Located in Brisbane, QLD, what sets Kiba Built apart from other building companies is their intimate approach to building. They understand that each project isn’t just another job but someones dream taking shape. Their story is one of dedication, and a genuine love of building. With a small but highly experienced team, Kiba ensure attention to detail, avoiding the pitfalls of being too large to care or too small to handle the pressures of the industry.

We recognise that our company has an environmental footprint, especially considering the land cleared for new homes and the materials used in their construction. That’s why we’re committed to giving back to the environment and minimising our impact wherever we can. Green-spaces are what make Australia such a unique and beautiful place to live, and we believe it’s crucial to preserve and protect them for future generations.

Kirsty Paterson | Managing Director | Kiba Built

We love the fact, that Kiba Built recognises the impact the building industry has on the landscape and are working towards reducing that impact by becoming partners with Fifteen Trees. We are planting 15 trees for every new build and ensuring the trees are being planted in the state in which the company operates. Beautiful Queensland!

Booroobin, QLD | 60 trees | 2026

On Jinibarra Country in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland, a dedicated group of volunteers is doing the kind of work that is making an enormous difference to the native landscape. Between 30 and 50 volunteers turned up across numerous planting days to plant 500 native trees, of which 60 were generously donated by Kiba Build.

Hinterland Bush Links works across properties throughout the hinterland, partnering with landholders who care about what’s happening on their land. Their most recent planting took place at Booroobin which features a natural spring that forms part of the headwaters of the Mary River. The revegetation around the spring and headwater areas will help stabilise soils, reduce erosion and protect water quality in the Mary River catchment downstream. The quality of the water filtering through the ground into the Mary River all depends upon what happens here.

The species planted reflect the ecological complexity of the Sunshine Coast Hinterland. At least 20% of every planting in known koala habitat areas consists of koala food and habitat trees – blue gums, grey gums, tallow-woods, brush box and swamp box. Pioneer and rainforest species including bleeding heart, acacias and sandpaper figs fill out the rest of the mix, building the layered structure that a healthy ecosystem needs to establish and sustain itself.

Koalas are the headline species here, and the Sunshine Coast Hinterland is critical habitat for them. Koalas are what ecologists call an umbrella species, meaning that protecting their habitat also protects the dozens of other species that share it. Species such as Greater gliders, sugar gliders, brushtail and ringtail possums, echidnas, microbats, black cockatoos, king parrots, lorikeets, tawny frogmouths and kookaburras all live in this landscape. Every tree planted here is doing work for all of them.

We are incredibly grateful to supporters of Fifteen Trees for generously sponsoring the tube stock that made this community planting event possible. Your support is helping us restore vital koala habitat and strengthen biodiversity across the Sunshine Coast Hinterland.

We’d also like to acknowledge the landholders who continue caring for these trees long after the planting day is over – their ongoing commitment is essential to the long-term success of these restoration projects.

Finally, a heartfelt thank you to all the volunteers who gave their time and energy to do something truly selfless for the environment. These events are about far more than planting trees – they build community, connection, and hope for the future.

Louise Court | Project Officer | Hinterland Bush Links

Hinterland Bush Links has been restoring native ecosystems across the Sunshine Coast Hinterland for years. The results are visible in the wildlife returning, the vegetation thickening, and the community of volunteers that keeps showing up.

Daintree, QLD | 225 trees | 2025

Daintree Life in conjunction with local community volunteers planted these trees at Newell QLD which is also known as Nulu Country. It is part of a bigger restoration project called The Bells Road Project.

The trees were planted over a number of days and weeks, during which 121 people attended. This number also included various school groups who are learning about;

• the geography of the local area,
• what wildlife are specific to the area,
• how the tree planting will provide ongoing food resource and habitat for the wildlife,
• the importance of various tree species specific to invertebrates that rely solely on an individual species for food resource, and
• the positive effects of tree planting in relation to carbon sequestration and climate change.

Daintree Life planted a large variety of indigenous tree species specific to the area with approximately 70 mixed species including figs, Eucalypts, Melaleucas, Acacias and other species such as Red Cedar, Brown Silky Oak, Brown Pine, Golden Penda to name a few.

This planting site is in the Lower Daintree rainforest area of Tropical Far North Queensland with a waterway which feeds directly to the Great Barrier Reef. The site where the revegetation work is being conducted is part of a large farm area which was previously cleared for cane and cattle farming; however, the area is very low lying and is not suitable for hooved animal farming. The landowners have chosen to return this area of the property back to authentic rainforest, compete with State Government protection, which has been included to the title deeds of the property ensuring protection for perpetuity.

We are eternally grateful to Fifteen Trees and their sponsors who continue to support our work. Without this ongoing support we cannot continue to do what we do in revegetation, expanding habitat and improving the environment of our unique area and supporting our local wildlife.

Connie Pinson | Partner and Founder | Daintree Life

The land was unsuitable for farmland and due to an overburden of weeds and has also not been of benefit for wildlife as habitat or a food resource. But by replacing the weeds with forest, it will provide both habitat and food.

Due to the nature of its existing on a waterway, the planting of forest will:

• help clean the waterway itself,
• prevent agricultural runoff and sediment from reaching The Great Barrier Reef,
• create a significant area for carbon sequestration and restore ecological significance.

Numerous bird species have been observed and taking advantage of the revegetation. These species include, but are not limited to: Yellow-bellied Sunbirds, Greater Egrets, Willie wagtails, Rainbow Bee-eaters, multiple species of Kingfishers and Masked Lapwings. Graceful tree frogs and Rocket frogs are regularly sighted within the planting areas. There is lots of evidence of Bandicoot diggings between trees and on the edges. A Water Python has been sighted in the revegetation area.  Numerous species of butterflies and dragonflies have been observed within the area. In the future as trees attain additional height and begin flowering and fruiting, the entire area will provide a valuable food resource for Spectacled Flying-foxes which are a federally listed endangered species.

Cassowary Coast, QLD | 180 trees | 2024

Recently, 180 native trees were planted in a lowland tropical forest environment at Tully on the Cassowary Coast, QLD thanks to Kiba’s sponsorship. This is traditional land of the Gulgnay People. The trees were planted as part of a revegetation project in a community park at Tully, along a manmade creek that flows onto the Great Barrier Reef.

These trees will:

• improve water quality in the creek,
• reduce invasive weeds and limit fire risk across the site,
• provide sanctuary and food sources for native wildlife and
• extend and enhance a longer corridor for animals to safely travel.

Over 30 different native species of trees and shrubs were planted. They included: Blue Quandongs, Queensland Maples, Blue Gingers, Dianella, Black Beans, Cordylines, Flame Trees, Figs, Glochidons, Ulysses Butterfly Trees, Umbrella Trees and a large variety of Acacias/wattles.

Thank you to all sponsors of Fifteen Trees. We seriously couldn’t do it without you! Thank you for caring about our natural world and helping us create native habitats for our unique Australian animals.

Brett Krause | Founder | Brettacorps

In the same way it takes multiple people and groups to develop a building project, so too does it take the effort and commitment of many to create a forest. We are glad to work with a builder that recognises the interconnectedness of all things. By sponsoring trees, Kiba Built is not only reducing its business impact on the environment, but also enabling Queensland Landcare Groups to plan and complete vital land management projects.

If you would like to know more about sponsoring community tree planting projects and how we can assist you in becoming a more sustainable business, please contact Colleen at <[email protected]>.

Writer: Colleen B. Filippa

With a background in Environmental Science, Colleen is the Founding Director of Fifteen Trees. In 2009, after 20 years in primary, secondary and tertiary education institutions, Colleen left the classroom to start the company. Fifteen Trees is a social enterprise assisting individuals and companies to reduce their carbon footprint by supporting community groups such as Landcare, schools and environmental networks.