New Zealand Lottery Grants Board Distribution of Funds

Otago / Southland Community Committee
EMBRACING SOUTHERN
DIVERSITY
From its rolling green plains to its rugged
coastline, Southland offers up a wealth
of variety - not only geographically, but
culturally as well.
Since 1998, Southland Multi-Nations
Council Inc has been working to promote
and protect the interests and aims of
ethnic people living in, and migrating to, the
Southland region.
The Council, which is based in Invercargill,
has received the support of the Otago /
Southland Community Committee since
its inception.
In 2008/09, funding of $12,000 was
provided for the salary of a coordinator. This
funding has enabled their information centre
and office to remain open for six hours per
day, increasing access for the region’s
ethnic people.
Lottery Grants Record 2008–2009
During his time as Council President, Brian
Bellett recalls working with people from
over ninety different nationalities living
in Southland, and with the wider ethnic
communities in the country through the
Federation of Ethnic Councils, the Council’s
national body.
“Our aim is to make Southland a safe and
welcoming place for newcomers, where
we can all learn to appreciate, enjoy and
celebrate our cultural differences and
diversity. We are all migrants in this country,
and as our ancestors were welcomed and
supported by local Ma- ori, so we continue
the tradition today.”
Southland Multi-Nations works to welcome
and assist newcomers, provide settlement
assistance and educate migrants about the
New Zealand lifestyle and culture. They also
organise activities that celebrate cultural
diversity and produce a monthly newsletter,
The Rainbow Quill, which reaches over 700
organisations and individuals.
The Council is an important point of contact
for new migrants and they have become an
integral part of the support network available
for all of Southland’s ethnic communities.
Regional Community Committees 31