Youth unite to combat global problems

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The Pacific Peoples Partnership (PPP) is a Pan-Pacific organization promoting awareness and advocacy about environmental, human rights, community development, and social justice issues affecting Indigenous peoples of Canada and the Pacific region. In May and June, PPP was responsible for bringing together Indigenous youth in British Columbia and beyond. Raven's Eye met with a tour group on June 1 to discuss the purpose of their travels.

The partnership's Indigenous youth-to-youth project consisted of a facilitation team of youth from Vanuatu, Autaoroa (New Zealand), Papua New Guinea, Kahnawake, and Edmonton. The youth travelled to five First Nations' communities across Canada for workshops. The communities they visited were the Secwepemc (Neskonlith and Little Shuswap Bands near Chase); Sto:lo Nation (Chilliwack); Gitxsan Nation (Hazelton); Waterhen, Flying Dust and Canoe Lake nations (Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan); and the Mohawk Nation in Kahnawake in the East. The South Pacific islanders arrived in Canada during the middle of May and will be in Canada for four weeks.

Lynn Katsitsaronkwas Jacobs from Kahnewake told Raven's Eye, "We need to listen to our young people, they have a lot of knowledge. Youth are the leaders of today and tomorrow and we're doing a lot of amazing things right now."

The youth to youth project is a creative engagement process designed to raise awareness in Canada of global development issues.

Merra Minne Kipefa of Papua New Guinea said, "At the moment we're facing sea level rise as a result of climatic change, so we've come to raise concerns to the industrialized nations around the world to do something to combat climate change."

Kipefa continued, "The effects we're facing are devastating. The weather pattern changes daily, which gives rise to tornadoes, storms and tsunamis, and this causes the salt from the sea water to seep inland and spoil the arable land and now we are finding out that farming is getting more difficult." Kipefa wants the world organizations to push for development of renewable energy resources, sustainable logging plans and development of environmental plans that cut down waste, toxic fumes and car exhaust in order to prevent global warming.

Kyle Popham is a Maori from Autaorao who explained, "As the younger generation, we are open to more opportunities and therefore can often have more insight into issues related to our Mother Earth. It is important for us to voice our concerns as it is important for us to look out for one another." Popham works for a Whanua (family group) where he is a youth worker and hip-hop emcee. He added, "I use that medium (hiphop) predominantly to get my message across."

Juliette (Jules) Hakwa is ni-Vanuatu and lives in Port Vila, the capital city of Vanuatu. Hakwa said,"Our water, our land, our fish, our forests-these are the resources we're struggling to protect. It's the same in Canada as it is in the Pacific, and as youth, we need to ask ourselves what we can and should be doing to protect our futures." She added, "There are alternative ways to get the message across."

The tour group met with members of the so-called "Native Youth Movement." They learned of the struggles going on in Secwepemc territory over land and resource use. While the tour group is not specifically advocating for direct action, they are working towards building and strengthening youth networks. In addition, they are hoping to get their message to the world summit on sustainable development.

The project is unfolding in the final months leading up to the summit in Johannesburg, South Africa in September 2002. Tour participants hope to take the input they receive from youth in Canada about what they feel are the main threats to their futures to the conference.

"We want to make sure Indigenous youth voices are heard this time," said Kyle Popham. "It's our futures, our livelihoods, our lives that are at stake."

The Pacific Peoples Partnership was founded in 195 as the South Pacific Peoples Foundation.

The group has received funding for the project from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) along with several other organizations.