Help build a socially inclusive Aotearoa, New Zealand

 

There are many people in our beautiful country who are made to feel like they don’t fit in. This could be because society is not structured well enough for them to move around easily, or because their culture is not treated with respect, or they are treated with suspicion because of how they look. There are any number of big and small ways that people feel excluded, and the Inclusive Aotearoa Collective want to hear and reflect both feelings of inclusion and exclusion. Most importantly, they want to know what needs to change so that everyone feels that they can thrive in this country they call home.

Inclusive Aotearoa Collective Tāhono is a project that was conceived after the March 15th Christchurch tragedy when the nation witnessed the depth of divisiveness, intolerance and hate that exists in our society. But March 15th also unified Aotearoa in aroha, and many felt a conviction that this must never happen again.

This project builds on that impetus, to create a national Strategy on Belonging and Inclusion. This will help to build a social movement that creates lasting change by enabling each person and community to claim their place in Aotearoa New Zealand, while recognising the right of others to do so too.

The friendly Inclusive Aotearoa Collective team of four includes Anjum, Nona, Sara and Talie. They are organising conversations around belonging, analysing what people have said, and using it to develop a national strategy to guide the change process.

Left to right: Nona Morris, Anjum Rahman, and strategy development advisor Sandra James in the first phase of the project in 2019.

Left to right: Nona Morris, Anjum Rahman, and strategy development advisor Sandra James in the first phase of the project in 2019.

“We have a lot of experience in facilitating conversations and making sure everyone in the room is heard. We also have a fabulous group of volunteers who are helping us with communications, policy writing, organising and hosting conversations, and various important pieces of this project.”

“Once we have a strategy, we will be using the Constellation Model to create community-led work hubs made up of diverse groups of individuals and organisations. Each hub will be focused on a single theme or goal regarding inclusion. These hubs will determine their own programmes and actions” says Anjum.

This year, the Inclusive Aotearoa Collective are travelling around the country to hold conversations with New Zealand.

“We want to find out from all kinds of people how well they belong and if things need to change to improve their sense of belonging. We are visiting 45 towns and cities across the country, so that we can reach a wide range of people. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, we would love to spend time talking with you!” says Anjum.

The conversations will be held around the country from late February to the end of September 2020. These conversations are happening in 45 towns and cities. They will be in the Waikato at various times through the year so contact Inclusive Aotearoa Collective if you would like to host a conversation. They hope to launch the Strategy by early 2021, and then begin work on developing the constellations.

Please get involved in this project if you care about creating a society that works for everyone, where people don’t have to face discrimination or hatred, where systems and structures work so that everyone can participate fully in all the things that are important to them.

 
 
Lisa Ryan