Eurobodalla Shire Council’s Wagonga Inlet Living Foreshore project has picked up a trio of accolades at the recent Australian Institute of Landscape Architects (AILA) NSW Awards.
The project at Narooma, by REALMstudios, received the 2025 Minister of Planning and Public Spaces Award for Public Space, a Climate Positive Design Award and an Award of Excellence for Land Management.
Led by the Council, the project reimagines the Narooma foreshore as a living, adaptive, and ecologically rich shoreline. Through a coordinated and cross-disciplinary approach, it brings together shoreline restoration, saltmarsh rehabilitation, oyster reef restoration and bank stabilisation — creating a resilient estuarine landscape in readiness for a changing climate.
NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully, had high praise for the project.
“The Wagonga Inlet Living Shoreline is an example of local leadership delivering real, lasting outcomes for NSW,” said Mr Scully.
“The project embodies design excellence, sustainability, and equity. By restoring and protecting the foreshore, the project has bolstered the coastlines ecological resilience while also supporting the local economy and eco-tourism through sustainable aquaculture.
“It’s created a safe, inclusive and accessible space where the environment and community thrive together.
“Wagonga Inlet is not only a local success but a model for how we can deliver coastal resilience and climate adaptation to build better communities across NSW.”
The awards citation notes: “The Wagonga Inlet Living Foreshore sets a new benchmark in coastal resilience, combining ecological restoration, community stewardship and technical innovation. Reimagining a degraded estuarine edge as a regenerative landscape, the project pioneers Australia’s first adjacent intertidal and subtidal reefs and NSW’s first native angasi oyster reef. Through collaborative leadership, it delivers tangible ecological outcomes — improved water quality, revived habitat networks and strengthened shoreline protection — while honouring cultural values and empowering local participation. This living shoreline exemplifies how landscape architecture can lead transformative climate responses, shifting from hard infrastructure to nature-based design. Deeply embedded in Country, the project reconciles coastal pressures with environmental performance and social connection — demonstrating the profound role of landscape in shaping a resilient future.”
The project was delivered in partnership with Traditional Owners, local volunteers, community groups, businesses, and all levels of government.
All winners of an AILA NSW Award will now proceed to the National Landscape Architecture Awards, to be announced in October in Hobart/Nipaluna.
