CORSO centre: open week

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33985, 28 October 1975, Page 15

CORSO centre: open week

Meet the people who are responsible for the running of CORSO, N.Z.C.O.A.C. and Trade Aid (N.Z.) Inc. Most are volunteers who, with the support of strong committees, give their skills and time freely to tackling the diverse challenges faced by these organisations.

NOW (right) and PETER BRETT with Mr Utula Samana of Papua New Guinea at the Consultation on Partnership for Devel- ’ opment held in Tonga in j September. Father Curnow is director of New Zealand Catholic Overseas Aid and j with 20 years experience, i regarded as one of New I Zealand’s most knowledgeable workers in aid and development on the national executive of CORSO, he has also recently been appointed to I the Advisoiy Committee on I External Aid and Develop- I ment by the New Zealand I Government. Mr Brett has been working with Catholic Overseas Aid for more than 10 years. He is its national projects officer and a member of the CORSO Asian Projects Committee and Education Committee.

CORSO regional organiser for the Canterbury West Coast Buller, Nelson, and Marlborough region, for the last five years. His is a staff position which involves the carrying out of CORSO’s national goals and giving support to all of its activities. Bob travelled extensively throughtout the world in the 1960’s and in 1972 he was the New Zealand delegate to a conference on “People’s Participation in Development” in India, sponsored by the Foad and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations. During that visit he saw projects in India, Bangladesh, Thailand, South Vietnam and Indonesia.

regional chairman of CORSO for the Canterbury, West Coast Buller, Nelson, and Marlborough region. Mr Seatter is a member on the National Executive and chairman of ’corso’s Asian Projects Committee. He has been involved with CORSO for 14 years. His main task is to coordinate the work of 21 district committees throughout the region and represent them at a national level. Mr Seatter is the principal of Heaton Intermediate School and a member of the Christchurch Harmonic Society. He is an elder in the Presbyterian Church.

who is chairwoman of the CORSO Material Aid Committee, which co-ordinates the voluntary workers at CORSO Headquarters. This committee supports CORSO’s general work with particular emphasis on fund-raising and material aid. She is a retired teacher, secretary of the Christchurch branch of the United Nations Association, works at UNICEF, and is on the staff relations and appointments committee of the Christchurch Free Kindergarten Association.

chairman of the Christchurch CORSO Committee, and on the teaching staff of the University of Canterbury chemistry dept. During 1974, while he was in Fiji as the University of Canterbury Centennial Fellow to the University of the South Pacific, Mr Fergusson saw at first hand the destructive influence of western culture, and trading practices on the South Pacific. The Christchurch committee is involved in helping New Zealanders understand the causes of world poverty, that we contribute to the problem, and how we must act to remedy the situation.

These three faces are from Trade Aid (NZ) Inc. Peter Elvy, who is general manager, has been active in the development field for many years. He was formerly sales manager for a large automotive firm, and has regular contacts with Trade Aid’s partners, particularly in the Pacific area.

Vi Cottrell is the secretary and a founding member of Trade Aid. She has worked in India for two years with Tibetan refugees and ran an exporting business for Tibetan handicrafts. Her current position with Trade Aid involves staying in touch with 37 suppliers of handicrafts 11 more than 20 countries.

Richard Cottrell is chairman and a founding board member of Trade Aid. He is also chairman of the Friends of CORSO. He has spent two years in India working with Tibetan refugees. Mr Cottrell is a lawyer by profession and a marshal] for CORSO’s annual cash appeal.