Tapasā Joins Forces with UN Youth NZ to Uplift Māori & Pacific Voices

Kayla Schwalger, Creative Director of Tapasā, has been appointed as the Head Māori and Pacific Peoples (MPP) Liaison for the Aotearoa Youth Declaration 2025, UN Youth New Zealand’s flagship civics education conference.

Bringing together over 250 high school students from across Aotearoa, AYD is a four-day event where rangatahi shape a youth-led vision for the nation’s future. Held annually in Tāmaki Makaurau, the conference creates a space for young people to discuss issues that matter — from healthcare to governance — and craft a formal declaration presented to Members of Parliament.

Kayla's role at the heart of this kaupapa is crucial. As Head MPP Liaison, she leads a team dedicated to fostering cultural safety, wellbeing, and belonging for Māori and Pasifika participants. While the position has traditionally focused on welfare and accessibility, this year marks a shift — expanding into educational spaces, particularly in rōpū (policy) discussions on sensitive topics like justice, healthcare, and social development, which disproportionately affect Māori and Pacific communities.

For Kayla, this is a new yet natural step. “As a young Pacific person passionate about systems change, I knew I had to be involved. Our Māori and Pasifika youth often sit in the minority at conferences like this, but they are the ones who carry deep lived experience of the issues being discussed. My role was to make sure they felt seen, supported, and confident to speak up.”

She ensured there was a MPP space for the students to rest, recharge, and connect. Whether during lunch breaks or after rōpū sessions, the space provided students with a strong sense of belonging. Kayla and her team also ran wellbeing activities and were a constant, affirming presence throughout the five-day event.

A key aspect of her leadership came before the event even began — through her cultural capability training for volunteers, titled:

Walking with Mana: Culturally Capable Volunteering for Māori & Pacific Rangatahi

In this session, Kayla reminded volunteers that these spaces aren’t neutral. For Māori and Pacific youth, conversations about education, health, justice, and social services are not abstract — they are deeply personal. “Our job as volunteers isn’t to control the conversation,” she said, “but to protect the mana of those speaking, especially when their identity and experiences are on the table.”

The training equipped volunteers with practical tools and mindset shifts to support Māori and Pacific participants meaningfully. Volunteers were encouraged to hold space with humility, honour the vā (relational space), and uplift the mauri (life force) of each young person. She grounded the training in cultural values — alofa/aroha (love), whakapapa (connection), tautua (service), and fa’aaloalo (respect) — emphasizing that cultural capability is not a checklist, but a way of being.

The key message:

“Our role is to protect the mana of Māori and Pacific youth by creating culturally safe spaces where their voices are heard, valued, and uplifted — especially in conversations that directly impact their lives. Walk with intention, serve with alofa, and lead with humility.”

Kayla’s involvement not only shaped the experience for Māori and Pacific delegates — it also left a lasting impression on the volunteer team and the wider event culture. Her leadership helped set a new standard for how large-scale youth events can honour identity, uplift marginalised voices, and approach cultural capability with authenticity and care.

Kayla sitting on the "Young Trailblaizers' UN Youth NZ Panel

As the declaration is written and shared with decision-makers, the presence of Māori and Pacific rangatahi — confident in who they are and supported in how they show up — will be part of its legacy.

“When we create space for our young people to stand strong in their culture, we don’t just change the room — we shift the future.”