Advocating for and supporting our vulnerable communities

From a young age, I have always helped people whenever and wherever I can. That has transitioned into a passion for volunteering and working within my own community over my studies. 

Over the past three years in particular I have gotten involved in a variety of different non-profit organisations and have worked really hard to help in any way that I can. For me it has always made sense to volunteer as a student, while studying is a full-time role and takes its toll at times, students are privileged to have such great flexibility. We are also privileged to be gaining a tertiary education, and so I look to share that knowledge and use it to help those around me.

At the end of my second year of my degree I, like many other students, was feeling the toll of my degree and was really struggling. I spent some time thinking about why I was finding this so emotionally and mentally exhausting, why was I having to drag myself to the library and lectures. I realised that I needed to reignite the passion and drive I had in my first year. So I joined Law for Change. The work that I have done over the years have made every aspect of my studies better, because I was able to do work that mattered. To help people with my knowledge of the law, which is why I decided to study law in the first place. Volunteering in areas that I have has given me a sense of purpose that is hard to put into words. It has also given me perspective and a wider world view.

I strongly believe that advocating for and supporting our vulnerable communities is one of the most important things we can do as people. 

Law for Change UC

Law for Change is a national non-profit organisation that operates at Canterbury and Otago University in the form of student-led clubs. The kaupapa of the organisation is to empower students to use their legal education in the public interest, and encapsulates a highly diverse network of students all connect by a common mentality - which is to help. 

I have been a member of the Law for Change University of Canterbury executive since 2018 and now sit on the national board of the organisation. The club provides and advertises volunteering opportunities to our members alongside raising awareness and providing education on issues that concern the public of New Zealand. 

I joined the executive as a Projects Officer, before moving into the Vice President role and then sat as the President of Law for Change UC. I spent a year in each position. As a Projects Officer, I spearheaded the volunteering opportunities we offered alongside making connections with local organisations in need of volunteers and compiling a volunteering guide for our members. This role saw my involvement in the Prison Education Project Te Wero I Te Ao.

One of the many reasons that I love this club and am so proud to be a part of it is that Law for Change encapsulates such a diverse network of students. Each of our members have come through university from a different walk of life and with a different goal, yet we are all united through this common mentality of striving to make our community better and to help those we can.

The Prison Education Project - Te Wero I Te Ao

The Prison Education Project is a collaborative initiative with Law for Change UC, Community Law Canterbury and 'Crimsoc' (UC Criminal Justice Society). The project provides volunteers with the opportunity to go inside both the Christchurch Women's Prison and the youth unit in the Christchurch Men's Prison to present informative seminars around 'life skills'. This aims to provide offenders with a foundation of practical skills and knowledge. To date, the subject of those seminars have included rights such as employment, tenancy, family law, health and wellbeing, money, protection orders and harrassment. This is an educational-based project with a strong tikanga focus which has seen incredible success and has the support of the Department of Corrections.

Our goal is to contribute towards reducing recidivism within youth offending by delivering a practical foundation of skills and knowledge that can be used when they're released. As this project has developed I have been heavily involved in the administrative side of creating the educational resources and the hiring and organisation of our volunteers. It has been exceptionally rewarding, and the engagement we have had from the inmates has been immense. 

This project has a direct local impact within the Christchurch community making a positive impact on inmates lives, both while incarcerated and upon release. All while making a positive impact on the students who volunteer for the project, both in their personal and professional lives. In this role I have acted as a leader for the project and have managed a team of administrative volunteers, working with them to develop their research skills and skills in content creation. Alongside assisting in the training and development of the seminar volunteers.

Community Law Canterbury

I was honoured to be nominated and elected as a Board Member at Community Law Canterbury at the end of 2020 and was the youngest elected member. In my work on the Board, I directly contributed to the Christchurch community and wider Canterbury region, helping to provide a much-needed service. 

Community Law Canterbury is a not-for-profit organisation that works to reduce and remove barriers to the law. We provide quality, free legal help to people in Canterbury and the West Coast, who face barriers in accessing justice. Community Law Canterbury offers a general legal advice service, information services, specialist advice, and education services. In my role on the Community Law Canterbury Board I also sit on the Justice and Innovation Committee, this committee is granted discretion to develop projects and initiatives which address issues surrounding access to justice within our community.