People are being called upon to show their support for the embattled Department of Conservation through a ''Love Doc Day'' today in an effort to get the Government to cancel the latest round of job cuts.
Forest and Bird is asking people to head to their Doc office between noon and 2pm with messages of support for the department, which late last month was hit by another round of restructuring and job cuts.
Forest and Bird Dunedin spokesman Mark Hanger said it was a celebration of Doc staff's hard work and to show how unacceptable people found the cuts. Dunedin's Doc office could be downgraded and 20% of its staff cut, he said.
He urged people to visit the Doc office, in Stuart St, Dunedin and write a message which would be stuck to the department's front door.
The aim was to make the Government think twice about reducing the department's budget in its upcoming national budget decisions and drop the cuts.
''We want to make it abundantly clear that we do not accept [Doc's] relying on corporate sponsorship and volunteers to run what is a core role of central government.''
It was hoped similar support activities would be held at Doc offices around Otago.
If people were unable to visit Doc offices, similar messages could be left online on Forest and Bird's website. Already 20,000 people had done so, he said.
