Since the 1930s, Aotearoa New Zealand has become home to many forced migrants, from different backgrounds and continents, including Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. The New Zealand government and NGOs provide resettlement services and mainstream services. These resettlement services include education, health, and employment pathway opportunities. At ARCC, we continuously work to add value to improve the resettlement system through guidance, capability development and advocacy. In addition, we support resettled Whānau and their communities to grow and thrive.
In this New Resident Magazine volume two, we welcome you with love, kindness, and respect for who you are. We encourage you to keep your hopes alive and remain resilient in keeping your cultural values. New Zealand is your new home and will allow you to recover from the traumas you have faced through the displacement process. Many of us have lost everything in our country of origin— family, relatives, land, and wealth. However, I encourage you never to give up on your education and employment pathway dreams. More importantly, do not become vulnerable to anyone, and avoid living in isolation. Keep a community close around you. Make sure not to ignore your own problems and needs, as denial and seeing yourself as a victim can make things more difficult for you. We encourage you to try your best to navigate the NZ pathways of education and employment. This magazine is designed to share some of our many success stories of
settlement and integration into New Zealand society. We provide information with integrity that provides you with a road map towards achieving positive settlement and integration outcomes.
We know many of you will face challenges in your settlement and integration process in the short term. It takes time to establish a local network, find suitable employment, and feel part of New Zealand society. Although services have been improved for the better, our names and backgrounds, our skin colour can still be seen as a problem, plus the English language barrier can make things difficult. So, we encourage individuals
and family members to reflect on who they are, where they come from, and why they are here in New Zealand. This will help deal with any identity confusion and put things in a clearer perspective. We at ARC are confident that you will like New Zealand as we do, because of the opportunities it offers socially, culturally, and economically. Be open-minded and appreciate that not everything happens at once; good things can take time and shortcuts are only sometimes available. Giving yourself time will allow you to develop your career pathways and future direction. To start working in New Zealand, consider finding volunteer work, which may lead you to a meaningful job. Take every opportunity to access training or education to gain the tools and knowledge needed for your future. By taking the opportunities offered to you, you will start to recover from your past traumas through your work and education. Eventually, you will begin to heal and discover your identity by knowing your purpose, passions, goals, talents, and mission.
