29 August 2018 marked the first anniversary of Christchurch City Council’s Multicultural Strategy, Our Future Together. The strategy emphasises Christchurch’s continued efforts to rebuild a modern and inclusive city that reflects collective identity.
Mayor Lianne Dalziel hosted a celebratory event that was attended by many of those involved in the Strategy’s development. The Mayor spoke of how cohesion and belonging lend a hand in developing service and governance models that reflect the needs of a diverse community.
Pancha Narayan, President of the Federation of Multicultural Councils, presented the Mayor and Councillor Jimmy Chen, Chair of the Multicultural subcommittee, with an award for excellence. The acknowledgement reflects the courage and leadership shown by the Christchurch City Council in developing Our Future Together.
The efforts of Our Future Together were recently supported at the first Future of Heritage meeting, held 2 August 2018.
The Future of Heritage aims to redefine Christchurch’s heritage to reflect its diversity. Their vision, “Ōtautahi Christchurch is an inclusive multicultural and multilingual city that honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi and values our environment – a city where all people belong”, aligns with the purpose of Our Future Together.
The meeting was hosted by Christchurch City Council with support from the Office of Ethnic Communities. Representatives from ethnic communities and local iwi, Ngai Tahu, were brought together to discuss the heritage legacy they would like to leave for future generations.
Prior to the earthquakes, Christchurch’s heritage could be seen in the buildings of the first settlers from the United Kingdom. Since then, migrants from across the globe have moved to Christchurch to help with the rebuild and participate in society. Our Future Heritage will reflect the heritage of its earliest settler, while exploring the values, languages and design concepts from different cultures to inform a collective identity.