ABOUT US

Ember Innovations is a kaupapa-driven team of social innovators, systems strategists, and mental wellbeing advocates.

We exist to change the way Aotearoa responds to mental wellbeing – by creating the conditions for bold ideas to grow, communities to lead, and systems to transform.

We are part of Ember Korowai Takitini, one of Aotearoa’s leading mental health NGOs. While Ember Korowai Takitini delivers frontline wellbeing and addiction recovery support, Ember Innovations was seeded to spark and sustain innovation that sits beyond traditional service models. Together, we share a vision:

An Aotearoa where all people are supported to be who and what they want to be. A society that better understands and responds to mental distress, addiction and intellectual disability.

Learn more about our kaupapa →

OUR VALUES

Our mahi is guided by values that reflect who we are and how we work:

Tino rangatiratanga

Recognising and upholding the mana of the people we work with.

Kotahitanga

Building collective care, collaboration, and shared purpose.

Kia tika, kia pono

Acting with integrity, cultural competence, and courageous honesty.

Pōtikitanga

Bringing playful curiosity, humble disruption, and bold experimentation.

OUR MISSION

We strive to build the conditions for innovation and systems change that improve mental health and wellbeing. We do this by:

Growing enabling conditions

Creating the relationships, investment, and lived experience leadership that make change possible.

Supporting innovation communities

Backing changemakers, supporting hauora, and building capacity.

Sparking innovation

Backing changemakers, supporting hauora, and building capacity.

Sharing knowledge

Making research, mātauranga, and lived experience insights accessible.

THE TEAM

We’re a small team with big ambitions — empathetic, impatient for change, endlessly curious, and deeply committed to reimagining mental wellbeing in Aotearoa.

ANYA SATYANAND
Director / Tumu Whakarae

An educator, innovator and leader with three decades’ experience across education, youth development, restorative justice and entrepreneurship. Anya believes in the capacity we have to create a hopeful future when we bring together collective energy, resources and talents.

EMILY PRESTON
Innovation Lead

With two decades in social innovation and enterprise, Emily brings experience in capability-building, education, and wellbeing. She is passionate about lived-experience leadership, systems thinking, and turning human stories into new possibilities.

TATIANA STRUDWICK
Investment and Partnerships Manager

Tatiana combines expertise in investment and partnerships with training in psychotherapy. She works at the intersection of mental health and funding, enabling funders and innovators to test and grow new ideas grounded in both wisdom and contemporary practice.

SUMARIE EKSTEEN
Community Activation Coordinator

With a big heart for people, especially youth, Sumarie is all things passionate about community. She believes in bringing warmth and kindness within her role and creating a safe space for people to feel connected and supported.

THE Ember Group

As part of Ember Korowai Takitini, we are connected to decades of experience in designing and delivering quality mental wellbeing and addiction recovery support services.