Tapuwae Roa

Meet Te Taiawatea Moko-Painting (Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Porou, Tūhourangi, Waikato), one of our 2025 Tonganui Scholars, whose research is connecting two taonga species, two Pacific nations and the whakapapa they share.

In Reporua, Aotearoa, and Rarotonga, Cook Islands, two distinct shellfish species share a name: pāua and pā’ua. For Te Taiawatea, that shared name opens the door to a much bigger kōrero about whakapapa, language, mātauranga and our relationships with the moana.

With support from the Tonganui Scholarship, Te Taiawatea is progressing PhD research exploring how land-based impacts affect the health of these taonga species, and how Indigenous knowledge and customary governance can help protect them for future generations.
Tapuwae Roa

Through community-led fieldwork and wānanga in Reporua and Rarotonga, Te Taiawatea aims to bring together knowledge holders from across Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa, strengthening connections between communities while exploring climate-resilient futures for pāua, pā’ua and the people who care for them.
Tapuwae Roa

Read more about Te Taiawatea’s kaupapa:

https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/nga-auahituroa/te-taiawatea-moko-painting/

🌊 Could the Tonganui Scholarship help take your oceans kaupapa further?

Applications are now open for three $10,000 Tonganui Scholarships supporting Māori professionals advancing tikanga Māori, mātauranga tuku iho and Te Ao Māori within the oceans sector.

⏰ Applications close TODAY!

👉🏽 Apply now! https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/tonganui-scholarship/

Meet Huia Max (Ngāti Maniapoto), one of our 2025 Pou Herenga Tangata Awardees and an emerging theatre practitioner using the stage to explore what it means to be Māori in modern Aotearoa.

Alongside fellow theatre practitioner Reon Bell, Huia developed TUAKIRITEA, a show that draws on personal experiences and fictional storytelling to explore Māori identity, belonging and the challenges rangatahi face in navigating their place in the world.

With support from the Pou Herenga Tangata Award, Huia and Reon are taking their kaupapa into its next stage of development, working with experienced Māori artists to strengthen the production and the kōrero they want to share with audiences.

Their moemoeā is to bring TUAKIRITEA back to the stage for a season in Waikato, with the possibility of taking the show to kura and community centres across Aotearoa, creating space for more rangatahi Māori to see their experiences reflected on stage and engage in conversations about identity.
Tapuwae Roa

Read more about Huia’s kaupapa:

https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/nga-auahituroa/huia-max/

💫 Could the Pou Herenga Tangata Award help bring your kaupapa to life?

Applications are now open for five $5,000 Pou Herenga Tangata Awards supporting rangatahi Māori aged 16–24 who are actively leading or looking to establish kaupapa in their communities.

⏰ Applications close TODAY at 5 pm - karawhiua!

👉🏽 Apply today! https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/pou-herenga-tangata/

Meet Kelly Klink (Ngāti Wai), one of our 2025 Te Ngake o Te Kūpenga recipients, who is turning ancestral kōrero into bilingual pukapuka for the next generation.

Kelly’s journey has taken her beyond Aotea and across Te Moananui-a-Kiwa, researching Eastern Pacific oral histories and heritage sources to trace kōrero connected to Tainui waka and Toi te Huatahi, and bring those whakapapa connections to life for tamariki.

With support from Te Ngake o Te Kūpenga, that research is now becoming something tamariki can hold in their hands. Three bilingual children’s books are complete, with another two written and awaiting illustrations. Her research has also resulted in a peer-reviewed scholarly article exploring Eastern Pacific histories.

For Kelly, the kaupapa is bigger than publishing books. Her vision is for these pūrākau to reach tamariki across Aotea, Ngāti Rehua and Eastern Pacific communities, ensuring the reo, stories and mātauranga of their tūpuna continue to be carried by generations to come.

Read more about Kelly’s kaupapa:

https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/nga-auahituroa/kelly-klink/

🌊 Inspired by kaupapa like Kelly’s? Applications for the Tonganui Scholarship are now open for Māori professionals advancing tikanga Māori, mātauranga tuku iho and Te Ao Māori within the oceans sector.

⏰ Applications close 5 pm, 24 September 2026. Karawhiua!

👉🏽 Apply today! https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/tonganui-scholarship/

Tapuwae Roa is entering a new chapter in its governance journey, acknowledging the service of its outgoing Alternate Directors and welcoming two new Directors to the Board.

Following the commencement of the Māori Fisheries Amendment Act 2024, changes have been made to the Trust’s governance arrangements, resulting in the disestablishment of the role of Alternate Director within the Trust’s Board of Directors.

This transition provides an opportunity to reflect on and acknowledge the contribution of Tatiana Greening, Naomi Manu MNZM, and Bernie O’Donnell, who have collectively served the Trust as Alternate Directors. Together, they brought a wealth of experience across governance, Māori development, education, health, business, and community leadership.

“We are grateful for the knowledge, insight, and perspectives that Tatiana, Naomi, and Bernie brought to the Board. Each made a valued contribution to the governance of the Trust and demonstrated a strong commitment to advancing outcomes for hāpori Māori and our urban whānau,” says Tapuwae Roa Chair, Maria Ngawati.

As Tapuwae Roa moves forward with these governance changes, we are pleased to welcome Josh Wharehinga and Dr Darryn Russell as Directors.

Josh (Ngāti Te Aitanga a Māhaki, Ngāti Porou, Rongowhakaata, Te Arawa, Ngāti Wai) is a seasoned Māori leader, governance practitioner, and social entrepreneur whose career spans education, local government, health, and commercial enterprise. He has served on more than 20 boards, including as Deputy Mayor of Gisborne, and Chair of Toitū Te Ora, the Iwi Māori Partnership Board. His leadership is grounded in a commitment to whānau, community, and creating a stronger future for the next generation.

Darryn (Ngāi Tahu ki Ōtākou) brings 40 years of senior executive experience across iwi organisations, tertiary education, and post-settlement governance entities. He has held governance roles across iwi entities, national Crown, and regulatory bodies, commercial organisations and community groups. His personal and professional commitment to iwi development is grounded in his background in community work and supported by academic study through to doctoral level.

“Josh and Darryn bring considerable governance and leadership experience to the Board, alongside a shared dedication to strengthening our communities and already live out what we see as our core purpose. We look forward to their contribution as the Trust enters this next phase,” says Maria.

Learn more about our Board: https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/about/our-board/

Meet Maioha Haimona-Ngawharau (Ngāti Ranginui), Māori medical student and one of our 2025 Pou Herenga Tangata Awardees.

When Maioha received the Pou Herenga Tangata Award, she set out to invest in her own growth as a future Māori doctor, attending national medical and Māori medical student hui and building connections with Māori doctors and tauira from across the motu.

One of those opportunities saw Maioha step in front of around 50 medical students at the NZMSA conference to deliver an interactive te reo Māori workshop, putting her own growing confidence and leadership into practice while sharing mātauranga with others.

For Maioha, these experiences are helping shape the kind of doctor she hopes to become. As she continues her medical studies, she plans to seek out further wānanga and development opportunities, carrying the mātauranga, confidence and connections she is building into her future career and, one day, supporting the next generation of Māori doctors coming through.

Read more about Maioha’s journey:

https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/nga-auahituroa/maioha-haimona-ngawharau-maia-lockyer/

💫 Could the Pou Herenga Tangata Award help you grow your leadership and create impact for your community?

Applications are now open for five $5,000 Pou Herenga Tangata Awards supporting rangatahi Māori aged 16–24 who are actively leading or looking to establish kaupapa in their communities.

⏰ Applications close 5 pm, 24 September 2026. Karawhiua!

👉🏽 Apply today! https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/pou-herenga-tangata/

Meet Te Kahukura Boynton (Tūhoe, Whakatōhea), one of our 2025 Pou Herenga Tangata Awardees and the founder and author behind Māori Millionaire.

With support from the Pou Herenga Tangata Award, Te Kahukura brought her financial literacy kaupapa to Rotorua, creating a free and accessible space for rangatahi Māori and their whānau to kōrero about money, financial wellbeing and building wealth.

The kaupapa brought together rangatahi, tamariki, pakeke, and pēpi for an intergenerational learning experience, with 60 copies of Māori Millionaire gifted to attendees to help continue those conversations and learning at home.

Now, Te Kahukura is looking ahead, with a vision to take accessible, culturally relevant financial education to more rangatahi and whānau across Aotearoa.

👉🏽 Read more about Te Kahukura’s kaupapa: https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/nga-auahituroa/te-kahukura-boynton/

Could the Pou Herenga Tangata Award help bring your kaupapa to life?

Applications are now open for five $5,000 Pou Herenga Tangata Awards supporting rangatahi Māori aged 16–24 who are actively leading or looking to establish kaupapa in their communities.

⏰ Applications close 5 pm, 24 September 2026. Karawhiua!

🔗 Apply today! https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/pou-herenga-tangata/

💫 Mā mua ka kite a muri, mā muri ka ora a mua

Are you a rangatahi Māori leading change in your community, or do you have an idea for a kaupapa you’re ready to bring to life?

The Pou Herenga Tangata Award supports rangatahi Māori aged 16–24 to grow as our next generation of leaders, with five $5,000 awards available in 2026.

Named in honour of the late Matua Norm Dewes, the award supports rangatahi who are actively leading or looking to establish kaupapa that create positive impact for their communities.

⏰ Applications close 5 pm, 24 September 2026. Karawhiua!

🔗 Learn more and apply online today: https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/pou-herenga-tangata/

Meet Te Rangimarie Ririnui, one of our 2025 Tonganui Scholars and the driving force behind Waitā, a Māori-led freediving kaupapa growing a new generation of safe, confident kairuku grounded in tikanga Māori.

With support from the Tonganui Scholarship, Waitā delivered its first two courses at no cost to participants from Ngāti Ranginui and Te Aupōuri. The success of these courses helped build momentum for a further three courses over the 2025/26 summer.

Across five courses, Waitā has supported aspiring kairuku from across Aotearoa to develop practical freediving skills, strengthen safe diving practices and deepen connections with the moana.

Now, Te Rangimarie is looking ahead, with a goal to train more than 100 Māori divers over summer 2026/27.

Read more about Te Rangimarie’s kaupapa: https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/nga-auahituroa/te-rangimarie-ririnui/

🌊 Could the Tonganui Scholarship help take your oceans kaupapa further?

Applications are now open for three $10,000 Tonganui Scholarships supporting Māori professionals advancing tikanga Māori, mātauranga tuku iho and Te Ao Māori within the oceans sector.

Applications close 5 pm, 24 September 2026. Karawhiua!

👉🏽 Apply today! https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/tonganui-scholarship/

🌊 He taonga tuku iho, he taonga mō āpōpō.

Are you advancing tikanga Māori, mātauranga tuku iho or Te Ao Māori within the oceans sector?

The Tonganui Scholarship supports kaupapa Māori within the oceans space, with three $10,000 scholarships available in 2026.

Whether your mahi is focused on research, restoration, customary practices, education, innovation or another kaupapa that strengthens our connection to Tangaroa and Hinemoana, we want to hear from you.

⏰ Applications close 5 pm, 24 September 2026. Karawhiua!

🔗 Learn more and apply online: https://www.tapuwaeroa.org/funding/tonganui-scholarship/