Get Nes to Brazil to represent NZ!

Vanessa (Nes) Karakia-Kore Gray has spent her career championing others through the arts and social change. This December she’s been invited to represent Aotearoa at a Performing Arts Conference in Brazil — but she needs our help to get there! Your support will help cover Nes’s final flights, accommodation, and transport so she can make the most of this international arts opportunity - mauri ora.

He uri ahau o Waitaha, Kāti Māmoe, Kāi Tahu, Te Aitanga-ā-Māhaki, Rangitāne, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Kōtimana, Ngāti Pākehā, Ngāti Wīwī, Ngāti Hūrai hoki. Vanessa (Nes) Karakia-Kore Gray is a professional artistic and cultural director, programmer and consultant with a background in broadcasting, film and theatre. She’s passionate about the arts and kaupapa regarding social change for black, indigenous, people of colour (BIPOC), rainbow (LGBTQIA+), women, specifically-abled people and communities.

She’s been a creative and company director for over a decade with Hiwa Media and was the first mana whenua Māori Associate Artistic Director and Cultural Director at The Court Theatre. Currently, she works at Whitebait Media, Little Andromeda, Mana Tipua and is on the curatorial panel for Tiny Festival.

Creative New Zealand has endorsed and partially supported Nes’s attendance at the conference. To make the most of this opportunity, Nes needs to raise $3,000 to cover her final accommodation, internal flights and transport within Brazil.  

Every contribution helps maximise the impact of her trip and ensures Aotearoa is represented with mana on the world stage!

Nes has been invited to represent Aotearoa New Zealand at the Performance Studies International (PSi) Conference in Fortaleza, Brazil (11–15 December 2025).

Throughout her career, Nes has worked tirelessly to champion black, indigenous, people of colour (BIPOC), rainbow (LGBTQIA+), women, specifically-abled people and communities through the arts. 

This conference is an incredible opportunity for her to:

• Share Aotearoa’s perspectives on indigeneity, equity, and the arts.
• Connect with international artists, academics, and cultural leaders.
• Bring home fresh insights, networks, and opportunities to strengthen our local arts communities.

With your support, Nes can proudly represent Aotearoa on the world stage — and return with knowledge and connections to benefit us all.

Supporting Nes means investing in someone who always gives back. Everything she learns in Brazil will be shared with her Ōtautahi communities and the wider Aotearoa arts sector.

Her presence also ensures Aotearoa’s voice and indigenous perspectives will be included in global conversations about arts and social change.

This is our chance to give back to someone who has dedicated her career to uplifting others. With your support, Nes can represent us on the world stage — and bring home inspiration, knowledge, and opportunities to strengthen our creative communities.