Girls* on Ice Aotearoa NZ

The Girls* on Ice team on Mt Ruapehu, January 2026. Photo by Maria O'Toole
The Girls* on Ice team on Mt Ruapehu, January 2026. Photo by Maria O'Toole
Girls* on Ice is part of Inspiring Girls* Expeditions, an international programme empowering young women through science, art, and outdoor exploration. The programme originated in the USA, and is now also operating in Canada, Switzerland, Austria, Central Asia and New Zealand. Girls* aged 15-16 years can join tuition-free expeditions that interweave field science, art, and backcountry travel.

The 2026 Girls* on Ice Aotearoa New Zealand expedition ran in January 2026. We selected ten girls* from throughout New Zealand to join the ten-day expedition to Mount Ruapehu.

The 2027 expedition is planned for January 2027. Applications to join the expedition will open in July 2026. Find out more and join the Girls* on Ice mailing list to receive news and updates, including when applications will open.

You can also help ensure future Girls* on Ice Aotearoa expeditions for budding young scientists by supporting the programme here.

See our team in action during the 2024 expedition. Video created by Rebekah Parsons-King.

The inaugural New Zealand expedition ran in January 2024, with an expedition to Mt Ruapehu in central North Island. Ten girls* from over 250 applicants were selected, based at schools throughout the country from Winton in the south to Auckland in the north. Led by a team of Antarctic Research Centre scientists, a US-based artist and an outdoor specialist, the group explored the Mt Ruapehu region through science experiments and fieldwork, artistic projects and mountain safety training. The second expedition ran in January 2025.

Comments from 2024 participants via an anonymous survey:

“I really enjoyed learning about so many different things in such a vast range of areas and it really confirmed that I want to pursue a career in environmental sciences.”

“I want to involve myself in as many things as I can. Even if I think it won't be fun, even if I really don't want to, I should just do it. What’s stopping me from participating? Who knows what I'll learn...”

“The expedition made me appreciate my life and where I live a lot more. Meeting girls with so many different backgrounds was really eye opening and I found it so cool that we bonded despite our differences. It taught me that I can be a good leader if I set my mind to it.”

The third Girls* on Ice Aotearoa New Zealand expedition ran in January 2026. Following the expedition, the team presented a talk about their week together on Mount Ruapehu, including science experiment results and artwork, to an audience at Victoria University of Wellington. You can watch the full presentation below.

You can also watch the 2025 post-expedition presentation and the 2024 post-expedition presentation .

*Girls* on Ice Aotearoa welcomes female-identifying, non-binary, and intersex students.