Catching up with Sophie Handford from the 2020 Y25 cohort

Sophie was the youngest person ever elected to local council at age 18, when she was part of the first Y25 cohort. Now she is serving a second term on Kāpiti Coast Council, and says her passion for climate activism has only deepened.  

Sophie is possibly best known for coordinating the School Strike 4 Climate in 2018, which became a nationwide movement. Looking back, she is still ‘completely amazed’ at how it became a channel for thousands of young people to show leadership on climate change. During that time, she came to see local politics as a real lever for change: ‘The local Council aren’t there just to appease ratepayers, they can be strong, decisive community leaders who champion hard conversations,’ explains Sophie.

‘I had this epiphany that we don’t have to accept climate change like it’s a foregone conclusion. We can chart a different course for our future by choosing to build climate-resilient communities.’ 

Sophie’s activism is deeply grounded in her own whenua, where she grew up just metres away from the ocean at Paekākāriki. ‘I had this real awareness that this land I felt very connected to, could change immensely over the next few decades,’ she reflects. ‘But also, there’s a justice element that for our neighbours in the Pacific, it’s not happening in the future, it’s happening now, and why do we not care about that?’ 

At Kāpiti  Council, Sophie has been integral to implementing a goal of ‘net zero carbon emissions’ district wide by 2040. Through  initiatives such as native plantings, safe cycle ways, intensification around rapid transit nodes and more. The Council has already reduced its own emissions by 78 percent over the past decade – showing what’s possible, even for large organisations.  

In her second term, Sophie's also stepping into some gritty leadership roles, including chairing the Strategy, Finance and Operations Committee. As such a young councillor, she says she has battled imposter syndrome and some ageism, but being young has many more pros than cons: ‘Young people have this inherent ambition and aspiration, because we know the decisions we make now will shape our long-term future.’  

Last year, Sophie won the Prime Minister’s Scholarship, where she lived in central Tokyo, Japan, interning at a non-profit. While there, she found herself again at the centre of local politics: ‘There’s a group of young people taking the government to court, because in Japan you can’t stand for Council until you’re 25. So, they realised I was elected at the age of 18, so I became quite involved with them, and they were so tenacious in the face of some serious ageism.’ 

She also represented Aotearoa young people at APEC (The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation), and is currently part of the Wellbeing Economy Alliance – a think tank for economic transformation, putting people and planet at the centre of our economic systems. And just this month, she was one of a group of changemakers who launched Tomorrow Together, a Wellbeing Economy Alliance with a focus on intergenerational fairness. 

Looking back over the past 5 years, Sophie says, ‘it’s wild to think how much has changed, but also, at my essence, I’m still the same.  

‘If anything my passion has deepened, and I’m more aware that we’re not just saving the environment, we’re part of the environment, and caring for the environment is about caring for people.’  

More Whakaaro 

1. Five years ago, what did you think life would be like in 2025, compared to what it’s actually like? 

'Five years is a long time, and I thought I would have a stronger sense of my future career. But I’m actually really enjoying prioritising my ‘why’ and who I want to be, rather than what I want to be.' 

2. What are you proud of? 

'I'm proud of the fact that both I and a lot of other young people are constantly trying to find ways to use their life for impact. I’m also proud that as a young person elected to council, I get to represent that part of our community, and that I’ve somewhat been able to open that door, and am pulling as many others through the door as I can.' 

3. Who is your (s)hero? 

'This year, Christiana  Figueres, who helped negotiate the Paris Agreement, brought together 50 of us in Fiji at a Buddhist monastic community, which really helped her during those negotiations. I sat with a monk called  Brother Spirit, and the way he listened to me and made me feel very seen and valued, just by listening, I really appreciated that. People like him are unsung heroes who are making the world a better place through those small acts every day.'   

4. What's the best and worst thing about adulting? 

'I love getting home after a long day and cooking dinner with my partner. We also just got e-bikes, which feels very grown-up. Probably the worst thing is always feeling like you’re running out of time – and thinking about decisions I’ll have to make about the future, like having children and buying a house.'  

5. What is one word you would use to describe how you feel about the future? 

'Potential. The future hasn't been designed yet, we can be agents of that future and help shape it. '

6. What would you do with a bonus $50? 

'To be honest, I’m in such a privileged position, if I was given $50 I would probably buy kai to donate to the Kāpiti Foodbank.'