Support for AYLI Delegation to attend UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

I am very humbled to be heading this delegation of 10 young Māori to attend the the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York. You can learn more about our delegation here http://www.ayli.org.nz/pfii-2018

The Permanent Forum meets for 2 weeks each year and works on issues related to socioeconomic development, culture, environment, education, health, and human rights. Specifically, its role is to provide expert advice to the UN's Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the wider United Nations on indigenous issues.

This year, the theme is "Indigenous peoples' collective rights to lands, territories and resources".

We have the task of raising around $6000 each ($60 000 all together) to cover costs of attending. We do not believe costs should be a barrier for young Māori to get participate in such an important kaupapa. We will be fundraising and working to raise as much money as we can to attend and distributing the $ raised equitably amongst our group (some of us have full time mahi, some have whanau to supports, some have just finished school or uni).

Not many people get these opportunities but we all take the voices of our whānau and communities we exist in with us. We span an ocean of lived, working, learned experiences - creative natives, artists, directors, activists, advocates, aunties, uncles, medics,,entrepreneurs, lawyers, rangatahi facilitators, educators, tauira, whānau warriors and a combination of all the above and more. We have lots we will get to share with indigenous whānau overseas, and lots we will learn, and bring back to our whānau and communities at home.

Ngā mihi nui