New funding partnership for Tohatoha

New funding partnership for Tohatoha will help empower Kiwis to ‘create, share and innovate’

Stats NZ funding set to increase educational activity, advocacy and government focused workshops on Creative Commons licensing

AUCKLAND, 3 July 2018 – A new funding partner is empowering not-for-profit organisation Tohatoha - formerly known as Creative Commons Aotearoa New Zealand - to step up its activities and bring its advocacy for open access and open licensing to more Kiwis than ever before.

Announced today, the new outcomes agreement with Stats NZ (for $437,500 through to June 2020) will enable Tohatoha to begin developing new informational resources for New Zealand schools, continue advocating for open access to scholarly works, and deliver workshops for government agencies on Creative Commons licensing.

“We want a world where New Zealand leads by ensuring universal access to research, education and culture--and builds a fair and equitable information system that supports Kiwis to create, share, and innovate,” says Mandy Henk, Tohatoha’s Chief Executive.

“We are immensely grateful to have Stats NZ backing us to carry out this important work.”

Henk says the funding from Stats NZ will enable Tohatoha to start immediate development of a set of resources for New Zealand classrooms about how students and teachers can use Creative Commons licenses, as well as a series of ‘how to’ workshops for government agencies.

Paul Stone, Open Government Data Programme Lead at Stats NZ, says the work that Tohatoha does will be vital for improving access to information amongst a much broader range of communities - such as iwi, rural communities, and even large corporates.

“In supporting the work of Tohatoha, we are aiming to see all sectors of New Zealand gain a deeper awareness and understanding of the Creative Commons principles and the value of an open approach,” says Stone.

“Part of this will be ensuring that investment in the New Zealand Government Open Access and Licensing (NZGOAL) framework is secured as copyright law changes in New Zealand and globally.

“We also want New Zealand to continue to have a unique voice in the international Creative Commons community and ensure future version changes are compatible with New Zealand law,” says Stone.

Tohatoha also receives support from InternetNZ.

For more information on Tohatoha’s work in New Zealand, visit http://tohatoha.nz

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