Huia O’Sullivan
Huia O’Sullivan (Te Ātiawa) is the Executive Director of Ngā Rangatahi Toa, a creative youth development trust that has been working with vulnerable young people and their whānau across Auckland for the last 10 years.
Huia has a total of 22 years of experience in positive youth development and creating safe space for young people. Huia works from a place of creating deep authentic relationships to serve and work alongside young people and their whānau.
Photo by Ralph Brown
What does leadership look like to you?
Huia: People feel safe and have a clear purpose. People feel enabled to co-design and collaborate on new ideas that enhance, not only the organisation but the individual to be the best version of themselves. People feel ok to set boundaries and communicate their no. A leader is always looking for ways to be replaced by staff coming through and respectfully challenging staff to further excel. To always have a leader who will step up, support and standby staff in the face of crisis and adversity and know when to step back to enable other staff to step up. When staff feel valued and listened to the outcomes are so much greater.
What are you hoping to get out of this experience?
Huia: To surround and connect myself with a group of wāhine and build my networks of phenomenal women that support change leadership.
How does your community show up in your practice?
Huia: My community ARE my practice. They guide, lead, challenge and nurture – always from a place of love. They are my benchmarks, goal posts and accountability when I need to lean into them. They gently remind me of why I do what I do and sometimes not so gently. Any labouring over a new concept or idea is done alongside my community. I find with this approach our mahi is much more safe, rich and robust!
