Building Stronger Foundations: The Vector Group Charitable Trust’s Power of Collaboration in the Bay of Plenty

Vector Group Charitable Trust (CC45966) works from Te Puke across the Western Bay of Plenty. Our mahi is collaborative by design: building belonging, connecting organisations, and helping communities become more resilient — especially for young people.

In the Bay of Plenty, that looks like partnerships with schools, businesses, councils, growers, and other charities — not going it alone, but strengthening what already works.

The “why” of belonging

Vector Group began with a direct question: why do many young people in Te Puke feel disconnected? Co-founders Stephen and Tracey Fawcett’s research pointed to a wider need for belonging — not limited by age, ethnicity, or background.

That insight shapes the trust’s five registered programmes: youth development, community activities, information sharing, support for shared-identity communities, and creative self-expression. The aim is practical: invest in belonging through collaboration and creative collective action.

Kai resilience: growing together

Kai resilience is a cross-programme focus — food security, growing skills, and sustainable local food systems — delivered with partners across Te Puke and the region.

• Youth and hands-on learning — young people involved in food forests and garden projects (including Troppo and related growing work), building horticulture skills, confidence, and connection to whenua
• Organisational partnerships — working with existing groups rather than duplicating effort; knowledge-sharing with regional growers and food-forest networks
• Council and business collaboration — proposals and community presentations (including community food forest ideas to local boards), and practical support from partners such as Ballance Te Puke for on-the-ground projects

Creative projects and a unified front

Collaboration also shows up beyond food:

• Creative and youth initiatives — film and media, dance, music, and place-based projects that give young people room to express themselves and build relationships
• Events and community building — support for local celebrations, Matariki, Spring Clean, and other gatherings that bring people together
• Enabling other organisations — advice, project coordination, and shared platforms so smaller groups can pool resources and achieve outcomes none could manage alone

A model for the wider Bay

Te Puke work offers a practical pattern for the Western Bay and beyond:

• Empowered youth — skills, confidence, and real roles in community projects
• Cross-sector partnerships — charities, business, schools, and local government aligned on shared outcomes
• Lasting resilience — initiatives such as food forests and kai networks that build long-term local capacity

When a creative collective works as one community front, belonging has room to grow — in Te Puke first, with lessons that can travel across the Bay of Plenty.

Explore more: About Vector Group · Youth development · Kai resilience · Community · Grow Te Puke