Waka Toa Ora is a District Health Board-led inter-sectoral network in the Canterbury region. It is based on the WHO Healthy Cities model and was previously known as Healthy Christchurch.
The member organisations signed up to the network’s Charter, agreeing to work together to promote, protect and improve the health and wellbeing of people and land/whenua in Canterbury.
Waka Toa ora aims to:
- Forge a common vision for a healthy region;
- Foster healthy relationships between diverse agencies and sectors, from 'grassroots' groups to government agencies;
- Enable flexible, collaborative and prompt responses to emergent health issues; and
- Ensure all policy incorporates a health perspective.
The initiative recognises that all sectors and groups have a role in creating a healthy region.
Signatories guide the Waka Toa Ora priorities. They are in touch with local communities, operate according to the Waka Toa Ora Charter, and initiate and support a variety of activities.
The Advisory Group is the key link to the Support Team. The members of this group are drawn from the health, local government and NGO sectors.
The Waka Toa Ora Support Team is based at Community and Public Health (formerly a division of the Canterbury DHB). The Support Team is responsible for:
- responding to enquiries;
- coordinating meetings of the Advisory Group;
- maintaining the Signatory database and distribution lists;
- managing the website;
- compiling and sending out the weekly email newsletter; and
- coordinating signatory-led lunchtime seminars as well as the annual hui for signatories.
Find out about the background to the Healthy Christchurch initiative, including how the original charter was developed.