welcome to our august pānui

“Manaaki whenua, manaaki tangata, haere whakamua”.

By caring for the land and the people the future will be prosperous.

During the crisp Matariki nights, as we huddled together, gazing towards the stars, the Kore Hiakai Zero Hunger strategic leadership and kaimahi team were taking a few tentative steps into the newness of Te Tau Hau Māori.

On 1 July we began a new journey as an independent organisation, The Kai Rawa Trust, operating as the Kore Hiakai Zero Hunger Collective. Setting our vision to those Matariki stars - we affirm our ongoing commitment in joining others to strive for a food secure Aotearoa, and addressing the root causes of food-related poverty.

Gathering the resources we have brought with us, we have been exploring our role as kaitaiki in this space, what it means to care for all that has been entrusted to us. Our most precious taonga are our relationships, the stories, mātauranga and innovations of those we work alongside, and the potential we hold together for realising our collective dream.

Like anything new, we are still feeling tentative, but we are excited and hopeful!

We hope that in the recasting of our vision, you will see where you connect to that vision and the actions that flow from it. We hope you will collaborate and celebrate with us - so that all in Aotearoa might thrive.

kore hiakai zero hunger collective are…

A collective of people and organisations who have joined together to address the root causes of food related poverty and strive towards a food secure Aotearoa;
We recognise that food insecurity is driven by systems but experienced by papatūānuku and people;
Kore Hiakai Zero Hunger Collective brings us together as iwi, hapū, community, farmers, fishers, growers, manufacturers, distributors, philanthropy and government;
We build Te Tiriti grounded, long term, sustainable solutions to ensure all people, at all times, have agency and access to enough nourishing, affordable, sustainably sourced, culturally appropriate kai – this is a Food Secure Aotearoa.

our new leadership team

Introducing Helen Robinson - Chair of Kai Rawa Trust and the Kore Hiakai Zero Hunger Collective

Te Ātiawa o te waka a Māui - I have devoted most of my life to addressing the social issues of Aotearoa New Zealand. I have a wealth of experience in social services, and a deep commitment to a more equitable nation, one where everyone has access to what they need.

As the Missioner, I lead Auckland City Mission to strive and advocate for a nation where wealth and opportunity are redistributed so that there is enough for everyone. I have been with the Mission for more than a decade in a range of leadership roles.

At the Mission, I am also known as Manutaki, a Māori title meaning the bird that leads. This is significant as I lead the Mission’s commitment to accepting and understanding the effects of colonisation on Aotearoa, and the Mission’s place in the restorative work needed to move forward.

Alongside my practical work, I have published research into the measurement and experience of food insecurity in New Zealand.

I am proud to be a part of the Kai Rawa Trust. It is a powerful platform to make a meaningful impact on resolving food insecurity in our nation. By collaborating with like-minded individuals and organizations, we can pool our expertise and resources to create lasting change. Together, we can work towards a future where no one goes hungry, and everyone has access to nutritious and sufficient food, building a more equitable and prosperous Aotearoa for all.

Introducing Alannah Marriott - Trustee

Ki te taha o tōku Māmā, Ko Hikurangi te maunga, Ko Waiapu te awa, Ko Ngāti Porou tōku iwī. Ko te Whanau o Ruataupare me te Whanau o Rakairoa ōku hapū. No Ingarangi, Wēra, me Kōtirana hoki tōku pāpā. Ko Alannah Marriott tōku ingnoa.

As an educationalist and creative thinker, I am part of lifting outcomes for Māori across all sectors. I am passionate about working for Te Tiriti based outcomes and investing in Māori leaders. The level of Māori talent in Aotearoa is phenomenal - the kai sector included.

It is a basic human right to produce and consume kai, individually and as communities. Those actions of producing and sharing kai are a key part of what creates healthy whānau. Access to healthy kai should be available to everyone in ways that create affordability, accessibility and prosperity that sustains our communities with elegance and dignity.

As an indigenous woman, I am conscious of how we have been conditioned to consume. I’m here to disrupt and reframe the system, and to re-indigenise our kai systems. I support the kaupapa of re-invoking the blueprints of our ancestors that demonstrate the values and beliefs required to drive behaviours aligned to Te Taiao, so that Papatūānuku and humanity can thrive.

Introducing Brook Turner - Trustee

Kia ora koutou e te whānau. I currently work for Visionwest Waka Whakakitenga and sit on the executive leadership team there in my capacity as Head of Services Development and Partnerships.

I have a long history of community development roles in church work, youth work, community work and social housing.

My home is west Auckland where I live with my wife Katie, and three children, Evelyn, Alexa, and Elliot. As a family we love to recycle, upcycle, compost and foodscape. Nothing gives me more joy than harvesting our feijoa's and grapes in the summer, followed by our lemons and oranges in the winter.

I am on the Kai Rawa Trust board because I am passionate about food security and food sovereignty in Aotearoa. Having led Visionwest's food response to our community during Covid, and after the recent weather events, I see the effects of food insecurity every day - but systems change must be prioritised if we want an Aotearoa where food security is the norm and considered as a right for all.

I believe Kore Hiakai is the collective with the potential to do this mahi and stand in solidarity in our pursuit of a fully food secure Aotearoa.

Introducing Tric Malcolm - Trustee, Founder and Pou Ārahi

No Ingarangi, Kōtirana me Tiamani te iwi o ōku tupuna. Ko Tangata Tiriti ahau. Ināianei tonu e noho ana au i raro i te maru o nga maunga - Kaukau, Ōtari, me Ahumairangi. Te Pou Ārahi o Kore Hiakai te mahi o tōku manawa. Ko Tric Malcolm tōku ingoa.

I live with my little whānau in the shadow and protection of the Western hills in Pōneke, and I have lived my whole life in various places within the head of the fish/ lower north island.

It has been a pleasure and a privilege to be part of the leadership of Kore Hiakai these past 4 years, which has dreamed of a food secure Aotearoa, and worked hard to draw together a dynamic collection of passionate people and organisations who have this same dream. An Aotearoa where all thrive.

If one of us isn’t thriving, then we are not thriving, for we are connected to each other.

The concept of a food secure Aotearoa is an expression of that dream that we all can thrive. When we choose to put mana at the centre of our decision-making and our systems, we can get there.

We can have a Food Secure Aotearoa!

alongside our leadership team is our kaimahi team

Introducing Tric Malcolm, Pou Ārahi (Monday through Friday) - tric@korehiakai.org.nz

Introducing Tony Fuemana, Pou Pasifika (Monday through Thursday) - tony@korehiakai.org.nz

Introducing Moko Morris, Pou Māori (Moko starts with us on 15 August 2023, Tuesday and Wednesday) - moko@korehiakai.org.nz

Introducing Jennie Sim, Kairangahau Ka Mākona (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) - jennie@korehiakai.org.nz

Introducing Kaea Tibble, Kairangahau Māori Kai Sovereignty (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) - kaea@korehiakai.org.nz

Some of the team you may already know from a variety of places, others may be new to you. We will introduce the kaimahi more in our next Pānui!

kore hiakai zero hunger collective focuses going forward are . . .

addressing the root causes of food related poverty through:

Ka Mākona - A report on income adequacy and cost of living

Quarterly reports highlighting the ongoing need for food assistance
Collaboratively developing a Pacific Income Adequacy project

and encouraging food secure communities through:

Collaborating on national and local mana centered food strategies
Exploring Māori Kai Sovereignty
Offering Mana to Mana workshops
Championing and highlighting community innovation and initiatives in the food space

we need your input into the kore hiakai regular pānui . . .

We are so grateful to all of you who have journeyed with us so far, and for the journey yet to come. We would love your feedback on what you would like to see in our future pānui. Please fill out this Kore Hiakai Pānui survey so we can connect better with you and those you journey with.

If you receive this trhough mailchimp and no longer wish to or you need to update your detail please do so using the link at the bottom of the email you received. If you didn’t receive this through mailchimp and wish to - please sign up here (scroll to the bottom of the page.)

what is happening around funding food assistance (parcels)?

What is happening around funding food assistance? For those organisations involved in distributing food assistance, especially food parcels, the 2023 Budget from government is different from past years - the funding pool is significantly smaller. This reduction in funding while the number of food parcels being distributed remain similar is putting pressure on some organisations.

MSD are in the process of communicating how the distribution of their funding will happen, who will receive it, and how you will receive.

Kore Hiakai Zero Hunger Collective is committed to regularly communicating the levels of need through food assistance, or food parcel distribution, in our communities. One of the ways we gain insights is through the Aotearoa Food Parcel Measure which allows us to collect data across organisations expressing quantitative data and narrative insights. Many of you are already gathering your own data so if you want to be a part of this group offering the data you collect, please get in touch: admin@korehiakai.org.nz or check out the dashboard.

If you haven’t already considered counting your current practice, check out this resource, onboarding guidelines and compilation resources. The full set of resources can be downloaded here.

mana centered food practice and food system

As we move towards the election there are more and more conversations across our communities about a national food strategy. Kore Hiakai believe that we need a mana centered food strategy. In order to explore this more we will be running workshops and webinar in the last quarter of the year to give people the opportunity to understand our Mana to Mana framework and wrestle with what a mana centered food practice could look like for Aotearoa - locally and nationally. Check out our mana-centered framework.

national food strategy petition

You may have seen this in our previous pānui. We continue to encourage you to sign this petition or invite others to sign. This is our opportunity to let government know we need a joined up pathway to create a mana centred food strategy for Aotearoa. One that invites all sectors to be at the table shaping it!

wellbeing economy - conference

With the General Election fast approaching we begin to imagine how we could be a country where all can thrive. The root causes of food related poverty are baked into our current economic systems. These systems are made by humans so we can unmake them, reimagine them and rebuild new ones. If you are keen to explore these things check out the Economy for public good conference in Tāmaki Makaurau at the end of August. Details here.

from across aotearoa . . .

West Coast Wisdom - Check out this cross-community approach that includes local body decision makers, community, food rescue, local business and more. Together they are creating local kai opportunities on the West Coast that utilises land otherwise not being used. This opens up access to kai for whānau as well as building a more resilient community.

Waste and yet not waste – Papatūānuku Kokiri Mārae in Tāmaki Makaurau have supported their Kai Ika project to land in Pōneke for a trial. Sharing is truly caring! The Pōneke Kai Ika project ran into logistics challenges as their make shift transport gave out before fully getting off the ground. The wider community of Pōneke rallied to make sure we honour both the whole of the ika that is caught and whānau, with good kai.

Innovation & collaboration in the Bay of Plenty - It is so inspiring seeing this collaborative creative way of connecting food rescue, chefs and fund raising for Good Neighbour Trust. Got to love it when community are innovative and uplift the mana of the kai as well as the humans we are trying to champion. Nga mihi maioha Good Neighbour Trust

systems change . . .

Re-Food by Emily King: This a brilliant book, written by local author Emily King, explores our food systems and our opportunities to reimagine them. Published in July this year, it is fresh off the press and is pivotal not only to our conversations for local food security but also for us as a country which sits within the global food system. Emily King, of Spira, is an expert in this field advising communities, food organisations, food production companies and our government. It is SO accessible and easy to read. It would make a great book club book for your local kai networks!

Find RE-food in a book shop near you, or attend the Wellington Regional Council webinar that features Emily & Re-Food

Voices from the Frontline by SASS: (Systems-change, Advocacy, Support and Solidarity group) - This group of amazing wāhine have drawn together their wisdom & insight around systems change have released this brilliant resources (Kore Hiakai are biased as Tric is part of the rōpū!) Also check them on our this incredible webinar with the Tamarack Institute and be inspired.

Supply Chain Issues - Professor Alan Renwick of Lincoln University offers this critique around our food systems supply chain. This challenging insight helps us to see how the connection beyond community response into the other systems that need adjustment, like transport and food retail.

matariki blog from by moko morris

If you missed our July Matariki blog, have a catch up read here.

As we all begin to see the days lengthen, even while it’s still cold, we know within the soil seeds awaits the sun to awaken them. May we know that we too hold potential within us, the potential to bring the change we long for, by using the gifts we are given wisely. Thank you for being a gift to Kore Hiakai. May we journey well together - so that all might may thrive.

Tihei mauri ora!

Kore Hiakai Zero Hunger Collective whānau.