Toi Foundation: A commitment to rangatiratanga and growing reciprocal and enduring partnerships with iwi

The Toi Foundation (formerly TSB Community Trust) is one of twelve community trusts in Aotearoa New Zealand. It provides grant funding, impact investment, and other non-financial support to community organisations operating in the Taranaki region. Over the last five years, Toi Foundation has shifted its approach from being a “post-box” funder towards a strategic focus on equity, partnerships with tangata whenua, and more impactful models of investment into community outcomes. An intergenerational mindset has meant that Toi Foundation’s practice has an increased focus on community inter-dependence, working in relationship with community organisations, and iwi to affect systems change and achieve community aspirations. Read the Toi Foundation story below.

In the video below, Chair, Chris Ussher and Chief Executive, Maria Ramsay, describe how the trust has worked towards developing trusting, reciprocal relationships with iwi in Taranaki that are founded on purpose over funding.

NB: This is a case study from The Philanthropic Landscape Volume II: Shifting Culture and Power through Mana-Enhancing Partnerships. Read the full report here.