Tauranga Girls’ College head girl Aiza Mustasam is carving out a space for youth voices in Tauranga.

With the support of Tautoko Mai, Aiza said she was aiming to bring young people together by coordinating youth-led hui.

Aiza said she was motivated by the issue of youth representation in Tauranga.

“I think youth here in Tauranga, we aren’t heard. We may be consulted, but not genuinely listened to.

“The biggest issue that we as young people face in Tauranga,” she said, “is that we don’t just want to talk about problems – we want to do something about them.”

The first youth meeting she organised took place on July 4 at the Elizabeth Street Community & Arts Centre.

Enthusiastic teens aged 13-18 attended the hui.

They were then sorted into groups based on which local issues they were most passionate about.

Aiza said Tauranga community leaders Julia Tawa, Shirley McCombe, Jay Tihema, Tiffany Williams and Hattie Logan were all happy to be the facilitators of the different discussion groups in the hui.

The goal of the meeting, Aiza said, was to create a way to amplify youth voices and simply provide a space where rangatahi could speak about their opinions.

Attendees at a youth hui held in Tauranga on July 4.

Aiza organised a follow-up youth hui that took place in the Balcony Room at Historic Village on August 8.

The second meeting welcomed a host of new community leaders, as well as regional politicians such as Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford (National), Labour List MP Jan Tinetti and The Opportunities Party Tauranga candidate Michael Carter.

Aiza said the group came together and discussed questions such as, “What youth voices aren’t being heard right now?” and “What is a barrier that young people are still continuing to face?”

Young leader Aiza Mustasam held a second youth hui on August 8.

Meetings between students and community leaders then resulted in each person identifying a commitment.

Aiza, who immigrated to New Zealand at age 7, plans to build on the success of her hui in the near future by creating a Youth Collective.

This would provide several organisations ranging from businesses to community groups perspectives from rangatahi of Tauranga.

“Wider inclusivity and involvement will result from these new developments,” she said.

Diana Hopkinson is a Year 13 Mount Maunganui College student and an aspiring journalist. She attended the youth hui as a participant.