Activate Agency

08/12/2023

We are very proud to share that Kera Sherwood-O'Regan will be on RNZ at 10.05am today talking about her recognition on BBC’s 100 women and indigenous and disability rights in climate change 👏

Tune in below:

https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/20231209

8:10 AM.Sir Ranulph Fiennes pays tribute to a fellow legend in his new biography Lawrence of Arabia. A former SAS officer, Fiennes says he feels a lot of affinity for archaeologist and adventurer Thomas… Read more Audio

26/11/2023

Our Just Climate Adaptation virtual wānanga is starting at 3pm!

We have a few more spots available, so if you were thinking about joining email me on [email protected] to get the connection details 🙂

This is for Māori & Pacific participants who are interested in climate, taiao, and community kaupapa.

While we will be virtual so unfortunately can’t share kai together, it will be a relaxed session with good whānaungatanga time and then brainstorming together.

Koha will of course be provided & I can send through more information about the project to anyone wanting to attend 🙂

Mauri ora!

20/11/2023

E hoa mā, have you been involved in climate change or taiao projects? Activism in your rohe? Iwi, hapū, marae or rūnaka planning? 

➡️ Join us for an interactive virtual wānaka + design critique workshop for equitable climate adaptation! 
🗓 Monday 27th November, 3pm-6pm via Zoom
🌿 A small koha of $100 will be provided
📩 There are 30 places in this workshop, so please RSVP to Kera at [email protected]

We are looking for Māori and Pacific individuals and collectives to join our final virtual wānanga which is about supporting more just and equitable adaptation in Aotearoa by shaping the development of a Climate Maladaptation Assessment Tool (MAT).

The MAT is being developed to ensure that climate adaptation projects don't inadvertently make communities more vulnerable (this is known as “maladaption").

In this session we will be taking a deep dive to understand what might be useful indicators for Māori and Pacific whānau that maladaptation is occurring instead of positive adaptation 🌏

For example - would loss of access to māhika kai, wāhi tapu, or other significant sites be a marker that a climate project is actually maladaptive?

What if a project doesn’t have mana whenua involved at a governance level? Or perhaps adaptation projects are asking for an unsustainable level of input from our communities? 🤔

We want to know what you notice on the ground, and what bad adaptation looks like in your community. This will shape the MAT to make sure it’s an effective tool in evaluating and improving top-down climate adaptation projects in Aotearoa - ultimately, to ensure these projects enhance community resilience and wellbeing, and respect our rights.

will be facilitating along with researchers Ritodhi Chakraborty and Claire Burgess who are driving this mahi at UC.

So if you'd like to participate, or if you have any pātai, DM-mai or email [email protected]!

The project is part of a University of Canterbury study, funded by the Ministry for Primary Industries Sustainable Land Management and Climate Change Adaptation (SLMACC-A) Fund.

18/10/2023

E hoa mā, have you been involved in climate change or taiao projects? Activism in your rohe? Iwi, hapū, marae or rūnaka planning? 

➡️ Join us for an interactive virtual wānaka and design critique workshop for equitable climate adaptation! 
🗓 Monday 23rd October, 3pm-6pm or Friday 27th October 10am-1pm via Zoom
🌿 A small koha of $100 will be provided
📩 There are 30 places in this wānaka, so please RSVP to Kera at [email protected]

We are seeking Māori and Pacific individuals and collectives to join one of two virtual wānaka to support more just and equitable adaptation in Aotearoa by giving design critique on the development of a Climate Maladaptation Assessment Tool (MAT).

We're developing the MAT to help ensure that climate adaptation projects don't inadvertently make communities more vulnerable. This is called "maladaptation". For example, if a government policy was introduced to move homes at risk of flooding due to climate change, but this resulted in whānau Māori being forced off their whenua or losing access to māhika kai, wāhi tapu, or other significant sites, making them more susceptible to climate impacts.

We want to know if the MAT is useful in evaluating and improving the many different planned Climate Adaptations projects in Aotearoa New Zealand, to ensure they enhance community resilience and wellbeing, and respect our rights.

Critically, we want to ensure this tool would be useful and appropriate for Māori and frontline communities, particularly given increasing demands on hapū and iwi to partner on or give approval for adaptation projects and policies. 

I'll be facilitating along with Ritodhi Chakraborty & Claire Burgess
who are driving this mahi at UC. So if you'd like to participate, or if you have any pātai, DM-mai or email me on [email protected]!

The project is part of a University of Canterbury study, funded by the Ministry for Primary Industries Sustainable Land Management and Climate Change Adaptation (SLMACC-A) Fund. 

23/03/2022

We're so looking forward to the Aotearoa Disability Figures Launch tomorrow, and to Paula Tesoriero - NZ Disability Rights Commissioner's kōrero.

The launch is open to community members so please come along if you're interested in disability advocacy and data!

The Figure.NZ team and our friends at Stats NZ can't wait to share Aotearoa Disability Figures with you all āpōpō, and we are honoured to have Paula Tesoriero - NZ Disability Rights Commissioner sharing her kōrero at the launch.

"The kaupapa behind this platform is close to my heart and it’s beyond exciting to see something like this come to fruition – something that will contribute greatly to improving access to disability data", she says.

"We need quality data, we need access to data, and we need to follow through with action."

➡️You can join the launch live at 10:30am Thursday 24th March via Zoom, or catch up on the kōrero via the replay!

New Zealand Human Rights Commission

07/03/2022

Combatting Climate Change is a major challenge for our generation, but we are not the first generations to take action on this important kaupapa, and nor will we be the last.

Indigenous Peoples globally have been taking real action on climate justice for generations, yet routinely have their mahi ignored and devalued by mainstream climate campaigning in favour of surface level interventions that magnify injustice and bring us no closer to a climate safe future for our mokopuna.

Tēnei kā mihi ki te rōpū Climate Action Network-International for taking up the wero to challenge these norms and push for more inclusive climate movements that center communities on the frontlines of this crisis.

Follow along for a full of Indigenous perspectives on climate change and climate action, and critical tips for how we can all play our part in dismantling colonialism in our movements.

Nau mai, welcome to !

Kicking off our Decoloniality Programme for 2022, this week CAN International is ceding our digital space to Indigenous activists and creators for a week of dedicated Decoloniality content.

Our social media channels will feature profiles of Indigenous activists, useful resources, and helpful guides for campaigners and activists committed to climate justice to improve your practice and be in better relationship with Indigenous Peoples and frontline communities.

We hope that this will also fuel our collective learning ahead of the Festival of Ideas next week, where we will have three engaging workshops on Decoloniality, Indigenous Rights, and Story Sovereignty, as well as the opportunity for you all to contribute to transforming our organisation and network at the Annual Strategy Meeting.

We know that real climate action must tackle the systemic and root causes of climate change, including structures of oppression like colonialism, capitalism, ableism, and white supremacy that harm our planet and harm frontline communities.

We must push for justice and equity, centering the communities who are most affected and whose leadership and wisdom has been excluded from mainstream activism and decision making.

This , we invite you to learn from Indigenous perspectives on climate change, and amplify amongst your networks.

01/03/2022

01/03/2022

28/02/2022

14/07/2021

While we work collectively to ensure our whānau are safe from the virus, we saw the critical importance of taking care of our holistic wellbeing and mental health during the pandemic.

Disruption to regular routines, social isolation, and not being able to be with loved ones were a challenge for many whānau throughout Alert Levels 3 & 4, especially for whānau whaikaha.

Play episode 5 for Deb and Nigel’s stories on hauora, and hauora hinengaro (mental health) during Covid Alert Levels 3 & 4.

Content Note: This video discusses experiences of mental distress, death, and tangihanga.

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This video contains the following accessibility features: NZSL, Captions in English & te reo Māori; Audio Description.

The DPO Coalition acknowledges the contribution of all disability sector organisations to make sure that the wellbeing of, informational needs, and support for disabled people was monitored and improved upon throughout the impact of COVID-19.

07/07/2021

Practicing good distancing has been essential for us to stop the spread of Covid-19 in Aotearoa. Disabled people are amongst the most at risk from the virus, so we know that distancing is a critical part of keeping our community safe.

However, it also comes with challenges for some disabled people. While some services found ways to continue with good distancing, like Jenna’s support worker checking in from the front door, for other members of our community there were challenges. As a blind cane user, Jonathan found it difficult to keep a good distance from other people during the pandemic. If they were touching his cane – they were already too close!

It’s important for everyone in Aotearoa to understand disabled experiences during the pandemic, so we can all play our part to ensure good distancing.

Play episode 4 to learn what distancing was like for our community during Covid Alert Levels 3 & 4. Let’s learn from each other so we can keep our community safe and supported going forward.

Share this story to spread the word!

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This video contains the following accessibility features: NZSL, Captions in English & te reo Māori; Audio Description.

The DPO Coalition acknowledges the contribution of all disability sector organisations to make sure that the wellbeing of, informational needs, and support for disabled people was monitored and improved upon throughout the impact of COVID-19.

29/06/2021

During the pandemic, many whānau needed to quickly adapt to new technology and ways of working and learning from home. The rapid shift to “remote” was challenging for a lot of New Zealanders, but our disabled community faced some unique barriers, and unique opportunities in working, learning, and parenting from home during Alert Levels 3 & 4.

Play episode 3 of our community series for Nigel, Deb, Joyce, and Jonathan’s thoughts on working and learning from home during Covid Alert Levels 3 & 4.

Please share this video to spread the word, and ensure that working and learning from home is accessible for our whole team of 5 million!
This video contains the following accessibility features: NZSL, Captions in English & te reo Māori; Audio Description.

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The DPO Coalition acknowledges the contribution of all disability sector organisations to make sure that the wellbeing of, informational needs, and support for disabled people was monitored and improved upon throughout the impact of COVID-19.

23/06/2021

Disabled whānau were among the most affected by Covid-19 in Aotearoa and around the world, and many of us are still feeling the effects. But we have also led the way in inclusive pandemic responses, and have valuable lessons to share.

Episode 2 of our community video series shares Joyce, Michelle, and Jonathan’s communication experiences during Covid-19 Alert Levels 3 & 4.

Help amplify the voices and experiences of our disabled so we can for a more inclusive and accessible world beyond Covid-19. Share this video to spread the word!

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This video contains the following accessibility features: NZSL, Captions in English & te reo Māori; Audio Description.

The DPO Coalition acknowledges the contribution of all disability sector organisations to make sure that the wellbeing of, informational needs, and support for disabled people was monitored and improved upon throughout the impact of COVID-19.

03/12/2020

It’s International Day of Disabled Persons, and now more than ever, the voices of our disabled community must be heard!

Play the first episode below for Prudence and Jonathan’s important stories about the challenges of getting kai during Alert Levels 3 & 4, and what we can do to make sure that food and shopping are accessible for our whole team of 5 million!

Please make sure our stories are heard this !



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This video contains the following accessibility features: NZSL, Captions in English & te reo Māori; Audio Description.

Activate are proud to support the DPO Coalition in launching this video series today, amplifying the voices and experiences of our community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The DPO Coalition acknowledges the contribution of all disability sector organisations to make sure that the wellbeing of, informational needs, and support for disabled people was monitored and improved upon throughout the impact of COVID-19.

02/12/2020

It’s International Day of Disabled Persons, and now more than ever, the voices of our disabled community must be heard!

That’s why we are proud to support the DPO Coalition in launching a video series today, amplifying the voices and experiences of our community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Play the first episode below for Prudence and Jonathan’s important stories about the challenges of getting kai during Alert Levels 3 & 4, and what we can do to make sure that food and shopping are accessible for our whole team of 5 million!

Please share this video to make sure our stories are heard this !

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This video contains the following accessibility features: NZSL, Captions in English & te reo Māori; Audio Description.

The DPO Coalition acknowledges the contribution of all disability sector organisations to make sure that the wellbeing of, informational needs, and support for disabled people was monitored and improved upon throughout the impact of COVID-19.

19/10/2020

Confused about all the climate change acronyms in the media and on your newsfeed? Do you know what "COP" and "UNFCCC" actually stand for? We know it can be tricky - we've been there!

Luckily, the COP26 Coalition has our back with their speaker series The Boiling Point: everything you wanted to know about climate change negotiations but were too afraid to ask.

Jason, our Creative Director, and Kera, our Communications Director, are looking forward to being guest speakers on one of The Boiling Point's upcoming sessions next week, titled What are Climate Negotiations Really Like, where they'll share their experiences attending multiple United Nations climate negotiations conferences.

Registrations for the event can be made here for Kera and Jason's session on 22nd October 1pm (BST): https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/boiling-point-a-cop26-coalition-speaker-series-tickets-115978245053

For our Aotearoa-based followers this might be a bit of a late night, but not to fear: the session will be recorded up on the website here: www.cop26coalition.org

The Boiling Point series will answer everything you wanted to know about climate change negotiations but were too afraid to ask

13/10/2020

We're feeling pretty proud of our Communications Director, Kera, who spoke on this new podcast episode hosted by the wonderful Alice Wong, a disability rights advocate. Kera shared her whakaaro on centring disabled and Indigenous communities in the climate movement, and how people in positions of privilege can learn to take a step back.

Take a listen here, or download an accessible transcript:
https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/2020/10/05/ep-87-climate-action/

  Today’s episode is on climate action with Kera Sherwood-O’Regan, an indigenous multidisciplinary storyteller and activist based in Aotearoa, also known as New Zealand. Kera’s wor…

31/08/2020

Does your work straddle intersections? Is it unclassifiable? Then Touch Compass Dance Trust wants to hear from you!

Touch Compass is a disability-led performance company based in Aotearoa, and its mission is to explore the intersection of disability, Māori and Pasifika culture in its contribution to the arts.

Lumana’i is Touch Compass' first programme focussed on their commitment to supporting new, disability-led work. The programme is targeted at supporting innovative artist ideas and projects that are disability / D(d)eaf / sick and/or crip led.

Touch Compass will support the creation of this new work through mentoring, production and fiscal support during development, and by helping to source future presenting opportunities.

Expressions open Aug 28 and close Sep 14, 2020. Find out more down here 👇🏽

https://www.touchcompass.org.nz/lumanai-the-future-light/eoi-2020

09/08/2020

Today we celebrate and remember the need to center Indigenous Peoples in all climate action. Indigenous knowledge and communities have solutions to climate change, and its time we center their voices ✊🏽🌎

25/07/2020

Looking for a new podcast to perk up your commute?

We've been so looking forward to Friday's launch of Getting Better: A Year in the Life of a Māori Medical Student. The podcast tackles what it's like trying to change a system from the inside, in a space that's hostile to your values and who you are.

How do we decolonise medicine in Aotearoa if it's a space that's unsafe for Māori?

Take a listen, here 👇🏽

https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/rnz-getting-better-year-in-life-māori-medical-student/id1524239066

‎Health & Fitness · 2020

24/07/2020

This week marks 30 years since the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and to celebrate, a team have put together this incredible collection of essays by disabled BIPOC writers. Essay topics centre around the past, present, and future of disability rights and justice, and they're the perfect way to learn more about how race and disability intersect in complex and diverse ways.

https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/ada30/

: a series of original essays on the past, present, and future of disability rights and justice by disabled BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) writers. Published and edited by …

23/07/2020

"Peace and love rhetoric is one of white supremacy’s most injurious tools because it overshadows valid cries for justice while vilifying the groups demanding it... Simply calling for peace and love is really just a way of silencing dissent; it works to erase the harm of white supremacy and place the burden of societal change on the oppressed instead. "
-Char Adams

Today we've been reflecting on this article, which articulates how calling for "peace and love" as a response to injustice inflicts harm on the Black Live Matter movement, and on BIPOC. What an apt example of how framing brings real, tangible consequences for frontline communities.

https://www.mic.com/p/when-peace-love-became-propaganda-29497243

Celebrities, politicians, government leaders — they’ve all been gaslighting protesters. As riots erupted in cities across the country following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and Rayshard Brooks, stars and…

23/07/2020

Bookings are now open for Assembly for the Future, and Alice Wong's session titled "The Last Disabled Oracle" is the session that our Activate rōpu is most holding out for. We might be biased because our Communications Director, Kera, will be one of the respondents at the session, but we still think it looks amazing...

Assembly for the Future is a series of participatory, digital gatherings where participants imagine new visions for the future. Prominent disability rights activist Alice Wong's session is set in a future where people with congenital disabilities are close to extinction due to technological interventions. Some of the questions invoked in the session include: who and what is left behind in the name of ‘progress’ and a better future? What does a world look like without the wisdom and lived experiences of disabled people?

Intrigued? Us too! We'll see you there at this free, online assembly, to imagine a future that centres justice for disabled people 👇🏽

https://bleedonline.net/program/assembly-for-the-future/t...

BLEED EchoProtocol– The Architecture of the Internet AboutJoin radio producer and educator Areej Nur in a conversation interrogating the democratic nature of the internet while also revealing the inequalities that are designed within it, and exploring how artists are responding to internet crises....

16/07/2020

Did you watch the documentary "Tapu Te Ranga Marae" currently streaming free on the Doc Edge Festival's website? Were you inspired by the kaupapa?

Tapu Te Ranga Marae in Wellington's Island Bay is holding a working bee this Saturday as part of its clean-up effort following the devastating fire of last year. If you're able to, come along, share some kai, and show up for the vision of the marae.

Check out all the details of the event, here:

https://www.facebook.com/events/2880959415346440

14/07/2020

We love the conceptualisation of rēwena bread as a taonga in this video from Marae, where we learn from Tyrone Arnel's journey of connecting with traditional Māori cooking methods as a strategy for maintaining mental wellbeing.

Thanks for sharing your whakaaro on mental health, Tyrone, and for making us hungry for hot rēwena!

https://www.facebook.com/maraeofficial/videos/987008321757576/?v=987008321757576

13/07/2020

What can we as a society be doing to eradicate racism in our communities?

Check out our Communications Director, Kera Sherwood-O'Regan, featured in her second article on Echo Chamber Escape, where experts and community leaders respond to this timely question.

It’s crucial that we listen to the demands of communities that experience racism, and that we amplify their voices. In the context of Aotearoa, upholding Te Tiriti o Waitangi can be a strategy for anti-racism in countering the racist processes of colonisation and imperialism, and in returning power back to Indigenous Peoples.

Read more here 👇🏽

https://echochamberescape.com/2020/06/08/eradicating-racism/

For article #100 of Echo Chamber Escape, experts and community leaders were asked: What can we as a society be doing to eradicate racism in our communities?

12/07/2020

If you were a fan of the film Crip Camp, then we have good news...

This list of 7 documentaries to watch after Crip Camp is going straight to our "to-watch" list.

We love to see members of our community telling our own stories. Check them out here 👇🏽

https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/2020/05/04/7-documentaries-to-watch-after-crip-camp/

7 Documentaries by Deaf and Disabled People to Watch After Crip Camp   If you recently watched Twitter: Netflix, Amazon Prime, iTunes, film’s website: “Jennifer Brea’s Sundance award-wi…

11/07/2020

"Part of representation is not just what you do with the story but also how you get the story.

Be honest about how far [your story] will go. And be honest about what the impact will be. Because people [participate] in stories because they feel like it will cause a change. And then there is never a change; they just remain where they were before you came... People forget that we can oppress people even while trying to do good.

Thank God for the power of the internet… we have basically democratised the power for people to tell their own stories."

Check out No White Saviors' podcast episode on representation in the media, and the power of controlling the narrative 👇🏽

https://www.buzzsprout.com/783935/3270154-representation-in-the-media-pt-1-i-w-caleb-okereke

On today's episode we speak to Caleb Okereke, a Nigerian journalist and filmmaker working out of Kampala. Caleb has written and produced features for the BBC, Aljazeera, CNN and Deutsche Welle. After seeing a need for full and accurate representat...

09/07/2020

One of our rōpū members recently checked out the Wellington City Gallery and came across this gorgeous film as part of their "Encounter 1" exhibition. Baloji, a Congolese-Belgian musician and film-maker, based this video on a Pygmy marriage ceremony, following a bride and groom leading up to their wedding. We're loving the bold colours and ethereal visuals of this beautiful music video!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzHM_JLgqO0

(Video features full English subtitles)

"Peau de Chagrin / Bleu de Nuit" is taken from Baloji's new album "137 Avenue Kamiana", available via Bella Union: http://smarturl.it/baloji.sdv