Te Pokapū Tiaki Taiao O Te Tai Tokerau Trust (aka Far North Environment Centre) is the trust that runs the EcoCentre, and is in need of some new trustees!
The EcoCentre is the administrative home to Kaitāia TimeBank (KTB), Transition Towns Kaitāia (TTK), the Community Garden at the Community House on Puckey Ave, and Plastic Free Kaitāia 2020.
The Trust celebrates 20 years of operation this year, and looking back it has been quite a roller coaster of a history! It was originally established when there was Governmental block funding for environment centres that were established up and down the country. Over the years the funding has changed to being grant based, and for many years opportunities for funding existing operations were slim. This required a change in focus away from large projects to smaller campaigns and self funding events.
In recent years CBEC Ecosolutions and Para Kore have picked up most of work directly with schools, kura, ECE and kohanga reo so rather than try to duplicate that without the funding structure, the trust has been focusing on enabling individuals to make changes in their own lives and working towards a resilient and sustainable economy. Partnering up with KTB and TTK was an obvious way to extend the capacity of all three and led to the EcoCentre becoming the hub of activity and events that it now is.
We have had some very dedicated trustees who have seen us through some lean financial times. However there has been a noticeable shift in funding priorities and the work we’re doing is even ‘on trend’! We are now in the happy position of having funding to pay core staff on a contract basis if not yet permanently. We are in the delightful position of having a chartered accountant now in charge of our funding and finances which has eased the burden on volunteers tremendously. So unsurprisingly several of our trustees have decided that it is now time to retire from governance and management and have more time and energy for doing hands on flaxroots work instead.
So this leaves us in need of some new trustees, and particularly a new treasurer. Does this sound like you? If so please contact the chair of trustees, Rebecca Ranum, via the EcoCentre or phone her on 021 0826 0361