The Avian Empire Hospital
The Avian Empire Charitable Trust CC63205 is a New Zealand-registered charity founded by veterinarian Dr Sam Hurley and designer-rehabber Jemma McLean, co-founders of Avian Empire.
Our mission is simple but powerful: to protect and restore birdlife across Aotearoa by bridging the gap between conservation and clinical care.
We believe environmental health and avian wellbeing are inseparable, by caring for individual birds, we strengthen species survival; by healing habitats, we give birds a place to belong.
Through research, rehabilitation, and reforestation, we’re building a future where both native and companion birds can thrive in safe, healthy environments, and where expert care and education are accessible to everyone who loves them.
About the Avian Empire Charitable Trust
Our Projects
The Avian Empire Hospital
We’re raising funds to build New Zealand’s first completely not-for-profit avian-only hospital, a purpose-built facility in Auckland dedicated to treating pet, wild, and rehabilitating birds.
The hospital will provide expert veterinary care to the public, supported by a specialised rehabilitation wing for all bird species, from native wildlife to backyard chickens.
It will also serve as a teaching and research hub, training the next generation of avian veterinarians and wildlife professionals while advancing knowledge in avian medicine, welfare, and conservation.
1% Wilder
Our flagship environmental project, 1 % Wilder, aims to restore 1 % of Aotearoa’s native forest by purchasing, replanting, and protecting land.
Each site will become a predator-protected sanctuary, a safe haven where birds can nest, feed, and live freely. This project directly supports rewilding, carbon capture, and biodiversity restoration, giving our native species the chance to reclaim their natural homes.
Board of Trustees
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Jemma McLean (Founder and Trustee)
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Sam Hurley (Founder and Trustee)
