Growing our Pacific youth wellbeing workforce, together

Across Tāmaki Makaurau, there is a quiet but significant shift occurring within the Pacific youth wellbeing workforce. At the centre of this is a growing collective of Pacific youth practitioners and support staff, working across a range of services and walking alongside young people every day with care, cultural knowledge and a deep commitment to their communities.

In recent weeks, many of these workers have come together through a series of Le Va trainings hosted by Village Collective. These sessions have provided more than professional development. They have created meaningful opportunities for connection, shared learning and the strengthening of relationships across organisations in the Auckland region.

Village Collective’s leadership in hosting this series is significant. As a service dedicated to supporting Pacific Rainbow+ communities, they continue to create space for conversations that are often challenging, yet essential for the wellbeing of Pacific people. This leadership was also visible at Polyfest 2026, where Le Va and Village Collective both had a strong presence. Engaging with young people in this environment reinforced the importance of ensuring the workforce remains connected to the communities it serves.

For many Pacific communities, topics such as trauma and addiction have historically been difficult to discuss, often shaped by stigma and silence. Despite this, these issues continue to impact Pacific communities at disproportionate levels. Strengthening a workforce that can respond in culturally grounded, safe and confident ways is critical.

An important outcome emerging from this training series is the growing community of practice among the Pacific workforce in the Auckland region. Staff from different organisations are learning alongside one another, building relationships and strengthening connections across the sector. Opportunities for this level of collaboration have been limited, yet are clearly valued, with a strong appetite from the workforce to continue engaging in collective learning spaces.

Le Va has delivered a series of our trainings to support this capability development, including ‘Navigating Addiction’ and ‘Healing Centred Care for Pasifika.’ Participants have included teams from Village Collective, Fonua Ola, Vaka Tautua, Penina Trust, and others within the Auckland region, with strong representation from the youth workforce. This programme of work will continue with Le Va’s ‘Tu Tonu: Cultural Case Formulation’ training, further strengthening culturally grounded approaches to supporting tagata ola.

This approach reflects Le Va’s broader commitment to strengthening the Pacific wellbeing workforce through knowledge and skills, through connection, shared purpose and collective responsibility. Investing in the youth wellbeing workforce is an investment in the future, ensuring that Pacific communities are supported by a workforce that is both capable and culturally grounded.

Learn more about Le Va’s Mental Health & Addiction trainings here.