Waikato Regional Council news
An agreement to be signed by Waikato Regional Council with WEL Energy Trust will help to end poverty, fight inequality and act on climate change.
Councillors voted unanimously at yesterday’s meeting to sign the partnership and funding agreement, which will see WEL Energy Trust commit $3 million over five years to the Waikato Wellbeing Project.
The cash injection will help to establish and seed fund the project’s support function, which will be responsible for collaborating with manutaki – recognised community leaders who have stepped up to lead action and collaborations to progress towards achieving the targets.
In turn, the council will provide $100,000 and in-kind resourcing to kick-start the support function. This contribution will be a reprioritisation of existing funding and staff time, a council report said.
Councillors were told “the role of council is critical to catalysing the ongoing success of this regional initiative”, which was launched in the Waikato in February by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
The Waikato Wellbeing Project identified specific targets through a series of intensive workshops with hundreds of local leaders and experts last year. The targets are based on the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations as a blueprint to help citizens, governments, businesses and organisations achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.
The 17 goals are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Timely and Relevant) and provide a powerful tool to inform decision making and take collective action for a more environmentally sustainable, prosperous and inclusive region by 2030.
The Waikato Wellbeing Project identifies targets that translate the sustainable development goals into something that is measurable for the Waikato region.
Waikato Regional Council chief executive Vaughan Payne said during the meeting: “It’s exciting the trust wants to continue to invest alongside us to help ensure our region makes tangible progress towards the 10 wellbeing targets.
“As a council we are already investing heavily in progressing the region’s wellbeing through our purpose. If we get this right, we’ll have a stronger region that’s economically resilient, and people’s quality of life will be better.
“Working together is key for our council, so we’ll help to facilitate collaboration, ensuring the right people come together to address the complex challenges we face as a region.
“We’ll also work to ensure a connection and partnership with iwi, Government, health, business, education, community organisations and funders,” Mr Payne said.
In addition, through its support function, Waikato Regional Council will be driving the development of:
- leadership and expertise to support system mapping and development
- research to understand the systemic issues, key questions and challenges
- advocacy through the Waikato Plan and Strategic Partners Forum
- data collection and measurement of what matters, as well as support making sense of the data.
Oversight for the Waikato Wellbeing Project is being provided by the Waikato Plan Leadership Committee. The project is being supported by Waikato-Tainui, Trust Waikato, Hamilton City Council, D.V. Bryant Trust, the University of Waikato NAR Foundation and Momentum Waikato.
To find out more on the wellbeing targets, see waikatowellbeingproject.co.nz.