‘Voyage of hope: Charting a course for Pasifika addiction recovery’ was the aspirational theme for Le Va’s Le Tautua Pasifika Leadership 2024 programme, held in Māngere over two days in July.
Twenty-four successful applicants, all working in or adjacent to the addiction sector, took part in the event, which is designed to support Pasifika mental health and addiction leaders to enhance their leadership skills and cultivate their unique cultural perspectives.
A previous participant said of Le Tautua, “What was very good was the space to discuss and drive towards integration of Pasifika concepts into our leadership, with the freedom to explore meanings in the group setting – words and actions are powerful.”
Le Tautua’s speakers and panellists inspired our Pasifika leaders with hope, resilience and determination, helping them to envision a future where addiction-related harms are minimised and individuals can thrive.
Mark Esekielu, Le Va’s senior manager – mental health and addiction said, “There’s a Samoan proverb – ‘E afua mai mauga lelei o nu’u’ that translates to ‘From the mountain flows the blessings for the village’ or in other words, from good leadership flows blessings and wellbeing for families and communities.
“After two days of hearing from established leaders and seeing the calibre of our emerging leaders, I feel comfort for the present and hope for the future of the mental health and addiction sector in Aotearoa.”
This year Le Va also launched a new Addiction and Problem Gambling Harm Scholarship, aimed at increasing the capacity and skills of the workforce to reduce harm in those areas.
Alongside Le Tautua and our Futures that Work Pacific Mental Health and Addiction Scholarship, these initiatives are all intended to support the mental health and addiction workforce to grow, in order to achieve better health outcomes for everyone in Aotearoa.
Being a leader is creating space for others to also thrive and be leaders themselves too. It’s not an individual journey but a collective one where you collaborate with your team and also empower them.
– Le Tautua participant
The year 2022 marked 14 years of Le Va’s Le Tautua emerging leader programme and the first year the programme focused exclusively of youth leadership and growing emerging youth leaders. We received high interest in this year’s programme double the number of applicants from previous years. 26 youth leaders working in youth mental health and addictions, youth work disability, public health, peer support and Pasifika wellbeing, from across Aotearoa New Zealand were invited to attend the two-day programme in Auckland.
Day 1 of Le Tautua Emerging Youth Leadership programme included an opening address from Denise Kingi-Uluave, Le Va CE, and an inspirational Keynote Speech from Arizona Leger who told participants: “The actions you take today, impact the Ancestor you become tomorrow… Be brave, back yourself and go together. Every time you choose to be brave, you are choosing to step into your leadership.”
Le Va’s Niu Wave ran an interactive workshop on Leadership as Pasifika and challenged participants to identify leaders who inspire them. “We follow leaders who resonate with something inside of us. Recall those leaders, write down how they made you feel, why you followed them and how they inspired you. You will need this, because as your rise up into your leadership roles, you will have moments where you will need to draw back from their words, and remember why you are in the positions you are in.”
Our Panel guests: Apollo Taito, Laura Tongalea-Nolan and Pela Hokai shared some rich talanoa about “being confident and owning your space! it’s YOUR story, YOUR narrative. It is our Pasifika values that make us unique.” And finally, our Le Tautua participants described leadership in their own words as being about sacrifice; love and service with the ability to acknowledge your wrongs, having a purpose and a responsibility to be honest, lead from the back with compassion and integrity. All while embracing failure, listening with empathy, and having commitment to the journey ahead.
Following on form an evening of networking, connection, spoken word poetry, song and dance, Day 2 of Le Tautua Emerging Youth Leadership programme opened with a personal address from Dr Elizabeth Mati who shared the highs and the lows of her personal leadership journey and the importance of our voice and how we communicate. To understand our voices and to be secure within ourselves in order to empower others.
Speakers Josiah Tualamali’i and Benji Timu shared an inspirational tale of youth leadership and how they petitioned the government to apologise for the Dawn Raids and enable education in Aotearoa about them.
Closing speakers Aigagalefili Fepulea’i-Tapua’I reminded participants that leadership is embedded within them, is why they are at Le Tautua and that their ancestors have entered the room and they are not alone even when it feels like it at times. Phylesha Brown Acton taught participants that it is okay to close the door when the noise gets loud to rejuvenate and reflect so that they can come back to their purpose and remember their whys!
Le Tautua for the participants provided a space to look after the self, as a leader amongst other emerging young leaders. Quoted from one participant “I’m finding my purpose and my purpose is finding me”.
Our young Pasifika population is the key to our future. At Le Va we want to unleash our Pasifika youth and community’s full potential to achieve the best health and wellbeing outcomes. The Le Tautua Leadership programme can help us do this.
In recognition for Samoan language week, “Fa’aauau le folauga I le va’a o tautai” -Continue to voyage with competent wayfinders of the ocean, the challenge that was laid down to our Pasifika leaders was to be the wayfinders but don’t just be competent, be exceptional. Saili le Malo!
#youthleadership #leadership #letautua2022 #leva #Leadingintimesofsignificantchange
O le ala i le pule o le tautua – the pathway to leadership is through service
Dr Ashley Bloomfield was on the lineup at Le Va’s Le Tautua Leadership Programme last week, supporting Pasifika leaders to develop their unique leadership perspectives and enhance their management skills. Sharing his insights with the cohort of 16 participants, Director General of Health Dr Bloomfield said: “People will trust us if we lead with authenticity, kindness, humility and compassion”.
Building a robust Pacific health workforce can have a positive impact on Pacific health outcomes, according to Le Va chief executive Denise Kingi-U’lu’ave. But to do this, leadership is required. “Our intention is to grow champions for Pasifika workforce development, improve models of service delivery and enhance access rates to services for Pasifika communities,” she explained.
Programme participants also heard from Karen Orsborn, chief executive of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission, who encouraged them to take every opportunity that will come their way and to be diverse in their networks.
The programme paid respect to Pasifika health leaders past, present and future. The speaker lineup also included Josiah Tualamali’I, Andre Afamasaga, Monique Faleafa, Rachel Karalus, Epenesa Olo-Whaanga, Shana Malio and Hon. Aupito William Sio.
The culturally-centred Le Tautua programme focused on the contemporary execution of traditional values and in clinical, cultural, and community contexts. Running over three workshops, it concentrated on six intended outcomes:
• strengthening authenticity as Pasifika leaders
• increasing cultural knowledge relevant to leadership and management
• improving strategies for self-awareness, self-care and resilience
• strengthening positive relationships required for leadership
• enhancing purpose and career pathways
• increasing awareness of leading with compassion, wisdom and empathy.
Le Tautua has continued for 13 years with over 100 Pasifika Alumni, and is run by Le Va. For more information about Le Va, visit www.leva.co.nz.
Note: Le Tautua literally means ‘the service’, deriving from a famous Samoan proverb: ‘O le ala i le pule, o le tautua’. The pathway to authority is through service. The concept of Tautua includes the notion that: in order to lead, one must first serve. This is the characteristic of not just Samoan but many Pacific leadership styles, where it is not necessarily about leading from the front but about the paradox of status through service.
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