Senior secondary students from across the Bay of Plenty will take to the stage next week to share their perspectives on race relations in New Zealand in 2026’s Race Unity Speech Awards.

Fourteen students from five schools will compete in the Bay of Plenty regional heat on Tuesday, March 24, at the Wesley Methodist Church on 13th Ave in Tauranga.

The event begins 6pm, with each student delivering an eight-minute speech addressing this year’s theme: Listening to Understand – Whakarongo Kia Mārama.

“The theme challenges students to reflect on how listening deeply to different perspectives can help individuals respond to the challenges of diversity, isolation and misunderstanding in society,” said Premila D’Mello, a BOP Race Unity Speech Award coordinator and a past co-convenor of Tauranga Speech & Drama section at the Tauranga Performing Arts competitions and Tauranga Multicultural president.

More than 190 students from a wide range of cultural backgrounds – including South Asian, African, Māori, Samoan, Tongan, Nepalese, Pākehā, Indian and Chinese – have registered to take part in regional heats across the country between March 23-28.

3000 students

From the heats, regional champions and representatives from 14 regions will progress to the Race Unity Speech Awards National Hui, including the semi-finals and finals in Auckland on May 9-10.

The competition supports the spirit of Race Relations Day and has been organised for more than two decades by the Baháʼí community in New Zealand.

The awards trace their origins to a 1997 Unity in Diversity rally organised by the Baháʼí community and the Race Relations Office following racially motivated attacks in New Zealand.

That initiative helped establish Race Unity Day in 1999, now known as Race Relations Day.

About 3000 students have participated since the awards began in 2001, with more than 40,000 people attending speeches in person and more than two million views recorded online.

Judges have included more than 1000 police officers, academics, government officials and community leaders.

The competition is open to Year 11-13 students and aimed to encourage dialogue, cultural exchange and mutual respect. BOP regional coordinators D’Mello and Tristan Hancock have worked with local schools to encourage strong participation in the Western Bay of Plenty this year.

Important platform

Hancock said the event gives young people an important platform to share their experiences and ideas about building a more inclusive society.

“How can ‘listening to understand’ help individuals respond to the challenges of diversity and isolation in our society? This is one of the questions students are asked to consider,” Hancock said.

The awards have also helped launch the leadership journeys of several former participants. In 2024, Tauranga Girls’ College student Ansh Dhot was named a national semifinalist and received the Tohu Manaakitanga Award for promoting empathy and unity.

Another former participant, Aquinas College alumna Kimberly D’Mello, won the national Race Unity Speech Award in 2015. She has since pursued a career in medicine and is now affiliated with the Department of Surgery at the University of Auckland, where her research includes publications on rare medical conditions.

A voice

“Stories like these show how giving young people a voice can help cultivate leadership, civic engagement and a lasting commitment to strengthening communities,” D’Mello said.

Members of the public to attend the Bay of Plenty regional heat and hear the students’ speeches.