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Poutoko: Impact Project Update - Waikato Kai Challenge

An Update from Kai Challenge Project Activator: Amber Hammill...

SDG 13 Climate Action

Waikato ClimathonAs part of our contribution to SDG 13 Climate Action, alongside Trust Waikato, Hamilton City Council and the University of Waikato, the Waikato Wellbeing Project co-sponsored the Impact Hub’s 2023 Waikato Climathon. The second Waikato Climathon was held 2023, culminating in an ideathon at Waikato University on 20 May. WWP was a co-sponsor for the events. The ideathon was preceded by a series of events held across towns in the Waikato, supporting local climate leaders who ...

SDG 13 Climate Commons

At the 2022 Waikato Climathon (which we also co-sponsored), Sija Soman shared her ideas for a new collective impact initiative to support people and communities to take positive action to address climate change. At the Climathon, Sija’s idea won the Community Prize, which was a great encouragement to continue to develop her ideas further. Climate Commons has now been launched.It is a free collaborative platform for positive climate action which aims to inspire and support grassroots climate ac...

SDG 11 Waikato Housing Initiative- Dashboard update

Together with the Waikato Wellbeing Project, the Waikato Housing Initiative have been working to reach the region’s housing goals. Our partnership has focused on the quality and availability of high-quality information on the Waikato housing system. In 2021, the Waikato Wellbeing Project funded the development of an on-line dashboard for the system, which allows users to access data at the smallest scale available, using a highly accessible digital portal.The WHI has been working to update and...

SDG 6: Beyond the Surface

In May we shared the work being done by Deep Dive Division, in partnership with the Waikato River Authority and Waikato Tainui, to start to clean up the Waikato River by removing large scale rubbish and dumped material, including cars. To date, the programme has removed:12 cars21 tonnes of debris8 Lime scooters2 gaming machines6 bikes2 motorbikesThe Waikato Wellbeing Project has supported Deep Dive Division by co-funding the videography to share their story....

SDG 17 Partnership for the Goals The Good Day Matrix: Community Leadership Workshops

Alongside Trust Waikato and Hamilton City Council we have partnered with the Good Day Matrix to support their community leadership workshop programme.  The workshops are designed to invest in the people in our community who are doing great things and ultimately having a positive and meaningful impact. The first Community Leadership Workshop Series got underway last month with 40 amazing community leaders signed up!The 6-part workshop series kicked off with the focus of 'Who am I as a leader...

Hau Kāinga: Lots of Little Fires | He Pakipūmeka

An Update from Lead Social Innovator: Joe WilsonLast month we released the story about Shani- her journey through meth addiction and gang life and how she is now using her experiences to support rangatahi and whanau who are at risk of falling into the same trap she did.  Click on the image below to see Shani’s story:...

Waha: Using our Voice to Advocate for Positive Change

Since 2021, we have focused our engagement effort on New Zealand scale initiatives which are also motivated by the search for insight into root causes to some of our wellbeing challenges, and where there is a movement for change in the way wellbeing is led, funded and delivered. This has seen us focus on two major pieces of work:·       Productivity Commission: A Fair Chance for All- breaking the cycle of persistent disadvantage (Productivity Commission |...

World SDG Summit 2023

On 18-19 September 2023, world leaders will gather at the SDG Summit in New York for the mid-point review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the implementation of its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).The Summit is expected to adopt a political declaration that will provide a roadmap for putting the world back on track to achieve the SDGs by their 2030 deadline. The Summit will be informed by the 2023 Global Sustainable Development Report prepa...

Climate Commons Documentary Screening

The Climate Commons Movement is a nationwide collective dedicated to tackling the climate crisis through knowledge sharing, practical action, and partnerships. With a strong focus on scientific research, indigenous wisdom, and practical solutions, the movement inspires individuals, communities, and governments to work together to protect our shared resources and build a climate-resilient Aotearoa.Find out more about the screening herehttps://events.humanitix.com/climate-commons-documentary-scree...

Welcome Amber Hammill

We’re extremely delighted to announce the appointment of Amber Hammill as Project Lead for the Waikato Kai Challenge. Amber, an Australian who moved to New Zealand from Europe in the late 2010s, recently completed a PhD on older people who use the radio for company along with an exhibition of images from her research. Amber's background in research and her passion for food and community development attracted her to the role.Amber brings a wealth of experience in research and community engageme...

Kaitiaki Advisory Board - Vacancy

We have a vacancy on our Kaitiaki Advisory Board and are keen to hear from people who would like to join the Waikato wellbeing movement.We recently said farewell to Jannat Maqbool, who has been a member of the Kaitiaki Advisory Board since its inception in July 2021. Jannat brought a wealth of experience to the board across a number of important areas including digital technology, smart cities and AI, as well as her significant community leadership roles.  After more than 20 years working a...

Poutoko: Impact Project Update - The Rangatahi Opportunity

On the 12th May we will host and facilitate 15 businesses and approximately 15 youth organisations to share perspectives, have constructive conversations and develop relationships. We anticipate this will provide a strong and trusting foundation for future developments in grass roots systems change and ethical business development, with regards to safe and holistic youth employers.We will film this event and present it to a wider business audience, showcasing what “good” looks like in terms ...

Poutoko: Impact Project Update - Waikato Kai Challenge

As reported previously, we held a kai workshop with 28 stakeholders with an interest in the Waikato food system early this year. We were interested in how the Waikato kai system works and what needs to change to meet our goals.Attendees at the workshop were asked to envision what success would look like for the Waikato Kai Challenge. Comments included:·       Food charities out of business as they are no longer needed·       People gr...

Poutoko: Impact Project Update - Waikato Climathon

As part of our contribution to SDG 13 Climate Action, alongside Trust Waikato, Hamilton City Council and the University of Waikato, the Waikato Wellbeing Project is excited to again be a major co-sponsor of the Impact Hub’s Waikato Climathon. Waikato Climathon is your chance to act - and for the second year in a row, this global hackathon event is coming to the Waikato region. At the heart of Climathon is an Ideathon, where you can work in a team with fellow changemakers from across the r...

Beyond the Surface: WWP Partners with Deep Dive Division

We are excited to be supporting Deep Dive Division and their work to help clean up the Waikato River.The WWP’s SDG 6 target is to increase the number of swimmable rivers and lakes in the Waikato region from 30% (rivers) and 73% (lakes) in 2019 to both waterway types achieving more than 80% by 2030. Our 2023 update report also reported that:·       70% of the rivers in the Waikato have satisfactory overall water quality (measured by the presence of E.Coli)- no cha...

Te Ara Poutama: Funding Partnership with Trust Waikato

Work has continued to developed Te Ara Poutama. We are extremely pleased to announce that Trust Waikato has agreed to co-fund Te Ara Poutama for the next three years. The funding, which will provide $450,000 from 2023 to 2026, will allow the Wellbeing Knowledge initiative to develop and share a deeper understanding of wellbeing at both the regional and community level, empowering people with greater knowledge about their wellbeing and its key drivers.The intended impact from the initiative is th...

Hau Kāinga: Lots of Little Fires | He pakipūmeka

An Update from Lead Social Innovator: Joe WilsonWe have now released our third video story the ‘Gift of Music’ from Fairfield College where a local businessman stepped up and made the project happen by teaming up with the school and the wider business community and college alumni to fund and provide in kind support to get the programme going.The programme, Takoha Puoro, which means the ‘gift of music’, is a beautiful example of local business, school alumni and community combining their ...

SDG 7 Affordable and Clean Energy: MBIE Electricity Demand and Generation Scenarios

The Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is seeking submissions on New Zealand’s electricity demand and generation scenarios, with several changes and updates proposed in the report since it was last released.The 2023 projection of electricity demand and supply to 2050 will consider developments in new and emerging technologies such as solar, electric vehicles and green hydrogen, alongside the potential construction of offshore wind farms. MBIE’s scenarios are...

Call for Expressions of Interest: Kaitiaki Advisory Board Member

1. BackgroundThe Waikato Wellbeing Project (WWP) is a regional initiative to achieve a more environmentally sustainable, prosperous, and inclusive Waikato region. The project is led by an Executive Director, with guidance from a Kaitiaki Advisory Board. A leadership network of 25 manu taki (community outcome leaders) provides activation, direction and connection for the project.Our vision is that Our Mokopuna are Thriving and our mission is To hear our People and Transcend their Future through P...

Congratulations Tania Jones

Since last year we’ve known that our amazing Project lead Tania Jones was hapu and would be leaving us for a while to welcome her new family member into the world. We were super thrilled that Tania gave birth to a healthy young boy on Friday 3 March. Both Tania and her young pepi are doing very well. Tania has kindly shared a photo below....

Wellbeing Progress Report

In February we published our first progress report since the WWP started in 2020. The report acts as both an accountability document for our funders and stakeholders, as well as a summary of the region’s overall wellbeing progress. You can read the full report here Waikato Wellbeing Project | Waikato Wellbeing Project The report recaps the development of the WWP since then, including the development of our core operating model and strategic framework. The report shows the project’s ongoing e...

Poutoko: Impact Project Update -The Rangatahi Opportunity

Since the launch of our Case for Change in October 2022, we have shared the report with over 200 youth wellbeing stakeholders in the Waikato and beyond. The Case for Change has also been relied on by other youth organisations, such as Hamilton City Council and SEED Waikato, to guide their kaupapa. Key areas and ways where we have remained active include:Youth Friendly EmployersWWP Project Innovator Joe Wilson and Hamilton City Council Youth Advisor Zeta Mohn are co-leading the development of a y...

Poutoko: Impact Project Update - The Waikato Kai Challenge | He wero whai hua

Through 2021-22 our Manu Taki have been listening to the voices of those who experience food poverty, as well as sharing and celebrating the stories of communities who are finding ways to both feed their whānau, restore mana and knowledge about food cultivation, caring for the land and enhancing community connections.  Manu Taki for SDG 1 and 2 have undertaken a series of consultation hui to understand how we can develop kai resilience and kai sovereignty in our region including:· &n...

Pūrākau: Waikato Wellbeing Knowledge Centre | Te Ara Poutama

In early 2022 the WWP convened a cross-sector working group to review the current situation and develop options to better meet our strategic goal of sharing stories through data and insights. Research commissioned by MartinJenkins and Melde found that there is a case for change to enhance current arrangements to better understand wellbeing across the region.  Building on the Strategic Case developed by MartinJenkins we have further refined the opportunity as the confluence of empowerment, i...