Our name, Te Ngākau Kahukura, reflects our role as a heart, strengthening and nourishing the system of support around rainbow people in Aotearoa. We circulate rainbow expertise to key decision makers and systems, and share resources and connections with rainbow communities.
As a heart, we support those who provide health and social services to have the confidence and courage to work with rainbow people appropriately. We emphasise reciprocity and relationality, working within a wider ecosystem of interconnected organisations across a range of sectors.
We support champions working in all parts of the system
We want to empower people working in health, housing, education, justice and social services to better meet the needs of rainbow people. This work is necessary on all levels - systems and organisations need to be designed for inclusion, and individual practice needs to be responsive to rainbow people’s identities and diverse experiences.
We want to encourage people to identify the things they can do to make a difference in their sphere of influence, and to connect their smaller initiatives with the wider work of systemic change.
We are led by rainbow expertise
Being held in a partnership between Ara Taiohi and rainbow communities, our work aims to be community-led, shaped around collective action and accountable to the needs of rainbow people. We prioritise lived experience, valuing guidance from people who have experienced the discrimination we are aiming to challenge, and who have been part of the services and systems we seek to change.
We work collaboratively with rainbow community organisations around the country, and seek to build their capacity and connections with decision makers and key services. We want to strengthen the infrastructure that upholds best practice and supports the self-determination of rainbow people.