UPR 2019 Delegation

Kia ora whanau and friends,

The kumara does not speak of its own sweetness…BUT, on this occasion, we think we should!

We have been selected by the Aotearoa Youth Leadership Institute (AYLI) to represent AYLI at the United Nations’ Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, Switzerland, this coming January. This will be New Zealand’s third review of our domestic human rights progress, where Aotearoa will be assessed by Member States and receive new human rights goals that will be translated into our policy and practice for the next five years.

We are a team of seven young wahine who are passionate about creating an equitable society for all New Zealanders. The UPR will be an invaluable and important stepping-stone as we work towards this goal in our disciplines, including biodiversity, law, palliative care, global studies, international relations and engineering.

This trip is entirely self-funded and will cost around $5,500 per person - and we thought Auckland was expensive! As we are all students, we have set up this page to help us reach our target. Any donation - big or small - is appreciated.

We will be regularly posting about our experiences in Geneva and post-Geneva, so watch out for us!

We hope to do you and Aotearoa proud! Thank you for all your support.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Ko te Amorangi ki mua, ko te hapaio ki muri

This ancient whakatauki/proverb embodies the responsibilities that each recipient must embrace as future leaders in our ever-changing world with the Creator as our spearhead (te Amorangi), the support of our whānau and extended networks (te hapaio) and the foundation and strength that our Māori culture encompasses.

Nga mihi,

• Kristy Kang
• Jordana Pointon-Haimona
• Sara Bekhit
• Katharine Woolrych
• Anika John
• Anneliese Mitchell
• Emily Anderson

(UPR 2019 Delegation)