Read real stories about inspiring women and be empowered to look after your mind, body and spirit through the good and bad times.
Read real stories about inspiring women and be empowered to look after your mind, body and spirit through the good and bad times.
We love being able to connect with our community through different events and activities! Being able to hear our communities stories, and share kōrero with one another is so incredibly important to us. Check out some of our recent community engagements below, and find out how to get in touch with us to come to your community event!
A collection of our zines from 2024
In 2024 and 2025 we got involved in Auckland Zinefest’s market weekend held at the Auckland Art Gallery. Our team created a range of zine’s sharing personal stories, helpful information, poems and more! Our zines cover topics like feminism, sexual abuse, navigating different stages of life, relationships, and activism. In 2024 we won 2 Best of the Fest awards for our zines ‘Mindfood Mosaic’ and ‘The Feminist Field Guide’.
Our team presenting to students at Maclean’s College
We were invited to join Maclean’s College’s ZONTA club to talk all about healthy relationships. We spent time exploring different types of relationships, navigating the type of language we use when we talk about relationships, and using the healthy relationships wheel to look at what we should be seeing in our relationships with each other.
From 5–11 May, we came together for Rape Awareness Week, sparking conversations about consent and healthy relationships, supporting survivors, and preventing sexual violence.
Our panel after the one-woman performance of Prima Facie
Through art and storytelling
In partnership with HELP Auckland, we hosted a special performance of Prima Facie, an acclaimed one-woman play exploring sexual violence in the legal system. A post-show panel featured actress Cassandra Woodhouse, Dear Em Embassador and law student Thiyona Singh, HELP court support worker Miffy Barling, and legal academic Dr Emily Henderson.
Our pop up stall at the University of Auckland
Through campus connection
We visited the University of Auckland to connect with students through a mini-quiz and resource sharing. This helped normalise conversations around sexual violence and support services.
Through movement and wellbeing
Dear Em hosted a free trauma-informed yoga session—creating space for healing, grounding, and collective care, while highlighting body-based approaches to recovery.
Our Embassadors alongside RPE Educators talking about consent education on an Instagram live
Through conversation
In collaboration with Rape Prevention Education (RPE), we co-hosted an Instagram livestream on consent education. Later in the week, a panel hosted by Thursdays in Black brought together HELP, RPE, and Dear Em to explore the systemic roots of rape culture and how we can challenge them collectively.
Through social media
Throughout the week, Dear Em shared a range of online content, from personal stories, reflections and educational deep dives to practical tools for supporting survivors and being active bystanders.
As one of our Embassador’s reflected: “Rape Awareness Week gave me space to bring up sexual violence in everyday conversations without feeling weird or taboo.”
Guest lecturing at the University of Auckland in 2025
Each year since 2022, we have been invited to the University of Auckland to present to a group of students studying towards becoming school counsellors and share our expertise and lived experience as young people.
The Lie - Movie Screening & Panel
Alongside HELP Auckland we hosted a screening a screening of The Lie, a documentary that follow the tragic murder of Grace Millane, where Embassador Layba Zubair, and Coordinator Imogen Stone spoke on the panel about the issues young people face around the trend of rough sex.
Demystifying Consent Panel
Embassador Sanskruti Banerjee hosted a panel of young community leaders, who are all engaged in work to promote and educate around consent. This was a chance for young people to learn more about how we can each be a part of promoting healthy norms in our communities!
Consent to Moving Your Body
Embassador Charlotte Jones coordinated our first ever yoga based event, at the Kanuka Yoga Space in Hobsonville, Auckland. This free session provided young people with the chance to experience trauma informed yoga, and learn about how to use this grounding tool to help take back control of our bodies.
Our yarn bomb installation outside of the East Coast Bays Library
On December 2nd 2023 we completed our first ever yarn bomb outside of the East Coast Bays Library in Browns Bay. We created this yarn bomb for survivors as a symbol of hope, healing, and togetherness. The idea behind the installation is that this will help to normalise conversations about sexual violence, and encourage meaningful dialogue that can help survivors to feel seen, believed, and supported by their community.
The Dear Em team presenting at the 2023 Involve Conference
Four of our team attended and presented at Involve, the biggest youth conference in Aotearoa, speaking about youth-led approaches to social change to an audience of young people, youth workers, and advocates. We shared how Dear Em creates a safe and empowering space for young people to take the lead, and how the team work in partnership with one another. Our Embassadors were also able to share about their experiences of being in the team, and some of the projects they have been able to initiate and achieve in partnership with Dear Em.
Our team at the National Sexual Violence Conference in November 2022
We travelled to the National Sexual Violence Conference in Wellington to present on "Working with Adolescents: A Youth Led Approach", where we focused on discussing how those in the sexual violence sector can foster partnership with young people to work together and create meaningful change. We shared about our own model of partnership we use at Dear Em, and how we structure our team safety to empower each other as leaders.
The wonderful panel of experts and change makers who spoke at our Kōrero & Kai event
We hosted a panel, alongside Thursdays in Black, featuring Minister Marama Davidson alongside other experts and change makers, around transformative change in educational and youth spaces, where we discussed tangible actions that young people can take to advocate for and contribute towards a society that upholds justice for survivors.
We love opportunities to share important kōrero and connect with our communities.
Some of the key topics that we are able to come and speak on are:
Sexual and gender-based violence
Youth mental health
Youth leadership and advocacy
Our expertise as young people
If you are interested in having Dear Em speak at your school, event, or for anything else, please contact us at hello@dearem.nz