Rebecca is a registered social worker at Oranga Tamariki—Ministry for Children. She has worked in the adoption field for over 10 years, specialising in local and international surrogacy cases, as well as local and intercountry adoption. 18 months ago, Rebecca commenced working in the Intercountry Adoption Team as a Senior Advisor. With experience of local surrogacy and intercountry adoption in her whānau, Rebecca understands the lifelong implications of adoption-related identity issues and the importance of whakapapa, whanaungatanga, and support. She has recently been involved in writing the training programme for local and intercountry adoptive applicants in Aotearoa, with a strong focus on the identity of tamariki. Rebecca will be talking about how to promote the long-term needs of tamariki born through surrogacy and providing an overview of the role of Oranga Tamariki in adoption applications for tamariki born through a surrogacy arrangement.
