Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — For the seventh year in a row, the local non profit organization Finafinau and a team of seven attended the annual week long Native Youth Climate Adaptation Leadership Congress in Sheperdstown, West Virginia, June 24 - 30, 2023. 

This year's team consisted of six members: Fae Schuster, Matalasi Kim Fruean, Stevie Iakopo, Malia Kim Fruean, Mataio Suluai, and Jr. Faculty, Bainivalu Davetawalu, accompanied by their mentor and Finafinau Founder, Dr. Sabrina Suluai-Mahuka.

The Native Youth Climate Adaptation Leadership Congress (NYCALC) aims to develop future conservation leaders with the skills, knowledge, and tools to address environmental change and conservation challenges to better serve their schools and home communities. The United States Fisheries and Wildlife Service's (USFWS's) National Conservation Training Center (NCTC), located in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, is where innovation happens. Finafinau aims to continue elevating students and raising them to be the next leaders of their communities, with NYCALC as one of the many stepping- stones.

Students engaged in a variety of activities throughout the week that focused on environmental preservation, community, and leadership, all the while investigating culture, tradition, and science to respond to a "big question" posed at the beginning of the week: "What does an intergenerational approach to climate change look like?” The students' extensive and well-informed responses were then separated into five main categories, which were then arranged as follows: politics and government, cultural practices, youth engagement, education, and advocacy. On the final day, the students presented. They were free to present in any way they chose, including through skits, PSAs, slide shows, and online interactive game-based learning platforms like Kahoot and Blooklet.  

Bainivalu Davetawalu shared his experience as a Jr. Faculty member whose main purpose is to be a mentor to NYCALC high school participants while partnering with the Trainers team, a team designed to provide young diverse leaders with cross-cultural community power building, civic engagement, and leadership plus action training. “Through being Jr. Faculty, I’ve gained countless opportunities to network with federal employees, obtain many internship opportunities, make new friends, and gain new perspectives on issues from all aspects of life. My overall experience at NYCALC has assisted me greatly in my passion for environmental conservation by giving me the right tools while also gaining a deeper appreciation for my culture.” 

In order to be accepted as Jr. Faculty, college students must be recommended by a NYCALC planning committee member from their community. Due to Bainivalu’s role in Finafinau, he was highly recommended by Dr. Suluai-Mahuka to fill that role on behalf of the American Samoan community. 

 The program was concluded by a cultural night on the final day of the event, during which the Finafinau gave gifts to representatives of other cultures while performing a traditional siva Samoa.     

Matalasi Kim Fruean, a fellow student and upcoming Finafinau president of her school chapter, shared her experience at NYCALC: “Being a part of the NYCALC program widened my perspective on how climate change is affecting so many cultures around the world, as well as how the youth can start thinking about solutions. This experience has made me think more about my position as the next Finafinau president and how I can pass on the knowledge that I received at NYCALC to my fellow Finafinau members back at home. In addition, I learned how to build connections through my story, and because of that, I made so many unforgettable memories with the NYCALC family.”

Stveie Iakopo, a fellow representative from Finafinau, also shared his experience: “My time at NYCALC had a profound impact on my life. I was able to establish connections with kids from various cultural backgrounds and worldviews. This gave me the freedom to talk openly about my culture and to express who I really am.” 

Overall, as Pacific Ambassadors for Conservation and Environmental Resilience, these young Finafinau ambassadors from the Pacific will put what they have learned from these national programs to use by taking positive environmental action. The team plans on applying for more grants to support youth leadership advocacy for conservation and preservation. 

For interested youth, Finafinau plans on opening their annual membership in the beginning of the school year in September. At the moment, Finafinau has three local chapters at Tafuna High School, Samoana High School, and Nu’uuli Vocational High School. However, Finafinau plans to work with school leaders to expand to other high schools so that more students have the opportunity to be Finafinau environmentalists and engage in local and national opportunities for conservation.