Waitangi Day 2023 funding opportunity announced
Applications are open for communities and groups seeking funding to celebrate Waitangi Day 2023. Events that ‘deepen and broaden’ our shared understanding of Te Tiriti o Waitangi could include a dawn service, a hīkoi, or a community picnic.
Tangata whenua, community groups and local councils around Aotearoa are being encouraged to apply for a slice of a $300,000 fund for Waitangi Day 2023 events that promote nation and community building.
Mangatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage Commemorating Waitangi Day Fund is calling for organisers of events that commemorate the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi to apply for grants of between $5,000 to $10,000.
Many established events are already supported by the fund but new initiatives are seen as vital to ensuring all New Zealanders participate in celebrations that ‘deepen and broaden’ our shared understanding of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Glenis Philip-Barbara (Ngāti Uepōhatu, Ngāti Porou), Pou Mataaho o Te Hua, Deputy Chief Executive, Delivery at Manatū Taonga is encouraging people from throughout the country to apply, saying Waitangi Day is wider than the celebrations at Waitangi. “Te Tiriti itself travelled throughout the motu, and we want to help communities around Aotearoa celebrate the impact of this document in creating the nation we are today. Whether it is for a dawn service, a hīkoi, or a community picnic.”
In past years, the fund has supported events from Chatham Islands to Southland in celebrating Te Tiriti in many forms, including kai festivals, marae open days, scavenger hunts, re-enactments, and even digital events.
Applications for the fund are now open and will close on Wednesday 26 October 2022.
For more information and to apply, visit the Commemorating Waitangi Day page.
