John Finch

John Finch from Eduk8 will present on the Right Track Programme which is a multi-experiential, highly effective programme, which has a profound influence on the lives of participants and supporters and provides a catalyst for changing attitudes and behaviours in those with driving offences.  John will speak about how they worked to establish strong partnerships across the Southland community to make this programme an ongoing success.

Community Trust South (CTS) will share their recent strategy review journey.  With a strong focus on broad community engagement to ensure the voice of community in the new strategy, CTS will share how they partnered with Centre for Social Impact to undertake the strategy review process.

Rachael Trotman, in collaboration with Kat Dawnier, CSI

In 2019, the J R McKenzie Trust commissioned the Centre for Social Impact to explore the power and potential of supporting advocacy in philanthropy. The resulting reports aim to stretch the thinking of funders about what advocacy is and how it can be supported for social impact and change.

In this session a short overview of key messages from this research will be shared, followed by several funders sharing their experience supporting advocacy, including the impact and learning emerging. Feedback will be sought on future resources or offerings that funders who are interested in elevating their support for advocacy would find useful.

Miranda Cassidy-O’Connell and Arohanui West, CSI 

Future Search is a principles-based action planning method that brings the ‘whole system’ into the room.  It is a globally renowned process that brings together people who share an interest in a particular issue or challenge to collaborate to find solutions and act on them together. 

This breakout will provide an overview of the Future Search method, share case studies of Future Search being applied in Aotearoa New Zealand and give an opportunity for participants to consider if Future Search will assist them to transform action in their own situations.

What is Future Search?

Kat Dawnier and Kate Cherrington, CSI, and Robyn Scott, CEO J R McKenzie Trust

In 2019, the J R McKenzie Trust commissioned the Centre for Social impact (CSI) to produce a review of contemporary practices in philanthropy – The Philanthropic Landscape.  

This identified five key themes from international best practice – a focus on equity, power sharing, systems change, decolonising philanthropy and adaptability and learning.

In 2023, J R McKenzie Trust re-commissioned CSI to develop a companion report that explores how these themes are being put into practice.  The Philanthropic Landscape: Shifting Culture and Power through Mana Enhancing Practice identifies the skills, mindsets and ‘ways of being’ that philanthropy must consider in order to meaningfully share power, partner with Indigenous communities, advance equity and drive systems change.
At this session, the authors will share key insights from the report on the featured funder journeys, focusing on ways that community trusts can build mana enhancing relationships with their communities.