RainbowYOUTH & OuterSpaces are becoming one!
Over the past twelve months, OuterSpaces has been exploring avenues to strengthen the support options available to Wellington's rainbow rangatahi.
The global pandemic has highlighted how sensitive community organisations are to major changes in our social and political environments, and the effect this has on the communities they serve.
To make sure we can secure a thriving and sustainable future for rainbow rangatahi in Wellington, both our organisations have acknowledged that working collaboratively is the best way to get us there. Since the idea came up a few years ago, OuterSpaces and RainbowYOUTH have been undertaking a genuine community engagement process, acknowledging that the communities we serve should be at the heart of any major decisions made. We spoke to OuterSpaces’ internal community (Tranzform, School’s Out & Naming New Zealand) and conducted a roundtable hui with RainbowYOUTH leaders.
On Tuesday the 13th of April, the OuterSpaces board voted to wind up the trust, with the following implications:
OuterSpaces and RainbowYOUTH would become one legal entity.
RainbowYOUTH would take financial responsibility for all OuterSpaces staff and activities.
OuterSpaces and its peer support groups will maintain their names and brand identities.
“The RainbowYOUTH board & staff are committed to making sure the mauri, hands and hearts that have carried this work over the last few decades are protected and nurtured. We hope that we can continue to keep doing this work in a way that improves outcomes for our communities.” said Pooja Subramanian, RainbowYOUTH’s new Executive Director.
To carry out this work, we will be recruiting a Regional Coordinator for Wellington - the role will be based at OuterSpaces, a meeting ground, a place of joint work and support, shared with InsideOUT and ITANZ.
This is a landmark decision on the development of Aotearoa's rainbow infrastructure. It is a decision we must make in support of our vision of universal respect for, and celebration of, sexuality, body and gender diversity. This decision will determine how we continue the mahi required to make that vision a reality.
If you have any questions, queries or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. You can e-mail us at media@ry.org.nz
