Proactive Engagement

Our Engagement Advisors bring the Foundation to all parts of Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Tai Tokerau. Their role is to support groups and organisations to access the funding and services the Foundation offers, and to intentionally seek out community stakeholders and change agents, community-led initiatives and opportunities that address priority areas of shared interest.

For those new to our funding process, the journey starts well before a grant request is drafted and is grounded in conversations to get to know and understand a group and its kaupapa. Where there is eligibility, shared interest in impact and good alignment to our strategy, different funding pathways are explored, and our Advisors will stay the course to work with an organisation new to Foundation North to help get them ready to apply.

Our knowledgeable team of Funding Support Advisors is available by phone and email to assist applicants and grantees on all things funding – checking alignment with our strategy, guidance on accessing and navigating our Funding Hub, help submitting an application or clarifying grant payments and conditions. The team also offers monthly kanohi ki te kanohi AWHI sessions with community groups hosted at our whare, Allendale House. This offers an opportunity for groups to share their ideas in-person and get advice on the next steps for their initiative.

Our Funding Support Advisor – Pacific is dedicated to helping Pacific groups successfully apply for funding from Foundation North through an intentional relational approach. Activities this year have included one-to-one, in-person engagement with groups, Pacific AWHI sessions, a series of three structured workshops to guide applicants through to submitting a complete funding request, and participation in relevant forums and network fono across our priority communities of South Auckland and Te Tai Tokerau.

Occasionally staff have the opportunity to hikoi to corners of our rohe that are not traditionally well-served by agencies. Last November, rōpū representing Ngāti Kuri and Te Rarawa were our generous hosts as a small group of staff journeyed north to learn about their mahi and deepen our understanding of the unique challenges and opportunities as kaitiaki of their environment and protectors of the taonga species endemic to their rohe.

In March we supported and attended the two-day Climate Action Tai Tokerau conference, which explored energy independence for the rohe, kai sovereignty and regenerative food systems, political voice and advocacy, greater connections for and with rangatahi, and ecosystems and biodiversity.

Foundation North co-hosted two network hui last September and October to mark the release of our 2023/24 Annual Report. We had the pleasure of being welcomed as manuhiri, alongside representatives of many local community organisations, to Papakura Marae and Hihiaua Cultural Centre, Whangārei.

Papakura Marae extended an invitation for us to participate in their Christmas at the Pā event in December,and in February we joined with our partners from Rule Foundation in setting out our stall to enjoy the fun of The Big Gay Out in Auckland.

Foundation North has engaged, alongside other interested funders, in the Ocean Funders Rōpū, supporting Pou Rāhui (an Iwi collective of Ngāti Pāoa, Ngāti Hei, Ngāti Tamaterā, and Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki) to develop a business case to address the increasing threat of the invasive seaweed Caulerpa - a growing threat to the health of the Gulf and to the success of all restoration projects in their rohe.

We also enabled a coordinated approach to Caulerpa, with co-funding alongside BNZ Foundation, so that the Mussel Reef Restoration Trust could bring on board a dedicated expert to support Iwi and community response to Caulerpa.