Young leaders Programmes
UnionAID’s young leaders programmes bring young community leaders from Myanmar, Eastern Indonesia and Mindanao to Aotearoa/New Zealand every year. Participants learn about community development, democratic processes, Māori development, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, conflict resolution, sustainable development, gender justice and human rights.
Our programmes aim to build networks of highly skilled leaders who help contribute to the peaceful and just development of their communities and countries.
Stories from our young leaders

Latest News From our Young Leaders Programmes
Inspirasi (Indonesia) and Mindanao: Both these programmes have recruited ten and eight participants respectively from a wide range of civil society organisations, with completely revamped

Fight Back for Myanmar Democracy
The stop-work protest initiated by nurses and doctors two days after the recent coup in Myanmar is now a massive country-wide movement of young people,

Celebrating local cuisine to secure markets for local farmers
A collection of traditional and adapted local food recipes and stories, Food, Land and People, was published recently by Ete Umby Tara, one of the

Young Leaders Work to Prevent COVID Spread
With their everyday work activities on hold, several of our young leaders have initiated practical strategies in response to the Covid-19 outbreak in their home

Just released! Life under lockdown… and ten years of MYLP
Life under lockdown for two of the Myanmar students was beautifully illustrated in a short video by film maker, Anna Cottrell, screened to MYLP hosts

Online learning a hit with Young Leaders
Positive feedback from participants of the Indonesia and Mindanao Young Leader Programmes reflected how relevant and enjoyable online learning has been made by the programme