Rez co-founded Refugees Seeking Equal Access at the Table (R-SEAT) formally in 2021, after six years of working for more meaningful inclusion of refugees in international and domestic policy-making conversations that affect them. Empower, her first initiative, has reached around 20,000 refugees, through mentoring programmes and workshops. Rez led the first ever Global Refugee Youth Consultations in 2016 and helped form the Global Youth Advisory Council to the UNHCR. She also co-founded the Centre for Asia Pacific Refugee Studies at the University of Auckland, a research centre focused on informing and developing responses to conflict and climate-induced displacement throughout the region.
Rez attended the One Young World Summit in Munich, 2021, as a One Young World Peace Ambassador and Delegate Speaker. The exposure to fellow Ambassadors and their work globally inspired her, and presented her with multiple potential opportunities for future collaboration. Rez was also invited to speak on peacebuilding and conflict resolution during the One Young World Peace Events in 2021 and 2023 respectively.
R-SEAT has been instrumental in developing mechanisms for refugee representation in four countries. These mechanisms are composed of a group of refugees that act as community representatives and liaisons with their respective national governments in the United States, Ireland, New Zealand, and Canada. The initiative is also in the process of establishing mechanisms in Colombia, Mexico, Germany, Uganda, Portugal, Switzerland, and Kenya. In addition to representing refugee communities, the members of the mechanisms advise governments and have actively facilitated changes in national policy, such as New Zealand’s refugee resettlement strategy. The US mechanism is also cooperating extensively with the US State Department on funding for organisations operating within the international refugee regime. Through R-SEAT, refugees have chaired forums in the UNHCR for the first time.
“The most valuable impact of becoming part of the One Young World Community is the exposure to what other young people are doing around the world, and the connections and ideas that come out of it. As well as the credibility that comes along with it, people trust the One Young World brand and name and what it stands for.”
