Pacific perspectives on Governance: The Pasifika Waymakers Fund
Participatory grantmaking initiatives like the Pacific Youth Future Makers help funders to further understand their priority communities and their needs, while also growing the learning, skills, and experience of participants. We recognise that in working toward our vision of Pūtea Hāpai Oranga – Funding to Enhance Lives, it is important to understand the communities that call Tāmaki and Tai Tokerau home.
The Pasifika Waymakers Fund – designed, promoted, and currently being assessed by a panel of 13 Pacific youth from South Auckland - went live on Monday, April 17th and closed on Wednesday, May 17th. Since February 2023, the panel have had bi-weekly, externally facilitated meetings to discuss, make decisions, and learn more about the world of funding as they collaborate to build their fund, their way.
Along the way the panel (aged 18-26) had an opportunity recently to meet Trustee Sara-Jane Elika and Foundation North CEO Peter Tynan. Sara-Jane and Peter attended one of the panel meetings to answer questions about their roles and discuss their experiences and insights with the panel. Sara-Jane spoke about the unique advantages of being a Pacific person in governance, and the importance of having diverse perspectives when making decisions that will impact the community. Panellist Nova Tagi recalled a stand-out moment for her during the discussion was, “Pacific people have an understanding of reading the room, which allows us to be good on panels.”
Sara-Jane highlighted some of her various experiences sitting on different boards, being surrounded by diverse groups of people, and times when her cultural competence has been an invaluable asset in governance.
Peter also discussed with the panel his career pathway, and the different roles and experiences that ultimately lead him to Foundation North. The meeting was a great opportunity to shed some light on what it looks like to be in the governance space and demonstrate that the experiences one accumulates as a young person growing up are often drawn upon in the future.
