsets/credits for the tournament)
from the total number of trees donated to the Greatest Goal project? I assume MBIE collaborated
with MPI Te Uru Rākau for their significant contribution to the project, could I have documents,
email correspondence, meeting minutes and transcripts held by MBIE relating to this agreement?
MBIE has undertaken some initial work and assessment to understand what material is held by MBIE that
may be in scope of your request. Due to the large amount of material encompassed we would like to
consult with you about narrowing the scope of your request to ensure that you receive the
documentation you require rather than a very large response that includes all project documentation.
MBIE has not yet made a decision on your request.
At this stage we are able to provide a partial response answering the specific questions included in your
request which may assist you to narrow or refine the scope of documents you would like to request.
Q1 The total goal for the project is 64,000 trees, how was the goal set? Did the FIFA organisation influence
the goal number?
FIFA had no influence over project decisions, including the goal set for crowdfunding for the number of
native plants.
The Greatest Goal project is part of the government’s Leverage and Legacy programme. The programme
is designed to celebrate and maximise the benefits of co‐hosting the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia
and New Zealand 2023™.
Labour, Science and Enterprise 15 Stout Street, PO Box 1473, Wellington 6140 New Zealand
E [email address]
W www.mbie.govt.nz
The MBIE project team set the goal – the intent was to set a goal that was both positive and achievable
and had a connection to the nature of the event and as such it was decided to set a target to plant a
certain number of trees for each team in the tournament (there were 32 teams) and the team decided on
2,000 native plants per team (for a total of 64,000 plants) as that was more aspirational than 1,000 per
team.
Q2 Does the FIFA organisation benefit (i.e. carbon offsets/credits for the tournament) from the total
number of trees donated to the Greatest Goal project?
No, it does not. As stated above, this is an independent government project. The project was not
designed to offset carbon or provide credits for any international travel
or for any organisation, but rather
for people that wanted to celebrate the teams and / or leave a positive legacy from the tournament
through native trees and improved biodiversity
.
Q3 I assume MBIE collaborated with MPI Te Uru Rākau for their significant contribution to the project,
could I have documents, email correspondence, meeting minutes and transcripts held by MBIE relating to
this agreement?
Yes, MBIE initially worked with MPI Te Uru Rākau in relation to its significant contribution of native plants
to the project. However, MBIE is the funder of the project and was not the delivery agency. The
Department of Conservation (DOC) was the project lead and Crown delivery agency. It is DOC that
commissioned Trees that Count to deliver the project and MPI had a contractual relationship with Trees
that Count for its donation. MBIE only had a contract with DOC for the delivery of the project.
Having reviewed the above, can you please clarify any specific topics or kinds of information that you
would like to receive further information about or any further questions that would like answered. Please
respond by 2 October.
We note you seem to be most interested in the agreement documents between MBIE and other agencies
that worked on the Trees that Count The Greatest Goal project and any information about any benefit to
FIFA as an organisation with regard to carbon offsets or carbon credits. As noted above, FIFA was not
involved in the project design and received no carbon credits or offsets as a result of the project so MBIE
does not hold any information regarding this. With respect to agreements between MBIE and other
parties involved in the project, the only contract MBIE holds is that between DOC and MBIE in relation to
the funding for and delivery of the project.
Our suggestion would be to request copies of core documents regarding the contract between MBIE and
DOC, however you may be seeking other information or want to request other documents and it would
be very helpful to understand more specifically what you require.
If you do not agree to a refining of the scope then MBIE is likely to refuse the remaining aspects of your
request in reliance on section 18(f) of the Act, as the information requested cannot be made available
without substantial collation or research.
We are more than happy to discuss this request with you further, to better understand exactly what
information you are looking for. You are welcome to contact MBIE at [email address]
Ngā mihi nui
Kylie Hawker‐Green
Manager, Major Events
Labour, Science and Enterprise, MBIE
