Teen urges Kiwi youth to tackle climate-fuelled food poverty

RNZ News

08-07-2025

Joel Titus visited Malaita in the Solomon Islands in December 2024 as a World Vision New Zealand youth ambassador.
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A young Kiwi Indian is urging young New Zealanders to rise up against the dual threats of climate change and food poverty, calling it a humanitarian crisis that demands urgent youth-led action.
The 19-year-old from Palmerston North toured schools across Aotearoa to inspire young people to join World Vision New Zealand's 40-Hour Challenge, which raised funds to support children in the Pacific, especially in climate-vulnerable nations such as the Solomon Islands.
World Vision New Zealand is a Christian charity organization dedicated to tackling poverty and injustice, especially for children and communities in need.
"It's such a big problem," Titus said.
"It's not a political crisis but a humanitarian one and at its heart, it affects people, especially women and children."
Titus volunteered this year for 40 hours at Everybody Eats in Onehunga, an Auckland-based charity that transforms rescued food into three-course meals on a pay-what-you-can basis.
Together with the team, he helped cook more than 2000 meals to address the issue of food poverty in Auckland while also raising funds to address the issue in Solomon Islands.
"Food is such a vital part of Indian culture and, for me, it's a way to connect with people," he said.
"So, I really wanted my challenge to be around food this year."
Titus has long been involved in the 40-Hour Challenge.
"Even one year, my twin brother and I were tied to each other for 40 hours," he said.
"So, I've done some pretty crazy challenges in the past."
Joel Titus' family hails from Kerala, India.
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In December 2024, Titus travelled to the Solomon Islands as a World Vision youth ambassador and witnessed firsthand how climate change was endangering children's futures.
"The people there are so incredible," Titus said.
He said limited access to clean water and food had brought many young lives to a standstill, with 1 in 6 children in the Pacific living in poverty.
"That statistic stuck with me," he said.
"But numbers never tell the whole story - it was only when I met the children behind those numbers that it truly hit me."
Since returning from his trip, he shared their stories across New Zealand, speaking at more than 40 schools and reaching thousands of students with a message that they too could make a difference.
"As a youth ambassador, my role is about equipping young people with the tools to truly change the world," he said.
Born and raised in Palmerston North, Titus' family is originally from Kerala, India.
Now based in Auckland, Titus is pursuing a degree in biology and health at Auckland University of Technology, but he still holds tight to his roots.
"I just love being Indian - being brown is my superpower," he said.
"I wear a mundu or sherwani to work sometimes, because knowing who you are gives you a kind of strength," he said, referring to examples of traditional Indian clothing.
"Growing up in New Zealand, people might say things that make you doubt yourself, but I want young people to know that being different is powerful."
Titus is calling on young Kiwi Indians to rise up and be part of the solution.
"We're not just dairy owners or accountants," he said. "We are leaders, we are policy makers and we are change makers. We're everything we want to be. And I want to encourage young Indians to believe in that."