25th-28th June 2026 Aspiring Leaders’ Forum

The Forum

Each year Aspiring Leaders’ Forum on faith and values (ALF) brings together a diverse, gifted and courageous group of young people and its leaders to discuss leadership from a narrative point of view. All young adults that attend Forum have been nominated by someone who believes in them and are aged between 18 – 26 years old.  ALF is about encouraging young people to become better leaders in their sphere of influence, whether it be community, arts, business, politics, or sport.  Over four days in Wellington, participants will discuss why faith and values are foundational by informing and developing one’s character and one’s leadership.
Read more information on how to nominate.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT

PARLIAMENT

A day spent at Parliament House offers delegates a real-life glimpse into the day-to-day of Parliament, and a chance to hear up close and personally from our MPs.

SMALL GROUPS

Placed into groups of seven delegates, small groups form a significant dimension of the Forum providing the delegates with an opportunity to make close friendships. These friendships often become peer support-networks, helping to reinforce the ideas gained from Forum.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Keynote addresses and seminars feature senior politicians and inspiring leaders from various spheres. Past speakers have included Sir Paul Holmes, Dame Cindy Kiro, Trevor Grice, Nicola Bell, Rob Hamill, Kerre Woodham, Dame Jenny Shipley, Mark Powell, Paul Blackwell, Tuhoe Isaac, Dame Susan Devoy, Sir Ralph Norris, Jim Bolger, Tommy Kapai Wilson, Annah Stretton, Jamie Tuuta and Petra Bagust.

FOOD & ACCOMODATION

The Forum is held at the Rydges Hotel, one of Wellington’s premier hotels.

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Held in Petone Beach in conjunction with Lower Hutt Council and Wellington Tenths Trust, an afternoon of community service provides an important means of putting learning into action.

FUN!

A sports tournament afternoon gives small groups a chance to try their competitive team spirit against one another! And later, cowboy boots and checkered shirts light up the floor at the epic barn dance.

  • “We each came from different roads of life & were strangers to one another, but felt like family by the end, holding no judgements against our difference.”

    Bethany Tiddy // Delegate

  • “The Forum creates a unique opportunity for politicians to explain and discuss their own philosophies.  It is a unique and refreshing event in the life of Parliament.”

    Hon Bill English
    Hon Bill English // Previous Prime Minister

  • The Aspiring Leaders Forum is one that holds people at its centre. It does not depict leadership as something of the powerful, nor as just the "roles" we occupy. ALF envisions leadership as service, service to others and service to community. It is not about occupying roles of power in society but rather a posture of the heart that seeks to serve our communities. ALF centred the experience of encountering people before engaging with ideas. It showed the importance of seeing other's humanity first and foremost and how knowing where people come from can help us understand the ideas and values they hold.

    Jaedon Hendry

  • "The pātai were deep and thoughtful… about service, representation, and the future. What followed was a true exchange of energy, aroha and ideas."

    Cushla Tangaere-Manuel Labour MP