Te Puna Aonui - Pūrākau
Te Puna Aonui - Name, Purpose, and Values

Te Puna Aonui is the Joint Venture for the Elimination of Family Violence and Sexual Violence. We are made up of a range of Government Agencies, four Associate Agencies, and a Business Unit.

Our Name

We are named after the star, Aonui. Aonui is a pathway of enlightenment, creating the markers on the journey from te kore (darkness) ki te ao marama (into the light). Te Puna Aonui contains the tools and resources to sustain the implementation of Te Aorerekura to achieve wellbeing for current and future generations.

Te Puna Aonui is a name gifted to us by tangata whenua and draws on their wānanga, which included korero about: 

• Light and māramatanga, the path, sunrise, dawn, stars
• A spring, oasis or well - a body of water with the power to sustain, revitalise and energise people and the environments they live in
• A place of calm, an oasis, a place of learning and reflection, a repository of knowledge, a centre of excellence, teachers and teachings that enable knowledge to be shared
• Puna connecting us across space and time (e.g. mokopuna, tīpuna, tūpuna, puna ora and puna waiora) and how these connections are integral to social fabric.

Our Logo

Our tohu/ identity tells the story of our work: whānau and communities are at the centre (the koru), surrounded by the light that comes as we move into the light of Te Puna Aonui. That light is generated through collaboration, innovation and learning to deliver responses that heal and strengthen families, whānau, and communities. He korowai manaaki wraps around the system. 

In addition, our tohu includes:

• the concept of Te Puna Aonui providing he korowai manaaki / a cloak of protection around the system
• whānau, families and communities at the centre
• the Tokotoru model – responding, healing, strengthening, and
• collaboration, innovation, and learning.
  
  

Our Purpose

Supporting and strengthening the collective approach of government, tangata whenua, communities and whānau towards wellbeing and a life free from family violence and sexual violence.

Eliminating family violence and sexual violence is one of our greatest opportunities to improve wellbeing.

The Joint Venture was formed in 2018 and became an Interdepartmental Executive Board in 2022. Read more about that here.

Te Puna Aonui brings government agencies together to align whole-of-government strategy, policy and investment to eliminate family violence and sexual violence.

Our Agencies

We drive engagement and accountability at all levels of government, to support collective action towards a family violence and sexual violence system that supports people, families, whānau and communities on their journey towards toiora/ wellbeing.

Te Puna Aonui is made up of the following Groups:

• the collective of 10 government agencies
• four associate agencies
• the Board, and
• and team working in the business unit.
  
  

We also have 4 associate agencies

Te Puna Aonui formalises the joint way of working embodied by the joint venture, started in 2018. The Public Service Act 2020 provides for chief executives to work together as boards, to deal with complex issues where impacts and policy sit across a wide range of portfolio areas. These complex issues cannot be solved by one single agency. The Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence and Sexual Violence is responsible for the board.

We are mandated by Cabinet to:

1. provide whole-of-government strategy, policy, and budgeting advice to Ministers on eliminating family violence and sexual violence, including future iterations of the National Strategy;
2. provide analysis and evidence to support Ministers to make decisions on specific interventions;
3. provide Ministers with an oversight of interventions and outcomes within the whole family violence and sexual violence sector, and identify any linkages, gaps, or opportunities;
4. monitor, support, and coordinate implementation of the National Strategy, and other priority and cross-agency initiatives; and
5. manage relationships between government and the family violence and sexual violence sectors.

Our business unit

The Business Unit supports government agencies take a collective, community-led and people-centred approach to delivering solutions that prevent and respond to violence, strengthen and heal. 

The Te Puna Aonui business unit is divided into four sub-units, each led by a Director that reports to the Chief Executive. 

Read more about our people in the business unit here.

Important whakaaro

All forms of violence are violations of mana and tapu. This is significant when considering the wider context in which these violations occur. Individuals, families, whānau and communities need to be able to orientate themselves on pathways to toiora. Sometimes these (healing) processes are harsh and difficult. Aonui creates the markers on the journey from te kore ki te ao marama – from darkness into the light. Te Puna Aonui is the vessel containing appropriate tools and resources to support both individual and collective journeys towards toiora.

Aonui provides individuals, families, whānau, communities and government a toolbox (which includes the roadmap set out in Te Aorerekura) to eliminate family violence and sexual violence in Aotearoa. The journey anticipates physical, emotional, spiritual and social transformation of individuals, families and whānau. It also anticipates a transformation in the way government works collaboratively and commits to the actions required to affect change. This means government (and its agencies) must be the leaders and champions of systemic, attitudinal and behavioural change in order to improve the wellbeing of people impacted by family violence and sexual violence.

Collective impact

At Te Puna Aonui, we also think of ourselves as the backbone in a collective impact initiative. As such, we are the backbone connecting all of the resources required to implement Te Aorerekura/ a puna of resources. Our work is guided by the principles (whanonga pono) for the Strategy: equity and inclusion, aroha, tika and pono, kotahitanga, kaitiakitanga. We have everything we need to enable toiora (wellbeing).