Platform One Foundation Charitable Trust

Starting from the community side.

Many of the systems we rely on were built for a different time. As technology and society change, communities have new opportunities to participate in them — not simply as customers, but as contributors.

Platform One is about building a better way alongside those systems. Its practical framework helps communities bring their resources together and coordinate participation, creating greater value for themselves and the wider systems they are part of. The aim is an enduring community role, with more of the value they help create staying in community hands.

WE Share Community Power on Waiheke Island is the first practical expression of this wider idea. Beginning with energy, we are testing how community participation can create value for households, the community and the wider electricity system.

 

Who We Are

Platform One Foundation is an independent charitable foundation established to support a different way for communities to participate in the systems that affect their lives.

We are here to help communities build lasting capability and carry their purpose forward. As people, projects and partnerships change, the Foundation provides continuity, helping preserve the principles, knowledge and learning that allow this community-first approach to develop over time.

We start from the community side, while recognising that lasting value often comes from working with others. Communities, industry and public agencies can each bring something to the table. The aim is to help communities participate on fair terms, contribute value to the wider systems they are part of, and retain more of the value they help create.

We do not speak or make decisions on behalf of communities. People and organisations remain responsible for their own choices and activities.

What We Do

We are developing a practical framework that helps communities identify opportunities, bring people and resources together, and turn shared ideas into projects that can create lasting value.

The important part is what becomes possible when those resources are coordinated. Individual projects can create value on their own, but working together can create greater value — for the people taking part, for the community, and for the wider systems they are part of.

We are looking at how communities can build that capability alongside existing organisations, bringing their resources and contributions into the wider system in ways that benefit both. The aim is to help communities participate on fair terms, contribute value beyond their own boundaries, and retain more of the value they help create.

We help make those opportunities visible, support people and organisations to work together, and carry forward the knowledge and learning as projects develop. The people involved remain responsible for their own choices and activities.

How We Work

Our work is grounded in:

  • community-first purpose
  • starting with what matters locally
  • independence and constructive partnership
  • voluntary and meaningful participation
  • transparency, accountability and ethical practice
  • fair recognition and fair sharing of value
  • keeping community benefit in community hands
  • long-term stewardship
  • respect for privacy, data and informed participation
  • care for the environment and future generations
  • learning from evidence and experience

These principles help communities take part with confidence, remain independent, work with others on fair terms, and create value that benefits both their communities and the wider systems they are part of.

Contact Platform One Foundation

Starting from the community side

If something in Platform One’s approach connects with what you are doing, or you would simply like to start a conversation, we would be pleased to hear from you.

We welcome conversations with communities, organisations and others interested in turning local priorities into practical action and keeping more value in community hands.

For a practical demonstration of our work in community energy on Waiheke, WE Share Community Power is the place to start.