Crisis lessons inform crisis responses

Ra¯ta¯ Foundation chair Christine Korako looks at the role philanthropic organisations can play after a crisis.

Post-earthquakes we learnt a lot from our communities; importantly that people are bestplaced to lead their own recovery and define what will have the most impact for them. One of the positive outcomes of the Christchurch earthquakes was the emergence of stronger collaboration between local and central government, iwi and philanthropic funders.

Tragically, on March 15 our city experienced further crisis with 50 people from our Muslim community killed and many more injured in shootings at two mosques. As the South Island’s largest philanthropic funder, we know we have an immediate role to play after the shootings but importantly that we are also here for the long term.

The response must engage across sectors and funders, with real partnership

between philanthropy, non-profits, iwi, local and central government, and the private sector. The value of our existing, positive, long-term relationships and established processes of collaboration cannot be underestimated.

Lessons from one crisis inform the response to the next. What we learnt from the earthquakes was that in times of crisis, we need to be adaptive and responsive and reach out quickly to affected communities as well as understand and plan for their long-term needs. In this instance, partnering with Christchurch City Council and Nga¯ i Tahu, we were able to provide fast, practical financial support to ensure basic necessities were available to the people, assisting with the initial community response. This is important because most public donations are aimed at directly supporting victims and their families. We understand that the infrastructure to support also needs funding.

After a crisis there is often a lot of immediate support from outside the city. The valued role local agencies and philanthropic funders play is their ability to work together to think about what the community’s medium and long-term recovery needs will be. Our earthquake experience showed us community-led responses are really important in recovery. There appears to be a willingness from local partners to ensure the voice of the community is central. We also know funding alone is not enough. In recent years, we have invested heavily in enabling people to build and strengthen their leadership and capacity skills.

While there are lessons we can apply to the mosque shootings from the earthquakes, there are also crucial differences. We need to examine our cultural competency in dealing with the Muslim community and listen in order to understand their needs.

Promoting community cohesion is part of Ra¯ ta¯ Foundation’s current funding priorities. We aim to ensure our communities have a sense of belonging by celebrating different cultures and ensuring our diverse communities can participate widely. We also aim to ensure newcomers are well supported. Our staff are building on their trusted relationships within the multicultural sector to ensure we remain connected.

Philanthropic organisations can play a constructive role as part of a wider effort to help build stronger and more resilient communities after a crisis. But our greatest opportunity from this tragic event is to create a more inclusive society. It is our collective responsibility to continue the conversation about what an inclusive community looks like and the role we can all play in making inclusiveness and the celebration of diversity a reality.

Recently Ra¯ ta¯ Foundation joined the initiative to strengthen controls on social media content that the NZ Super Fund, Accident Compensation Corporation, Government Superannuation Fund, National Provident Fund and Kiwi Wealth announced last month. The objective is to convince social media companies Facebook, Google and Twitter to strengthen controls and prevent the live-streaming and distribution of objectionable content. This is a practical first step the philanthropic sector can take in effecting positive social change.

Ra¯ ta¯ Foundation is New Zealand’s second-largest philanthropic foundation and the South Island’s largest Community Trust. In FY 2018/19, it granted $19.6 million across Canterbury, Nelson, Marlborough and Chatham Islands.