The Hummingbird Award is presented annually to volunteers who have demonstrated exceptional and tireless commitment through their actions and example, inspiring others to ‘do what they can’ in the creation of a world that is socially just, culturally rich, and ecologically restorative.

The name of the award is based on the story of hummingbird in a forest fire, which is loosely as follows:

There was once a forest fire that was so big, that it was sure to burn the forest to the ground. All of the animals that lived there could only watch as their home disappeared before their eyes. Then there was a hummingbird, the smallest of the animals in the forest, which was flying down to the river, filling its beak with the drop of water it could carry and dropping it onto the fire. The other animals said “why are you doing that, you will never put out the fire with a small amount of water”, and the hummingbird responded with “I’m doing what I can”.