Te Pokapū o te Hapori 

The Maōri Leadership Summit is more than an event and a conference – it’s a movement.  It is a call to be bold, brave and courageous in our hīkoi as Māori and Pasifika in leadership roles and spaces whilst honouring the strength and wisdom of our tūpuna while having the privilege to shape the future of leadership within Aotearoa.  In March 2026, we had the absolute privilege of being able to attend the Māori Leadership Summit in Tāmaki Makaurau. 

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The day prior to the conference, a small group of strangers came together in a room for the Pre-Conference Workshop.  The kaupapa of this pre-conference hui was for Māori leaders and aspiring changemakers to embark on a transformative journey of growth and empowerment whilst being guided by the enduring wisdom of Māori philosophies, values, and practices combined with modern day leadership concepts.  It was a space for safe self-reflection, where we could connect with our own cultural identity (or in some cases reconnect with our cultural identity), embrace the essence of tino rangatiratanga, and tap into the strength and potential within ourselves, each other, our whānau, our hapū and our iwi as well as the different contexts that we operate within. 

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What this group of people didn’t know at the time was that it would become so much more!  We developed a much deeper connection.  Not just with each other but with our kaupapa.

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As such the Māori Community Hub was born and with us, a new direction and vision for strengthening Whakawhanaungatanga, Kotahitanga, Manaakitanga and Mōhiotanga.