Ben Siesicki Selected for the Youth Visionary Collective

Spatial Justice Aotearoa is joining an international community exploring environmental justice, intercultural learning and community-led change.

Ben joins the Routes & Roots Youth Visionary Collective

Spatial Justice Aotearoa is pleased to share that Ben Siesicki has been selected to join the Summer 2026 cohort of the Youth Visionary Collective, an international internship and learning community coordinated by Roots & Routes Intercultural Collaborations.

The Youth Visionary Collective brings together interns from around the world to build intercultural relationships, develop collaborative organisational skills and contribute to community-led, environmentally focused projects. Participants work alongside other young people, community leaders and mentors on projects addressing real-world social and ecological challenges.

Roots & Routes creates spaces for intercultural exchange and supports Indigenous and ancestral peoples to lead conversations about land-based knowledge, ecological care and more life-sustaining relationships between people and the living world.

This opportunity closely connects with the kaupapa of Spatial Justice Aotearoa. Our work considers how research, design and advocacy can strengthen relationships between people, place, culture and collective agency. Participating in the collective will provide an opportunity to extend this thinking through international collaboration, while learning from communities working within histories and cultural contexts distinct from those of Aotearoa.

Ben will contribute experience in spatial research, architectural design, visual communication and translating complex ideas into accessible public resources. Just as importantly, the internship offers an opportunity to listen, build relationships and learn from the knowledge and experiences of others.

“I’m excited to join a community that brings together environmental justice, intercultural learning and practical collaboration. I see this as an opportunity to contribute the skills I have developed through Spatial Justice Aotearoa, while learning from people working with different communities, environments and ways of knowing.”

The internship will take place from July to September 2026. Over the coming months, Spatial Justice Aotearoa will share further updates and reflections from the experience through this News section.