Tēnā koutou katoa,
Ahakoa he iti, he pounamu – although it is small, it is precious.
I want to express my deepest condolences and respects to the whānau of the late Kiingi Tūheitia Potatau te Wherowhero te tua whitu, as well as acknowledge the kotahitanga displayed by iwi Māori and all who attended the tangihanga at Tuurangawaewae Marae.
My thoughts are also with Te Arikinui Kuini Nga Wai Hono i te Po, our eighth monarch, during this time, and want to express my greatest confidence in her leadership and ability to continue the work of the Kiingitanga.
As this generational change took place, the small changes that remind us that the season is changing started to happen. Our busy lives and the fast-paced environments we live and work in can make it easy to overlook these changes. Sometimes, by the time you look up, it can feel like a new season has arrived without warning.
The same sentiment can apply to our mahi throughout the year. We have all been planting and nurturing seeds of change, navigating the present and gathering ourselves for what’s to come.
As we prepare to welcome all things new, I am reminded to notice the signs of progress around me. They are always there, we just need to look.
In this edition of The Dial, we share new and upcoming kaupapa that have come to fruition over the winter months, including three new capability building resources.
These include a Funding Guide, a ‘Capability Wheel’ that houses resources to strengthen your organisational abilities to deliver social impact, and a Core Skills Toolkit for new and small community organisations. Commissioned by Foundation North to support their grantees, these resources are now available for the wider not-for-profit sector.
Karinia Lee, Head of Centre | Kaihautu
Centre for Social Impact
New to Te Pūaha o te Ako - a guide, a toolkit and a wheel!
Our knowledge hub, Te Pūaha o te Ako has some informative new resources designed to help community organisations build capability and find the support they need.
The funding guide
The search for funding is a never-ending journey for many not-for-profits. Finding the right funder and taking the right steps to apply for funding can be a challenge. Our Funding Guide provides information on funders, what they are looking for, the types of funding available and how to identify which funders are most likely to support your type of organisation or project. The guide provides a checklist of the documents and information you want to have ready for your applications, and some helpful tips to make your life a little easier when you’re seeking funding. Access the Funding Guide here.
Core skills toolkit
When you are leading a small or new community or not-for-profit organisations, you want to get the fundamentals right. The Core Skills Toolkit outlines key areas where you will want to consider developing some core skills: Te Tiriti; community engagement; strategic planning; evaluation and measuring impact; communicating your work; working in a culturally responsive way, and; wellbeing/hauora. The toolkit provides a brief explanation of each area followed by a list of questions to help you think through how these apply to your organisation. A guide to getting started in each area is provided along with links to free online resources. Check out the Core Skills Toolkit here.
The capability support wheel
If you’re looking to strengthen your organisational capabilities to deliver social impact, you will find a myriad of publications, websites, courses and organisations available. Our new Capability Wheel has links to a curated selection of resources; generic resources available online, targeted support such as professional development training, and tailored support, such as coaching, mentoring or consultancy services designed to meet the specific needs of individuals or organisations. The wheel includes sections on: vision, mission and strategy; governance and leadership; strategic relationships; internal operations and management; service delivery and impact, and; resource development. Te Tiriti o Waitangi and climate action considerations are incorporated across each topic. Explore the Capability Wheel here.
Te Pūaha Talks – what’s coming up
Our busy schedule of Te Pūaha Talks talks continues with two more coming up in September.
Working together better – collaboration in action
9am - 10am Wednesday 18 September
Hosted by CSI Associate, Miranda Cassidy-O’Connell, this webinar will explore how to work collaboratively with people and organisations that share a kaupapa. Miranda has extensive experience working collaboratively across diverse fields, and brings the additional insights gained from facilitations using the globally renowned Future Search process. Register here.
Te reo o te taiao - the language of the environment
12pm - 1pm Thursday 26 September
Hosted by Climate Action Co-Lead, Arohanui West. This will explore tohu (signs) that we observe in the natural world, how these are viewed in mātauranga Māori, and how climate change compromises indigenous knowledge systems. Register here.
Recent talks now online include: Climate action - Get Sh*t Done! - two 45-minute sessions facilitated by Climate Action Co-Lead Esther Whitehead on how to put the action into climate action for your organisation; Evaluation; Fibre Fale’s Hibiscus Impact Model – hosted by Rachael Trotman, ‘Emeline Unga, Julia Arnot-Neenee and Nu’uali’i Eteroa Lafaele, this webinar looks at Fibre Fale’s Hibiscus Impact Model, “grounded in Pacific values and knowledge yet relatable from Western frames.”
CSI year in review 2023/24
Our Centre for Social Impact impact summary for 2023/2024 is now available. This provides an overview of the work we do with funders and community partners to build powerful partnerships, strengthen internal capabilities and track and report impact effectively.
This year we have also produced an outputs and impact summary for our multi-disciplinary social impact knowledge and practice hub, Te Pūaha o te Ako. This reviews the open source sector support we provide via Impact and Insights resources, Te Pūaha Talks, and our podcast series produced in collaboration with HuiE!.
View the year in review PDF's here.
TenforTen – our birthday podcast series
Over the ten years since CSI was founded, we have been privileged to work with many of the people who are making a difference in Aotearoa New Zealand – and to kōrero with many more. To celebrate our tenth birthday, we are producing a podcast series, TenforTen, ten conversations that capture some of their wisdom, their perspective on our society, their mahi, and their hopes for the future. Our first podcast; an interview with our brilliant Associate, Te Aorangi Murphy-Fell. In addition to being General Manager of Haemata, a Māori language, education and capability-building consultancy, and deputy chair of Bay Trust. Te Aorangi talks about being home-schooled in te reo, his university experience, and his decision to move from his original career choice, international finance, to focus on the revitalisation of te reo and bringing a te ao Māori perspective to governance. Te Aorangi’s podcast is available on Spotify or can be viewed online.
Climate Action Survey
Ah another email survey! This is not a marketing survey but a golden ticket to understanding your climate action needs in the NFP sector; the barriers we’re all tackling together, and how Climate Action Aotearoa can support the sector. Please let us know your thoughts with just a few clicks and be in to win a peer learning session for your board members and senior management on climate action, and climate governance. We thank you for your response, it will help us to tailor the free climate resources on our website to meet your needs. Thank you, we value your time. Take the survey here.
A funder collaboration for participatory grantmaking
A panel of seven rangatahi Māori aged 17 - 24 are preparing to launch their participatory grantmaking fund, Te Māhuri o te Taiao - The Seedlings of the Environment, next month. Guided by the whakatauakī, He pihinga i te onemata, ka puāwai - A seedling planted in fertile soil will thrive, the panel have been hard at work designing and developing a fund that supports taiao revitalisation initiatives in Northern Kaipara through full-day wānanga facilitated by Shirleyanne Brown and Jordan Moon from Wot Matters.
The panel says, “Our vision is to support our whānaunga in the Kaipara through a Te Ao Māori lens, learning new things to deepen understanding of our relationship with taiao, ensuring the health, wealth, and wellbeing of both whānau and taiao to thrive for future generations.”
A co-funding partnership between Foundation North, Clare Foundation, and the SkyCity Auckland Community Trust, this bespoke fund will make $200,000 in grants available to successful applicants. More information on this fund will be available on the Foundation North website in September.
Developing a successful social investment approach
Ākina has recently released a white paper, Developing a successful social investment approach: Supercharging social investment in Aotearoa New Zealand. The paper provides a detailed analysis of how social investment could work in New Zealand, offering insights into its benefits, challenges, and opportunities. It is designed to inform political leadership, policymakers, investors, nonprofit organisations, and other stakeholders about the critical role social investment can play in driving sustainable social and economic development.
Youth in Philanthropy (YIP) – annual retreat
Want to grow your network, engage in professional development, and spend time nurturing your hauora with like-valued people from across the sector? Youth in Philanthropy(YIP) are encouraging under-35’s working in, and adjacent to, the philanthropic and local government sectors to register for it’s second annual retreat, to be held in Greater Wellington from 26 September to 28 September. YIP has emerged as an independent organisation from Philanthropy New Zealand’s Youth Advisory Group with an aim to ‘radically reimagine Aotearoa’s philanthropic systems in order to shift power and wealth back into communities’. Register your spot here.
Empowering our Communities, Amplifying Change
Community Governance Aotearoa is inviting leaders who serve and govern in the community sector to this networking event in Rotorua, 11 and 12 November. A full programme is being developed which will feature keynote talks, problem-solving and collaborative discussions. Registrations are now open.
Creating a Safe Workplace: Responding to Bullying
Dealing with bullying or harassment at work is essential for keeping workplaces healthy and positive. This guide, developed by Diversity Works NZ, offers practical advice on how organisations can handle these issues effectively.
How to build a campaign website
A website can be a useful tool to support an advocacy campaign, providing space for outlining your campaign objectives and key messages, and alerting your audience to events. Your website can also be a place of connection, and a resource repository. ActionStation’s recent webinar, How to build a campaign website, provides a useful ‘how to’ introduction to getting a campaign website up and running. The webinar is available for viewing here.