Celebrating milestones and opening a new chapter
Stakeholder and Media Briefing – The Edmund Hillary Fellowship (EHF) is close to realising its audacious goal of bringing together 500 high impact global entrepreneurs to catalyse New Zealand’s economy and entrepreneurial community. Today, it marks this milestone with the announcement of a new chapter focused on amplifying the impact work of the Fellowship community.
We are of course conscious that we are all affected by considerable Covid-related uncertainty at this time, and acknowledge that there is currently no ‘ideal moment’ for communicating developments, but we are doing so in a spirit of optimism and goodwill.
As part of this move, EHF will be consolidating governance and management with its parent, the Hillary Institute. “We believe strengthening our alignment with the Institute can maximise the benefit we deliver to Aotearoa New Zealand and the world.” says EHF Chair, Dr Catlin Powers. “Our contribution to the world centres around the people we support and celebrate. Further aligning the two organisations allows us to achieve this more effectively and to optimise our collective impact,” says Hillary Institute Chair, Anake Goodall.
The Hillary Institute of International Leadership is a charitable trust founded in 2007 to celebrate and promote international leaders solving the wicked problems of our time through the selection of an annual Hillary Prize Laureate who embodies the humanitarian commitment of Sir Ed.
Hillary Institute’s daughter organisation, EHF, launched in October 2016 as a public-private partnership between the Institute, Kiwi Connect, and Immigration New Zealand (INZ). The first milestone for the Fellowship was to co-create and deliver a first-of-its-kind Global Impact Visa with INZ to attract high-impact entrepreneurs and investors to Aotearoa New Zealand. The four-year visa pilot finishes in October 2020, having attracted 3,400 applicants and having brought together 100 Kiwi Fellows and nearly 400 international fellows from over 40 countries.
“We’re very proud of the work so far”, says Anake Goodall. “In this next chapter, we will combine forces and double down on supporting the impact work of both the Edmund Hillary Fellows and the Laureates. It’s about connecting these changemakers with support networks, and connecting projects with a range of resources. Fellows are already finding each other, connecting with the New Zealand ecosystem, and launching new initiatives. Our role is to support them on their impact journeys. That’s the magic - and the challenge - that we’re leaning into.”
“While we are excited about this next stage in our journey, we are also saddened to announce that our founding CEO Yoseph Ayele has decided to leave to open a new chapter in his already remarkable career,” says Catlin Powers. “Yoseph has been an energetic and passionate leader through the critical start-up and development stages of EHF. He built the systems for recruiting and selecting entrepreneurs for the visa programme from the ground up and has led the organisation to achieve the remarkable milestone of bringing together some 500 Fellows who are contributing to New Zealand’s economy and society.”
“We acknowledge and celebrate all that Yoseph has given to EHF. We are also grateful that he will remain in his role while we recruit a new CEO and effect the consolidation of governance and management across EHF and the Hillary Institute.” says Dr Powers.
“It has been an incredible privilege to steward EHF from inception to where we are today, and to work with the many exceptionally talented Fellows who have come together to do globally impactful work from Aotearoa. New Zealand is a guiding light for the world through these turbulent times, and I believe the remarkable people and the entrepreneurial spirit in this Fellowship have a pivotal role to play in bringing bold visions to life and creating a better world for all. I look forward to remaining an active supporter of the EHF kaupapa and the new CEO as we continue the work of impact together,” says Yoseph Ayele, EHF CEO. He shares more about his transition on this blog post.
“Sir Ed’s many achievements - across continents and time - remind us that humility, focussed determination, hard work, and a deep commitment to the wellbeing of the collective ahead of any personal benefit are the keys to achieving step changes in both circumstances and our collective view of what is possible”, Institute Founding Director Mark Prain says. “We are consolidating the EHF and Hillary Institute entities with the express intention of facilitating more opportunities to achieve transformational change in these demanding times.”
“At a time when global environmental and humanitarian crises seem as insurmountable as the first summitting of Everest once did, the Fellowship and Laureate programmes are dedicated to supporting those who are in service to the planet and the life that it sustains.” say Dr Powers and Anake Goodall, “The Institute and EHF’s mission is to unlock the inherent potential - the Hillary Step - in all of us, so we can build a bridge to the better future that we know is possible.”
Please direct media queries to Communications Liaison, Kris Herbert, kris@creativeagent.co.nz +64 (21) 126 8524.
Questions & Answers
What is the criteria for becoming an Edmund Hillary Fellow?
Our 500 fellows are selected based on their entrepreneurial track record, drive and motivation to create global impact, long-term commitment to Aotearoa New Zealand, and capacity to positively contribute to innovation in the New Zealand ecosystem.
Fellows’ success in NZ is based on a combination of impactful initiatives they build, and local startups and innovations they support using their skills, networks, and resources.
EHF has a robust selection process that includes an online application, multiple interviews and reference checks, and background research. Less than 15% of applicants are accepted, and decisions are made by an independent selection panel. Once Fellows are accepted into EHF, they are invited to apply for the Global Impact Visa and go through additional vetting by Immigration New Zealand.
What has been the impact of the Fellows so far?
EHF Fellows are tackling global problems and creating new opportunities in New Zealand in a variety of ways. This includes growing the technology sector in NZ by building new tech companies, investing in the local tech ecosystem, and bringing global expertise and networks to help grow innovation in NZ. They are supporting New Zealand’s transition to regenerative agriculture, helping grow new industries such as the space industry, renewable energy, and large scale waste to energy industries. A large number of Fellows are working on innovations in education, mental health, affordable housing, clean energy access, sustainable fashion, financial inclusion, and the future of work.
According to a recent survey from the last 2 years, Fellows have directly invested $5.7m in early stage Kiwi startups, helped source $18m investments for early stage Kiwi founders, and are establishing a number of venture funds in New Zealand to strengthen capital access for Kiwi innovations. Read more about Fellows’ impact here: www.ehf.org
Why have EHF and Hillary Institute decided to consolidate governance and management?
Both organisations have a mission to deliver benefit to Aotearoa New Zealand and the world through more and stronger connections with global change makers. Closer alignment of the organisations - by sharing a common Chair and CEO - will optimise that collective impact.
Relevant Quotes from Press Release: “We believe strengthening our alignment with the Institute can maximise the benefit we deliver to Aotearoa New Zealand and the world.” says EHF Chair, Catlin Powers. “Our contribution to the world centres around the people we support and celebrate. Aligning the governance and leadership of the two organisations allows us to achieve this more effectively and to optimise our collective impact,” says Hillary Institute Chair, Anake Goodall.
Why is EHF making impact activation and amplification its central focus in this next chapter?
Now that the Global Impact Visa pilot is reaching completion, with nearly 500 fellows recruited to participate in the fellowship, shifting our central focus towards amplifying the impact work of the Fellowship community is the next step in fulfilling EHF’s purpose.
What does EHF mean by impact activation and amplification?
In this next chapter, EHF will more strongly focus on building networks and connections to deliver benefits to Aotearoa New Zealand and support our Fellows to grow personally and professionally. We will focus on providing the support structures they need to scale up their projects for maximum impact.
What is the future of the Global Impact Visa?
EHF and Immigration New Zealand have a contractual agreement to provide 400 visas during the pilot period, and see through the Permanent Residence application process of all Global Impact Visa holders who are eligible to apply for residence. This applies for all migrants who receive a Global Impact Visa during the pilot period, including Cohort 7 and 8 Fellows.
The current Global Impact Visa pilot comes to a completion with the selection of Cohort 7 and 8. In 2021, Immigration New Zealand aims to review the pilot, capture lessons from this experiment, and decide on the future of the Global Impact Visa. The timeframe for this review will depend on a series of factors including border regulations and the unfolding of the Covid-19 situation.
What does the next phase of EHF”s relationship with Tangata Whenua look like?
Over the past 3 and a half years, EHF has been building a partnership with Te Ātiawa Taranaki Whānui, who have been generously offering the Fellowship Te Āo Māori education and a warm indigenous cultural induction into Aotearoa New Zealand. The next chapter of the Fellowship will continue and deepen the honouring of the cultural identity of New Zealand and the Treaty of Waitangi. For our international Fellows, Aotearoa’s cultural heritage is a big part of what makes this opportunity unique. We want to keep walking this path and give indigenous Māori more of a voice in the Fellowship so we can look for ways for our Fellows to support indigenous communities and accelerate the Māori economy.
How does the new structure affect the Institute’s global Laureate Programme?
The new structure for both organisations offers new opportunities for Laureates and Fellows to connect and create wide-reaching impact in the world.