Community Foundations can play a central role in communities at times of disaster. Initially, they can help with disaster-response and they step in to help the community recover for the long-term.
It’s hard to give away donations well in an emergency situation, to know that your thoughtful gesture of care is going to the right place and will really make a difference.
Effective funding is what Community Foundations do. They have deep roots into communities, they have the knowledge and expertise to respond. They are on the ground and nimble, able to get funding to where it is needed. They operate a low-cost structure which sees maximum funds going into communities, distributing to those on the ground doing the crucial work.
The impact of cyclone Gabrielle on affected individuals and communities will be profound, long lasting and life changing. Therefore, recovery is a long-term, multilayered social and developmental process that is more than simply the replacement of what has been destroyed. Local Community Foundations will remain responsive at each stage of recovery.
You can donate at the following links (remember all donations are tax deductible - New Zealand based donations can claim 33.3% tax back from your donation):
It is heartening to see the aroha and outpouring of care from across the country and internationally.
Ngā mihi nui, thank you for your generosity.
Date Posted: 21 Feb 2023
02 Jul 2025
I grew up in a small town called Bar Harbor, on the coast of Maine. It’s one of those places that feels like it came from a storybook - pink granite cliffs, salty air, and a thick morning fog that rolls in just like in the movies. As a kid, I thought the beauty around me was just… there. I never questioned how the places I loved came to be. But years later, I realised something: so much of what I cherished had been because of philanthropy...
Read more27 May 2025
The intergenerational focus of community foundations, and the deep roots that they hold in communities, lends them towards being ‘reimagineers’ of the future of communities. In April, at Infrastructures for the Future (IFF25) in Bucharest, representatives from 35 countries, over 90 participants, explored how we reimagine the role of community foundations of the future...
Read more21 May 2025
We care, deeply. But we also need to trust. Right now, charities across Aotearoa are under immense pressure. The need for support has never been higher, bridging big gaps in food security, family violence, youth pathways, housing, health and education. These are not fringe issues – they’re fundamental to our community’s wellbeing...
Read more