Scholarship celebrates Aspinall's enthusiasm

A new $5000 annual scholarship has been established by the New Zealand Walking Access Commission and the Mt Aspiring Station family of the late John Aspinall to support study on public access to the outdoors and on New Zealand's farming heritage.

NZWAC chairman John Forbes said yesterday the scholarship celebrated Mr Aspinall's enthusiasm for farming, the land, and access to the outdoors.

''It is our hope that this scholarship will provide a chance for a student to study a topic that will contribute to greater understanding of the benefits of improved relationships between urban and rural New Zealand,'' he said.

The scholarship will be managed by Universities New Zealand and available to students enrolled in honours, master's or doctoral programmes.