Fab collabs: 5 examples of great 'do good' collaboration
We all know amazing things can happen when great people work together, so imagine what might emerge if more of our charities, social enterprises and businesses did the same.
You don't need to dream! We've scoured our Land of the Long White Cloud to find five fantastic examples of 'do good' collaboration. Tackling issues fro fast fashion, sexual violence, youth mental health, period poverty to community finance, these collabs are truly fabulous.
Like the whakataukī says, 'nā tō rourou, nā taku rourou ka ora ai te iwi' - with your food basket and my food basket the people will thrive.
The Sexual Abuse Prevention Network education team. Photo courtesy of SAPN.
#1 Sexual Abuse Prevention Network
The Sexual Abuse Prevention Network (SAPN) leads programmes that prevent sexual violence in our communities, mostly aimed at young people.
Why are they so fabulous? SAPN does important work preventing sexual violence that other agencies don’t have the time, resources or specialisation for.
Who’s in the collaboration? Wellington Rape Crisis, Wellington Sexual Abuse HELP and WellStop.
What do they offer? Here are three examples of their programmes:
It’s Our Business - helps staff in bars and clubs identify unsafe situations for customers and learn how to take action safely.
Friends, Whānau, and Flirting - workshops for over-16’s who experience mental, intellectual or learning disabilities. It covers healthy relationships, interactions, how to say stop and how to get help.
Who are you? - a workshop for 14-25 year olds on alcohol and sexual violence, being an 'ethical bystander' and building knowledge and confidence to step in and help.
Community Finance Initiative client Aalya, who received a StepUP loan for a new car. Photo courtesy of Good Shepherd NZ.
#2 Community Finance Initiative
The Community Finance Initiative gives loans to people who would otherwise be unable to get them.
Why are they so fabulous? The Community Finance Initiative offers low and no-interest loans to people with low incomes who have exhausted options with Work and Income and aren’t able to get loans from banks. By January 2018, they'd provided more than 700 loans worth more than $1.6 million, saving their customers almost $700,000 in interest alone.
Who’s in the collaboration? BNZ and Good Shepherd NZ
What do they do? The Community Finance Initiative offers two loans, both with no set-up fees:
Some of the fabulous people behind the NZ Textile Reuse Programme. Photo courtesy of The Formary.
#3 The NZ Textile Reuse Programme
The NZ Textile Reuse Programme is creating a new system for re-processing used clothing and textiles.
Why is it so fabulous? Globally, about 100 billion pieces of clothing are made every year, and about 75% of these will end up in landfills, or burnt. In Aotearoa, The Formary and big brands are changing this with the NZ Textile Reuse Programme.
Who's in the collaboration? The Formary, Fonterra, Air New Zealand, Alsco New Zealand and Wellington City Council.
What do they do? They divert textile waste from landfill, by:
Aiming to meet the needs of the community - people can't afford clothing when they can't put food on the table.
Using used clothing to create second generation textile products.
Using new fibre to fibre technology to extract higher value from waste clothing.
Women of Dignity, Wā Collective, NopeSsisters and Little Yellow Bird wearing NopeSisters Period. tees. Photo courtesy of NopeSisters.
#4 The Bloody Great Giftpack
The Bloody Great Gift Pack was a Christmas 2017 collab between five Wellington women’s social enterprises.
Why was it so fabulous? The Bloody Great Gift Pack was for women, made by women, raising money for women's charities.
Who was in the collaboration? NopeSisters, Dignity, Wa Collective, Little Yellow Bird and Nisa.
What did they do? All five gifts were organic and sustainable AND each gift donated money to a charity or cause that supports women:
A pair of NISA organic cotton undies created with fabric from Little Yellow Bird
A rose soap hand-crafted by the women of CanSurvive
Common Ground. Find support for yourself and the young people in your life.
#5 Common Ground
Common Ground is a website for parents, whānau and friends who are supporting a young person in their lives.
Why are they so fabulous? Common Ground is youth-specific, central and easy to read. Whether it’s about drugs, sex or suicidality - you know you're getting the most current and up-to-date recommendations and advice.
Who’s in the collaboration? The Mental Health Foundation, Skylight and Youthline. The creation of Common Ground was supported by Curative and Innovate Change. It was an initiative of the Prime Minister’s Youth Mental Health Project.
What do they do? Common Ground offers lots of information, links and resources, such as:
Self-harm - information about self-harm, keeping an eye out and taking action
Depression - how to recognise symptoms of depression and what to do about it
Self-care - looking after yourself while supporting a loved one
Professional support – what does it mean to get extra help and what rights do you and young people have
Are you feeling totally inspired by these fab collabs? Me too! Have we missed a favourite 'do good' collaboration of yours? We'd love to hear all about it - please leave a comment below.
Photo by Park Troopers on Unsplash