Village Response Plan
The tragic loss of 16 yr old Solomone Taufe’ulungaki to gang violence, led to the coming together of our community. It was the impetus for an approach that required a village response enlisting the support of government, community, professional and grassroots organisations as part of our “village”.
The Village Response Plan (VRP) was initially implemented as a 30 day emergency response plan to support our community. VRP was then further developed and delivered to ensure the safety and empowerment of our young people, families and communities and to further build on the work towards reducing youth offending.
This project is in loving memory of Solomone - “we love them, we forgive them” #Standingtogether-BrimbankPasifika #wearepasifika #weare brimbank #weareone
The Village Response Plan was was funded by the Department of Justice and Community Safety to continue delivered and developed in partnership with Indigenography and Design, Fire in the Belly Consultants, Vasa Consultants and Mana Riko.
VRP Project Overview.
BF3
Poasa Telepe, Viliami Faiva and Ernest Atileo three strong youth leaders led the BF3 Roadshow to support the healing and restoration of young people and community that were affected by this tragedy.
Together they co-designed a film that encourages young people to be you, be true and be free. Watch this beautiful short-film as they spread a message of hope and healing for all and hear their learnings as they navigated this journey within and together.
“Just amazing work, the are clearly rooted in their identity and so it is inspiring to see them sharing their story! All the best”
“Their message is so powerful, I look forward to it being released to the public as all our kids need to see it. For our young men this was raw and our young men need to see more of it”
BF3 Short Film
BF3 Reflections
Key Components of VRP
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Youth-Led Prevention
BF3 is a youth-led online roadshow designed to spread a message of hope and healing to empower young people to stand and be the positive change in our community.
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Holiday Programs
Local community organisations delivered a suite of programs to increase the engagement of young people and increase visibility of supports for young people. A number of outputs were achieved including an EP produced by Raw & Rugged Dance Ministry
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Youth Mentorship & Advocacy
Pasifika Navigators a youth leadership and advocacy program was launched engaging Seven young people. They participated in hosting youth talanoa forums and creating a youth survey. This component was lead by Vāsā consultants
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Community Engagement
The aim of this component was to strengthen the relationship between community and key govt and service provider stakeholders. Over 150 meetings were held with the intention to raise the profile of the Pasifika Community . This component was lead by Fire in the Belly consultants
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Mentoring Pasifika Youth Offenders
15 young people involved in the Justice system successfully engaged in over 200hrs of combined specialist cultural mentoring. Fono Aiga (Family group conferences) was introduced as cultural response to the needs of our young people and families. The culturally responsive supports resulted in key outcomes needed to reduce the recidivism rate.
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Reintegration Pathway for Pasifika Youth Offenders
The Reintegration Pathway for Pasifika and Maori Youth Offenders is the first visual representation that outlines the personal journey of Australian Polynesian youth offenders experience in the Victoria Youth Justice system and back into the community. It proposes a culturally appropriate reintegration pathway providing key touch points of interventions with cultural considerations. This component was lead by Indigenography and Design and Mana Riko
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30 Day Village Response Plan
This community approach began as a 30 day emergency response to supporting and healing the community.This report provides the first glimpse of what a 30 day ‘grassroots’ emergen cy response looks like for Pasifika people and an overview of the interventions activated by 102 volunteers with insights and recommendations gleaned from ethnographic research.
Project Commentary
The Village Response Plan reflects the strength, agility and tenacity of the Pasifika Community. The VRP raised the profile of Pasifika within Victoria and highlighted the need for Pasifika to be more visible in spaces to ensure the voices of Pasifika are heard and represented particularly within state and local Government.
At the heart of the VRP was dedicated Pasifika people who were driven to unite and lead our own solutions. More young people were given platforms to express themselves and feel more connected to their culture and community. Increased community connections and conversations ensured the voices of our community were brought to the fore. Increased understanding and knowledge of government systems led to identifying key gaps and supports required for our Pasifika Community.
Furthermore a deeper insight into the experiences of our young people, workers and communities in the Justice System highlights critical points of engagement and supports to increase the chances of a successful reintegration back into community.
The Village Response Plan demonstrates that the Pasifika community have within them the solutions to improve outcomes for young people and the community. The key recommendations provided are our next steps forward to continue to strengthen and build on the foundational work that this opportunity has presented. The enlistment of all key stakeholders within our “village” highlights that with the right infrastructures, resourcing and personnel in place without doubt will improve the wellbeing of our young people and communities towards better outcomes.
The VRP team would like to acknowledge and extend our deepest gratitude to the Department of Justice and Community Safety for the direct investment into our grassroots community led project. This is not the end but the beginning of more to come. One year on, we honor the life of Solomone Taufeulungaki. Out of such a tragic event, the courage and strength of the Taufeulungaki Family led the way towards the path of healing and restoration for all our young people in the Justice system and our community at large.
“We love them, and we forgive them”
#StandingTogether #WeareBrimbank #WearePasifika #WeareOne.