Telling the world how wonderful our region is has to be one of my favourite parts of working for Hamilton and Waikato Tourism.
So, I am really proud of our recent partnership with Hamilton City Council to showcase the Tiaki Promise through a series of videos and articles about organisations making standout contributions to the environment, community and cultural storytelling; as well as creating resources to inspire others to embrace the promise.
Nicola Greenwell
Launched in late June, Tiaki in Kirikiriroa is an initiative highlighting examples of tiaki (caring for people, place and culture). It includes interviews with individuals from businesses across the visitor sector.
This initiative follows in the footsteps of our earlier Tiaki in Waitomo series, created last year to share the work done by tourism operators in and around Waitomo to embody and encourage tiaki in the area. In both cases, the aim is to instil pride in the work many businesses are doing to give back to the people, land and communities around them, as well as to share the innovative approaches being taken so other businesses can learn from them.
Some of the initiatives highlighted by Tiaki in Kirikiriroa really are leading the way, from the 5000-square-metre solar farm powering the terminal at Hamilton Airport to the truckloads of produce from Hamilton Gardens feeding some of the city’s most vulnerable.
Hamilton Airport chief executive Mark Morgan at the company’s solar farm. Photo: Supplied.
That’s not to mention the e-bikes used by zookeepers and groundskeepers at Hamilton Zoo, the staff wellness initiatives and gully restoration undertaken by the teams at Novotel and Ibis Tainui, the plastic-saving jar library at Bare Refill, or the efforts to minimise food waste and buy locally championed by Hayes Common and Weave Eatery.
These are all real examples of tiaki in action. They demonstrate that no matter the size of your business or organisation, there are opportunities to make a meaningful difference.
I know there are many tourism operators, venues, hospitality businesses and retailers across the city setting out each day to do their part by making changes to the way they do things.
Our Tiaki in Kirikiriroa and Waitomo initiatives have been created as part of the regenerative tourism kaupapa of our Waikato Destination Management Plan; a guiding document articulating our strategy for ensuring the visitor economy positively contributes to Waikato communities.
It’s an honour for us to share the stories showcasing the passion for doing things better and we hope the videos, guides and articles help to inspire this same commitment to people, culture and the environment in fellow Hamilton businesses.
