Page 30 - IB April 2022

Extending manaaki to our community

A 40-foot container full of desks and chairs has been
shipped over to schools in Tonga following January’s
volcanic eruption.
Several schools in Tonga were devastated by the tsunami
that followed the eruption with equipment and furniture
being lost or destroyed.
AUT Office for Pacific Advancement and South Campus,
with a contribution from the AUT Brand and Marketing
team responded to a request for assistance by leaders of
the Tongan community by donating over 150 desks and
chairs, as well as sponsoring the shipping container used in
its transportation.
Assistant Vice-Chancellor Walter Fraser says while AUT’s
small contribution is symbolic of us responding to our place
in the world there is still much work to be done to fully
understand that we are inextricably linked to the futures
of Pacific communities both here in Tāmaki Makaurau,
Aotearoa and in our region of Te Moana Nui a Kiwa.
“We are privileged to have many Tongan staff, students
and alumni who are a part of our own AUT family.
Responding to the impact of the tsunami in Tonga is us
extending manaakitanga to our own kin or kāinga.”
The New Zealand Tongan community set up a relief
response collection point at Mt Smart (Rarotonga) stadium.
From 25 to 27 February, the donated furniture from AUT
was loaded into the container at the response site ready to
be shipped to Tonga.

30 Islands Business, April 2022