From the Trust's Chair
Trust Chair Kevin Prime made the following address to community trust representatives who gathered in Auckland in February to discuss the financial situation they all faced. We thought it was important to share his words with you.
February 2009
"Thank you all for setting aside the time for this gathering. I really appreciate the fact that you have travelled so far to share in the collective wisdom of the community trust family and together find a safe path forward.
I’d like to start the day with a Maori proverb that I think will help put our current situation into perspective: ‘Ahakoa whati te manga, e takoto ana ano te kohiwi’. In English, it means that although the branch is broken off, the trunk remains.
We in the community trusts can apply this proverb to the way we have been hurt by the unprecedented financial storm which has swept the world, stripping away many of our assets. But that hurt is not fatal and the core of our putea, our treasure, remains. We may be scarred, and the damage will take time to heal, but we will endure and flourish again.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood, but we have come together because we have chosen hope over fear in what is a critical time for all of us.
When you are in the middle of an economic crisis it can be hard to look ahead, but it is our duty to act in the best long-term interest of our trusts and prepare for better times. By ensuring that our core assets are maintained, we will be able to continue supporting our communities into the future.
The community trusts are now 20 years old and the assets we are the guardians of today have been built up by the hard work and wisdom of the trustees who have gone before us. They have walked a careful path, enriching their communities, while at the same time growing the reserves so that we, in our turn, could become kaitiaki of these precious community assets.
At 20 years old we could think of the trusts as now maturing into adult life, but unlike us these trusts are going to be here in perpetuity, so we must think long-term too. This current crisis is just a moment in time in the life of our trusts and it is our duty to act in their best long-term interest.
This is the time to review our priorities, to be clear about what we really want to achieve and to ensure that future trustees can enjoy the privilege of supporting their communities in the same way we do today.
This roundtable will allow us to discuss trustee responsibilities in relation to perpetual trusts and the impact the current economic situation will have on investment and grant-making strategies.
The day’s programme has been designed to provide us with opportunities to share concerns, ideas and thoughts on the way forward.
We will be privileged to hear from three speakers with the expertise to help guide our thinking. They are not involved as investment advisors to any of the community trusts, so we can be sure their advice will be professional, but impartial.
We will hear from lawyer David Jones, a partner in Jones Young, who has been an advisor to ASB Community Trust since its inception. David has a deep understanding of the community trust structure and what they were set up to achieve.
He will give us some historical background on to the establishment of the trusts and an overview of the legal responsibilities trustees take on when they sit down at the board table.
Adrian Orr, the CEO of the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, will share with us his views on best practice investment governance and the likely impact of market weakness and volatility on current and future investment strategies.
Our third speaker, economist Stephen Toplis, is head of research at BNZ. Stephen will update us on the global economic outlook and how the recession will affect our sector’s need for grant and donation support – from capital projects to foodbanks.
After we have heard from the speakers, the meeting will be turned into an open forum where we can share ideas and thoughts on investments, grants and donation strategies. This will be moderated by Mary Jane Rivers, who many of you will already know.
By the end of the day, I am sure we will all be able to face our task with increased confidence and renewed enthusiasm, knowing that our trusts are built to last and that they are robust enough to weather this storm.
I’d like to finish this welcome by adapting a quote from America’s new President, Barack Obama, who’s inaugural speech has inspired new confidence in his countrymen and a determination to rebuild their nation.
“Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this - they will be met.
“Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of rebuilding.”
And finally, some wisdom from the world of the Maori, an old proverb that goes:
‘E tutaki ana nga kapua o te rangi, kei runga te Mangoroa e kopae pu ana’ - The clouds in the sky close in, but above them extends the Milky Way."