The kitchen, the garden, and the local market are home to some of the most important work happening in climate change resilience, both here in Aotearoa and around the world. The Gift Trust’s donors have given our team the opportunity to meet some remarkable people working in the field of food over the past few years, and we’d like to tell you a bit about some of them.
Papawhakaritorito Charitable Trust
The link between the whenua and kai is at the heart of te ao Māori and we’ve seen an ever-growing kai sovereignty movement around the country. Our donors have supported the reintroduction of traditional gardening practices that maximise care of the land as well as the crop, and prioritises kaitiakitanga.
Dr Jessica Hutchings and Associate Professor Jo Smith run this kaupapa Māori hub of research, education and māra kai (food growing) practices in relation to Māori food, soil and seed sovereignty. Leaders in the field of Hua Parakore (Māori organics), the team at Papawhakaritorito conduct research and host education programmes on kai resilience, seed saving sustainability, and kaupapa Māori approaches to soil and kai stewardship.
The group have built Māori communities of interest about sustainable and resilient food systems and are the go-to for a kaupapa Māori approach to food, seed and soil. We’re delighted to be administering grants from some of our donors to this excellent work.
Find out more at papawhakaritorito.com.
Pacific Island Food Revolution
Colonisation and Globalisation have had a devastating impact on Pacific Island Nations. Highly processed western food has badly affected health outcomes in the region and many organisations are working to create a change in this vital space.
From the brain of celebrity chef Robert Oliver came the Pacific Island Food Revolution, a unique plan to combat the negative health outcomes brought about by unhealthy food. Robert was raised in the Pacific Islands and after a round of working as a judge on TVNZ’s My Kitchen Rules, he wondered if a competition in a similar vein would work in the Islands.
In partnership with the Asia Foundation and with funders MFAT and DFAT, Robert produced his highly successful show. Island nations compete for a national, then regional title with recipes made from local, fresh ingredients. Now running for several years, and followed with great enthusiasm across the region, the show has inspired thousands of people to grow their own vegetables and forgo fast food for fresh, Pacific food.
Find out more at pacificislandfoodrevolution.com.
Kore Hiakai
“15 – 20% of the population of Aotearoa New Zealand experiences moderate to severe food insecurity at any time”, according to food equity group Kore Hiakai. The pandemic also sharpened the food challenge for many families. These statistics led this collective of organisations to join together to address the root causes of food related poverty and work toward a food secure Aotearoa.
These champions of the community engage in a range of projects, addressing factors that lead either directly or indirectly to food insecurity, while collaborating across sectors to create food security. From celebrating community food innovations and local food economies, advocating for pay equity and adequate incomes, to equipping and resourcing treaty based solutions Kore Hiakai are involved, engaged and leading the way in systems change work. Ka pai, Kore Hiakai! Always a delight to see your work.
Find out more at zerohunger.org.nz.
Wellington City Mission
City Missioner Murray Edridge has led his organisation into an exciting new field, opening Whakamaru, a community facility offering housing, a laundry service, a social supermarket and a ‘contribute what you can’ cafe. The City Mission’s focus is ensuring people’s dignity and one of the most fascinating projects doing so is the social supermarket.
Looking just like a chain supermarket, this service gives people the opportunity to browse with a trolley, filling it as they go, but with no payment required at the till. While food parcels are a vital service, this model gives families the chance to choose the foods they prefer, rather than just what has been donated.
Social supermarkets have now been opened in thirteen locations around the country and are proving a very popular option. Supermarket company Foodstuffs provides the groceries, the shelving, signage and even the trollies to recreate a normal shopping experience.
In Whakamaru people are able to drop off their laundry to be washed, dried and folded, use the shower facilities, have a leisurely lunch at the cafe, then visit the supermarket and depart feeling well fed, warm and dry with food for the week in hand.
Be sure to visit Craig & Gail’s Café at Whakamaru next time you’re in Wellington to support their work, see the facility in action and pay it forward by covering the cost of someone else’s lunch. Or join our donors in supporting this incredible new project.
Find out more at wellingtoncitymission.org.nz.
Kwacha Kwayera Seedlings
This fascinating little group came to us via a donor, who had encountered them on her travels. Kwacha Kwayera Seedlings is a small business in Malawi producing vegetables for local markets and seedlings for farmers around their region. They grow tomatoes, eggplants, onions, okra and cabbage. But that’s not all they do. They also grow farmers!
Kwacha Kwayera offers free horticulture training to young people in their community. Their audacious goal is to train 450 young people over two years, forming cooperatives that will enhance community development. So far they have trained 60 young people, helping them overcome challenges in their schooling and basic needs through their programme. Local chiefs identify young people for the project and the business trains them, sustaining them in school and allocating space around the farm for their growing projects.
The Gift Trust team have had the opportunity to engage with the remarkable women leading this work over the past year and it’s been a pleasure to see photographs of their work and to hear stories of their efforts to foster future agricultural leaders in Malawi.
For more information on Kwacha Kwayera, contact Yvonne Trask at The Gift Trust.
Kaibosh’s ‘second harvest’
What article on food is complete without food rescue? Kaibosh, Aotearoa’s first dedicated food rescue organisation, is expanding its mahi. While they continue redistributing surplus food to those in need, (over 60,000kgs a month) they’re now taking things a step further with their ‘Second Harvest’ initiative.
Kaibosh is now going straight to the source, rescuing fruit and vegetables from partner market gardens, farms and orchards, that don’t meet stringent retail or export standards but are still perfectly good to eat. This fresh, nutritious kai is shared with over 150 community partners across the Wellington region, and some is transformed in Kaibosh Kitchens into stocks, soups, and hearty meals.
Kaibosh’s support reaches a wide network, including marae, community centres, Rangatahi programmes, after-school clubs, cooking classes, emergency housing, rehabilitation services, food banks, soup kitchens, meals for seniors, and whānau support for new parents.
Find out more at kaibosh.org.nz.
Be sure to appreciate your food today, and drop us a line to hear more about other exciting projects we support in the kitchen.
