Our Story
Environment Hubs Aotearoa
Environment Hubs Aotearoa
We are a purpose-driven, nationwide network of hubs that lead community and environmental resilience.
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We work across the nation with leading organisations and changemakers rolling up their sleeves and doing the mahi to deliver a thriving and sustainable Aotearoa.
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Through our national team and 22 regional hubs from Kaitaia to Riverton, we are at the forefront of ambitious, effective sustainability leadership. Our focus is on authentic collaborative programs that deliver positive long-term impact locally and on a national scale.
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We support our member hubs by enabling collaboration, capacity building, and organisational development. Our unique approach combines sector support and member networking, making us a one-stop-shop for collaborating with environmental community organisations.
We're proud of our strong community roots, diverse voices, and our commitment to climate change action.
Our Vision & Values
We act for the benefit of our members, their communities and Papatūānuku. We value:
Collective good
The collective wellbeing of our ecosystems, diverse communities, and future generations.
Leadership and collaboration
inspiring collective action and empowering local decision making.
Quality
Thorough high standards approach, robust methods, and continual improvement.
Diversity and Inclusion
Seeking out, listening to and including diverse voices and identities.
Intent
Action with deliberate and focused intent.
Our Story
Environment Hubs Aotearoa was formed from a desire by environment hubs who were doing amazing things locally, wanting a coordinated and collaborative approach to address global environmental issues.
In 2015, the Ministry for the Environment provided funding for research and organised an initial Hui in Nelson where Environment Hubs Aotearoa, a nationwide response to climate change and community needs, was established.
Since the Nelson Hui, other hubs have joined, and more have been created as the need for holistic, community-centric action has grown, and we now have 22 members from Kaitaia to Riverton.
Our Tohu
Our identity is created by four lines that interweave and converge to create a central point. This represents our role in bringing together the influence, energies and expertise of our partners to improve outcomes for te taiao and communities of Aotearoa. The connections in the design represent our insights, strategies and initiatives that unify towards our purpose.
Our hubs work in their communities on local, regional, national and international issues. Our approach is strategic, working from the ground right up to systems-level working with Government to ensure the civil sector is more included in policy and programmes.
Our combined reach into the community is incomparable, and we value that connection and the genuine voices that result from that collaboration.
The symmetry in the logo represents the balance and connectivity in our natural world. We have Papatūānuku, the earth, connecting with Ranginui, the heavens, creating space for all living things to dwell between.
It also represents the balance envisaged by Te Tiriti o Waitangi, with both tāngata whenua and tāngata tiriti coming together in true partnership.
Honouring Te Tiriti
At EHA, we honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi, not just as a historical document, but as a living guide for our mahi.
It shapes our engagement with tāngata whenua and our collective pursuit of a sustainable Aotearoa. This commitment is a key part of our kaupapa to regenerate and nurture our shared environment.
OUR COMMITMENT TO TE TIRITI:
We recognise Te Tiriti o Waitangi as the founding document of Aotearoa and acknowledge that hapū in Aotearoa never ceded rangatiratanga.
Māori have an intricate, holistic and interconnected relationship with te taiao which is synonymous with the beliefs of EHA: Ka ora te wai, Ka ora te whenua. Ka ora te whenua Ka ora te tangata. If the water is healthy, the land is healthy. If the land is healthy, the people are healthy.
To proactively honour Te Tiriti as an Tāngata Tiriti Organisation we will:
Explore what a Te Tiriti-based future means for EHA including a commitment to the process of decolonisation.
Proactively support our board, staff, and hubs on their Te Tiriti journey in committing to the restoration of tino rangatiratanga and the establishment of honourable kawanatanga.
Work to constantly improve our response to these aspirations and make our organisation safe and welcoming for tāngata whenua.
