Before We Lead, We Learn to Navigate: Our Young People Return to the Waka

For generations, our Pacific ancestors looked to the stars, ocean, winds and waves to find their way.

They crossed the largest ocean in the world carrying generations of knowledge - knowing how to read their environment, adapt to changing conditions, work collectively and navigate towards places they had never seen before.

At Tapasā, we believe this knowledge still has something powerful to teach our young people today.

We want to support Pacific youth to follow their passions, reconnect with their cultures and rediscover the knowledge that has always existed within our communities. And what better way to experience that than aboard a waka?

Through Le Moana West Collective’s Sāuni initiative, a group of young Pacific people travelled to Ōtautahi for five days of voyaging, cultural learning and wayfinding facilitation training.

Among the 12 young people were Tapasā – Navigating Futures Jesse, Uelese, Keneti, Konrad, Mahonri, Grace, Luciana Joshua and Kayla, joining rangatahi from across TASIANI, Manava Nui – Pacific Vision Aotearoa.

For us, this opportunity was about more than learning to sail.

It was about giving our young people an opportunity to physically experience the knowledge of their ancestors - and strengthening the cultural foundation they can stand upon as they become the leaders, creatives, advocates and changemakers of their generation.

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Returning to the waka

The journey began aboard Hinemoana, a traditional double-hulled waka hourua operated by Te Toki Voyaging Trust.

For many of our young people, it was their first time voyaging.

Over two days, they learned how to work the lines, steer the waka using the hoe, tie knots, tack and read the changing environment around them. They spent the night aboard Hinemoana and took turns keeping watch throughout the night.

Out on the moana, lessons our ancestors understood for generations suddenly became real.

You have to observe.

You have to know your role.

You have to trust the people around you.

You have to respond when the conditions change.

And you have to make sure everyone on the waka reaches the destination together.

For our Tapasā youth, there was something particularly powerful about realising that these weren't simply new skills they were learning.

They were reconnecting with knowledge their ancestors had practised for thousands of years.

Keneti, 17, reflected:

“It was amazing. I was honoured to be a part of reviving this art. Voyaging has been part of our Pasifika culture for thousands of years, so being able to learn and bring these insights back to our communities has been so great.”

For Mahonri, 19, being on the waka created an even deeper connection to those who came before him:

“The ocean is so beautiful and being on the waka makes you think about your ancestors and how they used to do it for thousands of years. I’m grateful for this programme for restoring it and keeping it alive.”

These are the moments we want to create more of for our young people.

Moments where culture isn't something they only hear or read about.

They get to live it.

Culture as a foundation for leadership

At Tapasā, we spend a lot of time thinking about the kind of leaders our young people will become.

We want them to dream big. We want them to enter spaces where decisions are made, create things that haven't existed before, advocate for their communities and challenge systems that aren't working for our people.

But before we ask young Pacific people to go out and change the world, we also want to make sure they have somewhere strong to stand.

For us, that foundation is identity, culture and community.

When our young people understand where they come from, they don't enter leadership empty-handed. They carry generations of knowledge with them.

Voyaging gives us such a beautiful metaphor for this.

Our ancestors did not simply point their waka towards the horizon and hope for the best. They prepared. They observed. They understood their environment. They knew their values and destination. They relied on collective knowledge and trusted the people travelling alongside them.

Those same principles can guide our young people as they navigate their lives today.

For Tapasā youth Uelese, 16, the experience also meant stepping outside his comfort zone:

“It allowed me to discover more about myself and pushed me out of my comfort zone. This will be an experience I remember for life. I’m super grateful and can’t wait to practise being a wayfinder facilitator.”

And for Grace, the experience connected ancestral voyaging directly with how we care for our communities today.

She reflected on the preparation our ancestors needed before embarking on a voyage, the constant adjustments they made along the way, and the responsibility they carried for everyone travelling with them.

Her biggest takeaway?

It takes a village.

From voyagers to wayfinders

After returning to land, the learning continued with Faumuina Felolini Maria Tafuna'i and the Flying Geese Trust through the Habits of a Wayfinder Facilitator.

The beauty of the training was that our young people could immediately connect what they were learning in the room to what they had experienced on the ocean.

They mapped who needed to be on their “waka”, imagined their “island of success”, developed their values compass and explored how they could navigate challenges that might emerge along the journey.

They deepened their knowledge of traditional stars and navigation and explored how they could facilitate these same conversations when they returned home.

Because reconnecting young people to culture isn't only about preserving knowledge.

It's about giving them the confidence and tools to carry it forward.

Our hope is that young people don't simply leave experiences like this feeling inspired.

We want them to return to their communities able to share what they have learned, apply it to the kaupapa they care about and create opportunities for other young people to reconnect too.

Our ancestors were wayfinders. Our young people are too.

Our young people are growing up in a world our ancestors could never have imagined.

They are navigating climate change, technology, changing identities, new systems and challenges that will require courageous and creative leadership.

But while the conditions around them may be changing, they don't have to navigate without a compass.

There is knowledge behind them.

There is community around them.

There are generations of navigators whose courage made their lives possible.

Our role is to help young people reconnect with those foundations while giving them the space to imagine where they might voyage next.

Because we believe some of the strongest leaders are those who know deeply who they are before they decide where they're going. And when our young people are grounded in culture, connected to community and confident in the knowledge they carry, they don't just navigate the world differently.

This experience was delivered through Le Moana West Collective’s Sāuni initiative, bringing together young people from TASIANI, Manava Nui – Pacific Vision Aotearoa and Tapasā – Navigating Futures. Sāuni is supported by Auckland Emergency Management and Health New Zealand.