Sarah Hirini: Back to work
“I definitely respect my opponents, but I don’t think I’m a good loser. I love winning too much to enjoy a loss, although I know that our losses have made us a better team.” — Sarah Hirini, Black Ferns captain.
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Author: Dale Husband
Ron Mark: People make the difference
“If I look back at my childhood, I resented everybody for a long time. But later, you develop a strong sense of affection for your foster families. As an adult, I have nothing but aroha for my foster parents.” — Ron Mark.
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Riana Manuel: Finally, a Treaty partnership in health
“We run it by Māori, for Māori — but we take everyone with us. And I figured, if we could do that locally, what if we could pull it off nationally?” — Riana Manuel, who heads the new Māori Health Authority.
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Oriini Kaipara: My values are Māori
“Manaakitanga, kotahitanga, whanaungatanga — all those values are what make me Māori. It’s all-encompassing. My wairua is Māori, my whakaaro are Māori, my reo is Māori.” — Oriini Kaipara.
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Ardie Savea: Inspired to dream bigger
“When a coach shows that he has my back, and when he treats me like family, I’ll go out on the field and do anything for him, for the brothers, for the team.” — Ardie Savea.
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Margie Apa: Our new health boss
“One privilege that comes with being senior is that I see my job as creating an environment where discrimination is just not acceptable.” — Margie Apa, chief executive of Health NZ.
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Sarah-Jane Paine: Embedding whakamāori research
“I’ll bring the experience of being a mum into my research, just like my experience of being wahine Māori, of being Tūhoe, of growing up Wairoa.” — Dr Sarah-Jane Paine, who leads the ‘Growing Up in New Zealand’ study.
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Metiria Turei and her new world
“Both Māori and Pākehā students . . . see that, to be an effective person in this country in the 21st century, they need to be competent in te ao Māori, te reo, and tikanga Māori.” — Metiria Turei.
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Dr Jin Russell: Fired up to get things right for our children
“It’s become especially important to me over my career as a paediatrician to learn how to be a good Treaty partner.” — Dr Jin Russell.
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Teremoana Rapley: An Original Creative Native
“I’m not a product. And the reason why I’m so anti that is because my tīpuna on my African side were listed as assets, as chattels, on asset registers.” — Teremoana Rapley.
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Qiane Matata-Sipu: A disrupter from Ihumātao
“We have to disrupt. And it’s not just disrupting the government or the United Nations. It’s about disrupting our thinking and disrupting the everyday choices in our households.“ — Qiane Matata-Sipu.
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JP Pomare: Writing on the world stage
“I do want to encourage Māori and Pasifika writers to not feel as though they have to be an activist voice in a traditional sense — they can be subversive in another genre.” — crime writer JP Pomare.
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Tina Ngata: An adherence to justice and fairness
“I’ve always felt it’s important for us to clearly articulate what the trajectory of justice should look like for our people, and to articulate for ourselves our vision of justice.” — Tina Ngata.
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Bryan Williams: Sidesteps, tries, and pioneering
“The dean of the law school, Jack Northey, said: ‘Listen here, Mr Williams. They tell me you’re bit of a rugby player, but as far as law school is concerned, you’re going to have to shape up or ship out.’” — Bryan Williams.
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Dame Cindy Kiro: A pōhara kōtiro from the wop-wops
“My first cousins are as close as brothers and sisters, and we still are a loving extended family. It just so happens that I remember changing their nappies.” — Governor-General, Dame Cindy Kiro.
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Andrew Becroft: This is our chance, and we must grab it
“What I hear from all quarters now is this: ‘We must prioritise children. We must prioritise our mokopuna. And we’re up for that challenge.’” — Andrew Becroft, former Children’s Commissioner.
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Tamasailau: Pau ā — just because
“I’ve grown to appreciate the place of law in today’s society, but I struggle with its monoculturalism.” — Tamasailau Sualii-Sauni.
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Toa Fraser: Swimming in different waters
“There’s nothing like an incurable brain disease to give you focus, Dale. I feel lucky that I’ve been able to continue to work.” — Toa Fraser.
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Susana Lei’ataua: Spreading her wings
“Am I being truthful? Am I being respectful? Am I prepared? And am I responsible? Those are the four things that really guide me.” — Susana Lei’ataua, RNZ Pacific’s News Editor.
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Donald Hollingsworth: This is what God gave me
“Although I was harassed by other kids when I was growing up, today, with the internet, it’s much worse. What we say to people face to face tends to be more moderate.” — Donald Hollingsworth, on growing up takatāpui.
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Korohere Ngāpō: Hauraki is my magnetic north
“I most certainly believe there is power and mana in the karakia that were performed. Our Māori spirituality is a big thing. It always has been and it always will be.” — Korohere Ngapo.
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Dianne Sika-Paotonu: The duty to act
“For a long time, we’ve had more of a focus on equality in health, where the approach has been ‘one size fits all’. But we know that this doesn’t work for our Pacific and Māori communities. What’s needed is an equity focus.” — Dr Dianne Sika-Paotonu.
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Tommy Wilson: The taiaha of knowledge
“I lived and worked in 30 countries, going around and around the planet trying to find out where I belonged. And, hey, the answer was right back where I started, where I am now in Te Puna.” — Tommy Wilson.
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Our success belongs to a whole island of people
“You know, anyone’s success belongs to a whole island of people. That’s one thing that Mum taught us. Never forget that your success is dependent on every person connected to you — and who’s helped you.” — Leatuao Larry Tua’i-Lavea.
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Judge Mike Mika: I just smile now
“I grew up as a young Sāmoan kid watching rugby, and Bryan Williams was my idol. . . . So there we had the first Sāmoan All Black who was also a lawyer, and I thought: ‘Man! That is really something.’” — Judge Mike Mika.
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Sulu Fitzpatrick: Leading with love
“It’s really cool to see the narrative change, with people speaking up about their struggles — sharing all the different shapes and shades of ourselves, and not just talking about the things that are good.” — Sulu Fitzpatrick.
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Monique Fiso: It made sense that I became a chef
“I grew up in Porirua. It was a very Polynesian upbringing — Sunday lunches with Nan at her house with taro and chop suey and that sort of thing.” — Monique Fiso.
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Genesis Te Kuru White: Seek the knowledge and bring it back
“Black Power Movement was about us discovering, defining, and becoming conscious of our taha Māori and who we were as Māori — and being able to maintain that in our lives.” — Genesis Te Kuru White.
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Tania Pouwhare: Siding with the underdog
“My job is to create compelling alternatives to the policy failure and the market failure that continues to keep South Auckland poor.” — Tania Pouwhare.
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Harry Tam: Still standing up for himself
“My pathway into the Mob wasn’t one of crime. It has always been one of: ‘How do we develop people?’” — Harry Tam.
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