Our mission

ONE HUMAN FAMILY: Transforming communities through enabling lives of dignity and hope.

Our Mission:

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand will be known as love in action. We unite with communities, especially in the parishes, colleges, marae, religious orders and schools of Aotearoa and Oceania to overcome poverty, protect lives and relieve suffering.

Our Vision:

Enable lives of dignity and hope by eliminating injustice and poverty, inspired and guided by the Gospels of Jesus and Catholic social teaching, and a loving personal encounter with people in need.

Our Values:

compassion and empathy – aroha

human dignity – te tapu o te tangata

equality – ōritetanga

hope – tūmanako

justice – tika

Our strategic goals:

Reduce poverty – whakaitingia te pōhara

• Reduce the incidence and impact of poverty

Environmental justice – tikanga taiao

• Address environmental problems and injustice, focusing on climate change and its impact on the most vulnerable in the Oceania region

Indigenous peoples – ngā iwi taketake

• Increase our partnership with tangata whenua of Aotearoa so that our advocacy and programmes respond to their needs and those of other indigenous communities

Crisis response – te whakautu ki ngā take mōrearea

• Reduce the impact on the most vulnerable of natural and environmental disasters and conflict

Awareness and connection – mōhiotanga me te hononga

• Inspire and empower Catholics in Aotearoa New Zealand to work for a world free of injustice and poverty.

Our way of being:

Within Caritas and in all our work, we seek to be the hands, ears, eyes and mouth of Christ; formed by his love and heart, we are ready to serve, to forgive and to speak with patience, wisdom, gentleness and perseverance.