Thoje saw a fresh challenge in sharing his experience of starting up and running a business with other young people. This led him to Canterbury University and a diploma in adult education.
Three years after graduation, he founded Toi Toi Manawa, a not-for-profit that uses biological farming as a teaching method.
"The charity helps inspire young people into pathways, we call them sustainable pathways. Pathways where they can follow their passions, not pathways that jump from one thing to another without any purpose," he says.
To ensure optimum development of the not-for-profit, Thoje set up an advisory board. His experience as chairman of the board was so positive that he sought out more board positions in both not-for-profit and private sectors. He is currently a council member on the Todd Family Council and committee member of the family's FEED Committee.
Thoje is also a director of ROC Rental Properties Ltd. On the not-for-profit side, as well as being chairman of Toi Toi Manawa, a board member of Rotorua X, and trustee of Envirohub Bay of Plenty, he is a committee member of the Institute of Directors' Bay of Plenty branch.
Thoje brings a range of skills and experience with real strengths in entrepreneurship, governance and young adult education.
It is his expertise in the latter which will greatly assist our desire to connect Rotorua's secondary and tertiary graduates with the business community and non-profit sector. Our region needs to offer its best and brightest students a pathway, not only into local jobs, but also into entrepreneurship.
Along with four local organisations Rotorua X will soon be launching a programme to encourage new businesses and non-profit organisations through an exciting combination of mentoring, training and co-working space. We hope that this will encourage Rotorua's talent to remain here.
- Darren McGarvie is the chairman of the Rotorua X Charitable Trust.
