“Successful communities recognise that the future is something they can build for themselves. They take the time to develop a vision of the future they want, and then use a process that helps them to achieve their goals.
Achieving the future you want takes hard work. But successful communities understand that the things they dream about will only become real through great effort, determination and teamwork.
Sometimes the vision isn't written down but there is a common and shared understanding about what the community is working towards and activities and action are guided by this. In some communities the vision has been there for decades and has been passed on from one generation to another." Quote from the New Zealand Futures Trust
The tupuna of Whirinaki had long talked about improving their environment and restoring the culture for their hapū. The awa (river) had been neglected. It was clogged up. It flooded regularly. Livestock using the river had made it dirty. Other life in the river was dying.
The vision for the future did not need to be written down to be the deeply-held, shared commitment for the people – focus on restoring the awa and the rest will follow.
We worked with the Whirinaki community to support them to develop a pathway plan of what they wanted to achieve and how they would measure their progress.
We also worked with them so that they could work out what went well and why, as well as what didn't go so well and why and what could they do differently next time.
They were prepared to change how they planned to do things as they went, while still getting to where they wanted to be.
Watch their video to find out more about their projects and the highlights of their journey.
With community-led development, we work within five guiding principles developed by Inspiring Communities: