Ngaruawahia High School Yearbooks 2010-2012 Ngaruawahia High School Yearbook 2011 | Page 53

Sir Peter Blake Youth Environmental Forum
Wednesday Gilbert was selected to attend the
Sir Peter Blake Environmental Forum. 48 students
from throughout New Zealand were selected to
attend the forum and spend the week sharing and
discussing environmental issues with the aim of
inspiring action in their own communities. This
annual event is run in partnership with the Ministry for the
Environment. All sixteen regional councils in New Zealand are
invited to nominate their young environmental leaders (1518yrs).
Students are hosted for five days of workshops and
activities culminating with a presentation of their projects to
invited guests including local and national politicians, business
and community leaders. Projects typically focus on important
topical environmental issues and this year’s focus was ‘Water,
Tourism and Sustainability’. The Forum is hands on, student
driven and is designed to inspire and build the capability of
young environmental leaders.
Wednesday feels that her experience of the Youth
Environmental Forum was really inspirational. It was a real eye
opener when it came to some environmental issues that we are
experiencing globally. One of these issues that really stood out
for her was how our use of palm oil has created deforestation

which has forced the animals from these areas into
human inhabited places. These animals are then
traumatised often being captured, maltreated or
killed.
Wednesday Gilbert reported: “One of the
many lessons I learnt was that with one action we
take here locally, whether it’s choosing which shampoo brand
to buy, there is always an impact globally. When our
‘sustainable tourism’ group visited Goat Island during the
forum and we snorkelled in the marine reserve, we learnt how
small things can impact on the environment, and how
important it is to educate people in protecting our beautiful
coasts,” Wednesday said.
On returning to their regions the forum participants are
encouraged to continue with their environmental work and
help lead other youth in the environmental stewardship.
Wednesday has already shown her determination to put what
she has learnt into action in our own community by becoming
part of the Ngaruawahia Community Board as the first youth
representative. Wednesday is already valued by the
Community Board for her input into the Board’s work
especially around sustainability and environmental matters.

Ngaruawahia takes on the United Nations
Anaru Adams represented Ngaruawahia High School on
6th July 2011 NZ Model United Nation’s conference at Pipitea
campus in Wellington. This year’s New Zealand Model United
Nations (NZMUN) was the biggest event in the UN Youth
calendar year. It was an amazing chance for 230 high school
students from all around New Zealand to take their passion for
international affairs to the next level.
The theme of this year’s conference was “The UN
Today” – an opportunity for youth to gain a more
comprehensive view of the United Nations as a key player in
international contemporary politics. Students were encouraged
to think of where the UN has emerged from, what it looks
like today and what it could become in the future. As the
leaders of the future, it is imperative that the students who
attended learn to consider the good and the bad in the
operations of the closest thing we have to global government.

Anaru had a chance to experience being a Producer for
Wellington’s Access Radio. This Radio show provides a youth
perspective on internal affairs. Being part of this Outreach
opportunity helps students to understand what community
mindedness looks like in their own context and how they can
be a part of solutions in their own backyard.
Anaru returned from the conference exhausted but
enthused from putting his contribution forward to the national
agenda while trying to secure fair global outcomes! A heavily
laden social agenda! What Anaru did come back to
Ngaruawahia with was a new perspective of fears faced by
youth in the Pacific Islands around such issues free trade
agreements, poverty, human rights, gender empowerment,
refugees. Looking towards the future, Anaru has made one
more step towards becoming a representative of the UN
Secretariat and of UN Agencies.