Curiosity Abroad: Lessons from Acorns Trip to Canada
Why Canada?
Curiosity is one of Acorn’s five core values, and it constantly nudges us beyond Tauranga in search of ideas that can strengthen philanthropy here in the Western Bay of Plenty. In May 2025 that curiosity carried us 12,000 km to Halifax, for the Community Foundations of Canada conference. Rather than fly in and out, we turned the journey into a ten-day trip, calling on three of Canada’s most established community foundations, Victoria Foundation, Ottawa Community Foundation, and the Foundation of Greater Montréal, before joining hundreds of peers on Canada’s Atlantic coast. The experience was both affirming and eye-opening, and it is already shaping the conversations we are having back home.
A Century-Old Movement and a Warm Welcome
With more than 200 community foundations, some nearing their centenary, Canada is often described as the birthplace of modern community-foundation practice. We met teams stewarding multi-billion-dollar endowments, publishing city-wide Vital Signs reports and partnering with government ministries on place-based initiatives.
What surprised us most was how closely many of them are watching Acorn. At 21, we are still youthful by their standards, but colleagues half a world away were keen to understand how we have grown donor and community support so quickly while keeping our engagement style deeply personal. Their interest was humbling, and energising.
Unrestricted Giving in Action
A theme that surfaced in many conversations was the power of fully unrestricted giving, sometimes called untagged or undesignated gifting. In practical terms, this means a donor entrusts their contribution to the community foundation without attaching conditions such as “only for one specific charity” or “only for a specific suburb”. The gift still sits in an endowment bearing the donor’s name, and we still report on how the returns are used, but the annual distributions can be steered wherever the need is greatest at that moment.
Why does this matter? First, unrestricted funds unlock speed. When a flood, cyclone or cost-of-living spike hits, the foundation can move money within days rather than waiting for donor approvals. Second, it drives equity. Needs that are less visible, or simply less “popular”, still receive support because grant decisions are guided by community data rather than donor fashion. Finally, it safeguards relevance over time: what feels urgent in 2025 may not be the priority in 2045, and an unrestricted fund can evolve with the community it serves. The result, according to our hosts, is faster, fairer funding and deeper donor satisfaction. It’s a model we’re keen to explore here in the Bay, alongside our existing donor-advised and field-of-interest funds.
From Data to Dialogue: Vital Signs and Beyond
Vital Signs™, the research programme that underpinned our 2023 Western Bay Vital Update, was pioneered by American Foundations more than two decades ago. Canadian peers have since taken it further, hosting Vital Conversations that turn data into action through 90-minute, table-talk hui, and launching Vital Youth programmes that give secondary-school students real grants budgets and mentoring.
Fresh Tools for Donors & Charities
Perpetual endowments remain the backbone of Canadian community foundations, yet many now offer additional vehicles:
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Spend-down funds: higher annual payouts over a defined period, ideal for tackling urgent challenges such as youth mental health.
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Retractable funds: capital placed with a foundation, earning investment returns until a community group needs it for a major project—say, a building upgrade or new equipment.
Both options give donors and charities flexibility to operate in tandem with the stability ensured by their endowment fund. We can see clear potential for adding these tools to Acorn’s giving menu.
Partnering with Government, Thoughtfully
We also heard uplifting stories about public–philanthropic collaboration. Pandemic-era pass-through funding, for example, injected fresh resources into neighbourhood projects and proved that government and community foundations can move quickly together in a crisis. The advice from our Canadian colleagues was simple and positive: keep donors at the centre, stay crystal-clear on mission, and shape any future government contracts so they enhance, never overshadow, our commitment to community-led giving.
Bringing It Home to the Western Bay of Plenty
On the long flight back to Aotearoa our pages filled with questions and possibilities. More than anything, we returned with renewed confidence that Acorn’s Kaupapa, grass-roots, relationship-driven and relentlessly curious, is already world-class. Our challenge now is to weave these new strands of learning into everyday mahi so the people of Tauranga can reap the benefits.
Curiosity took us to Canada; collaboration will bring these lessons to life in the Bay.
If any of the ideas above resonate, please drop by Level 4, 35 Grey Street, give us a ring on 07 579 9839, or email info@acornfoundation.org.nz. We would love to kōrero over a cuppa and share our highlights from the trip.