Celebrate Welcoming Week with us!

Welcoming Week (9 to 18 September 2022) is an opportunity to celebrate the inclusivity and diversity of our city and the values that unite us as neighbours, parents, and colleagues to make our communities more welcoming to all those who call Invercargill home. This week is a chance to show Whanaungatanga - the importance of relationships, and Manākitanga - the process of showing respect, generosity and care for others.

With this year theme “Where we belong”, Invercargill City Council wants to bring dialogue and new perspectives to our community through the form of a Human Library where Human Books will be available for meaningful face-to-face conversations about their own journey.

Members of the community are invited to hear stories from our Human Books at Invercargill Public Library on Sunday 11 September, from 1.30pm to 3.30pm. Conversation will be scheduled for 15 minutes. Find the full programme in the "Documents" area of that page.

Invercargill City Council also wants to acknowledge its new citizens with a planting ceremony of native trees held that same week as last citizenship ceremonies were cancelled with Covid restrictions. A way for the invited citizens to put down their roots for good in Invercargill as this is their home!

There are many ways you and your colleagues, neighbours and community members can celebrate together Welcoming Week, whether it's by sharing some food from your native country, hosting a diversiTEA or simply being welcoming to someone new to here.