About

About Community Research

Community Research raises the mana of knowledge by providing digital resources and opportunities for the sector to connect and share. We hold two main collections of knowledge: Community Research and the Whānau Ora collection of resources, Whānau Ora Research.  We also look after the evaluation resource website What Works

Our whakapapa is strong and continues to be the foundation on which we work.  

We continue to be a treaty-based organisation: our Kaitiaki (Governance) structure and practice models Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We have a tangata whenua caucus and tangata tiriti caucus. At our kaitiaki hui, each caucus meets separately to discuss issues and opportunities, then works together.

Our next step in being a treaty-based organisation is to share our experience to inspire others to continue their journey in actioning Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We continue to evaluate how we apply this kaupapa in our work at all levels.

Our supporters are diverse – whānau, community leaders, Government agencies, Trusts, community groups, philanthropic funders, research tertiary agencies and a small membership base. See who supports us here. 

Our current focus 

More than ever before, now is the time to raise the mana of diverse knowledges. We must also support community and whānau aspirations in research. Whānau and communities are standing tall and raising their voice. We capture this so that their knowledge is shared in spaces that bring about change.

Our current and future focuses strengthen us as leaders in the sector.

What are we doing to tautoko (support) you? 

  • Continuing our focus on Pasifika and diverse knowledges
  • Exploring knowledge in other areas – like housing, diverse communities and climate justice
  • Experimenting with new modes of delivery like podcasts and Communities of Knowledge
  • Creating more ways for you to use new knowledge to make the transformation you want to see  
  • Developing ways to continue these transformations so that community knowledge and lived experience is valued alongside academic research and institutional reports. 

How are we doing this? 

  • Creating a significant event in 2023 that will action community and whānau aspirations for researchOur free database of research and knowledge benefits communities and whānau and is accessible to all.  
  • Creating a hub for Pacific research and researchers
  • Our podcast channel – He Kōrero – provides bite-sized opportunities to share insights, ideas, new ways of thinking and action, that can support the important mahi that community leaders and organisations are doing to make a difference in Aotearoa.
  • Our tautoko of former-refugee and ethnic-migrant researchers
  • Our free evaluation resources empower you to do your own evaluations of your mahi and its impact, or find an experienced community evaluator.
  • Our special collections elevate specific voices so that their perspectives and lived-experiences are validated and actioned. 
  • Our register of researchers makes it easy to find people to provide community evidence for your mahi.
  • Our free webinars transform the way people think about themselves, their communities, and the power structures within Aotearoa. 
  • Our other digital resources support community-led development and enable others to share their own knowledge.
  • Our kanohi ki te kanohi (face-to-face) and online communities of knowledge tautoko (support) whānau, researchers, evaluators and others in the Tangata Whenua, Community & Voluntary Sector to action the transformation they want to see.
  • Our Code of Practice encourages research that benefits communities 
  • Our Theory of Change ensures we make the right impact.

We would love to hear from you, please contact us here.

Organisation documents 

Community Research is a Living Wage Employer.

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