Ko Ngā Rangatira

Ben is an emerging leader in mental health and addiction services. He works at the cutting edge of health and politics to drive innovation and creativity in service commissioning to improve equity of health outcomes for Māori and improvements in the health system.

He is passionate about using traditional Māori forms of exercise and healing in his mentoring and training roles.

Awhina Murupaenga, a mother of two, serves as the director of Whatu Creative. Through the traditional Māori art of tukutuku, she shares whakapapa, history, innovation, healing, and storytelling with communities. She's equally passionate about empowering young Māori to set and accomplish their aspirations.

He recognises his purpose and passion in life is to share, collaborate and advance the self-determined health aspirations of Māori and Pacific peoples.

In her work, Genevieve is committed to bridging the inequity gap between Māori and non-Māori, particularly in secondary mental health services; she would also like to see Māori whanau overrepresented in education and underrepresented in all other negative statistics.

Māmā of two girls, working full time and always focused on equity and better outcomes for our people.

Becoming a doctor has always been Boudine's dream, and the chance to give back to her community drives her. Her journey has been made possible through the support of her whānau and generous scholarships.

Dr Grace Hinepua Walker is a data scientist focusing on changing Indigenous narratives by producing data for Indigenous and minority groups as well as commercialising affordable diabetes management devices.

Raised in Tāmaki Makaurau, during high school, she became aware of the social categorisation between Māori and non-Māori in Aotearoa and the health disparities among different ethnic groups.

Growing up with Te Reo as her first language and through kōhanga reo and kura Kaupapa, Aroha believes health interventions are already within pūrākau and traditional Māori practices.