By Gail Brown. For the next blog post in the Pacific Women Leaders series, I met with Niki Rattle – Speaker of the Cook Islands Parliament. “It’s the sweetest coconut juice in the world,” says the Speaker of Cook Islands Parliament, Niki Rattle as I sit down to interview her on a hot November day in Rarotonga. The …
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Each March a celebration of the rich history between Hawaii and Aotearoa descends onto the Hawaii Village at the Pasifika Festival in Auckland. Since launching the Hawaii Village in 2014, we continue to support the Hawaii Village Committee members who work tirelessly on a striking two day display of Hawaii arts, culture and food. This …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. For the next Wahine Toa blog I traveled to the world’s southernmost marae which is at the bottom of the South Island in Bluff. I met Aimee Kaio, a dedicated social entrepreneur from Ngāi Tahu, Tuhourangi, Ngāti Whakaue and Ngā Puhi, whose …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. Jacinta Ruru is New Zealand’s first Māori Professor of Law, co-director of Ngā Pae o te Maramatanga (New Zealand’s Māori Centre of Research Excellence), and a two-time Fulbright award grantee. Jacinta’s utmost mission has been straightforward: to bring a strong Indigenous voice …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. Wahine Toa Nicol ‘Kelly’ Takurua of Ngāti Porou descent, is a champion social worker in rural Southland. And , as she tells it, her interest in organizing and helping others with their lives is something she’s done all her life. Kelly’s family …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. Brittany Teei is a former professional tennis player, social entrepreneur, founder of KidsCoin tech-company, and she’s only 27 years young. Blessed with a prodigious mind and heart, this tenacious Ngāi Tahu woman recently shared her incredible story at the Remuera Tennis Club …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. The next Wahine Toa feature is Deidre Otene of Te Rarawa and Ngāpuhi. Over the last decade she has been at the forefront supporting Māori youth and women in grassroots communities. At the heart of her work is her own community in …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. Libby Hakaraia is a trailblazing journalist, author and filmmaker, broadcasting New Zealand’s culture and cinematic stories to the world. A masterful auteur, Libby pioneered New Zealand’s first international indigenous film festival – Māoriland Film Festival. I visited this gifted storyteller in her …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. Ranei Wineera-Parai is a change agent whose formidable community development work touches and improves lives in her home town of Porirua and its environs. Ranei has mana tangata whenua (indigenous rights) through her Ngāti Toa iwi. I had the privilege …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. In October, the United States Embassy in New Zealand brought together 140 Maori women from across the country for the Wahine Toa (“Women of Strength”) Leadership Conference, the culmination of two years of interviews and engagement with emerging female leaders from the …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. Our next Wahine Toa feature is Rukumoana Schaafhausen from Ngāti Haua. Her ardent desire to help her community, her church, and her Māori people is central to her story as the longest standing trustee for Waikato Tainui Te Kauhaunganui Inc, …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. Kerensa Johnston is an accomplished lawyer who passionately advocates for Indigenous and human rights. Her stellar career spans from the halls of academia to the court room and led to her recent appointment as first female CEO of Wakatū Incorporated. Wakatū is …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. The next Wahine Toa feature is Rachel Taulelei. Rachel’s Māori heritage and advocacy for young entrepreneurs, women in particular, are among her most passionate inspirations. Business savvy, and an innate gift for innovation have led to extraordinary success —first as an entrepreneur …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. The Ngāti Rārua iwi in the upper South Island is known for its strong female leadership, beginning with the women that the iwi was named after Raruaioio and Raruatere. Generations later their legacy holds true as they introduce a current female leader, Olivia …
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Remarks of Ambassador Mark Gilbert on the Occasion of the 240th Anniversary of American Independence Day, July 7, 2016 E ngā mana E ngā reo E ngā manuhiri taiea Kia ora koutou katoa Tēnā koutou mai tōku whenua America Tēnā koutou mai tōku Rangatira Matua Barack Obama Ko ngā Rocky Mountains ōku Maunga Ko te …
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By Victoria Triegaardt, Public Affairs Intern, U.S. Embassy, Wellington. U.S. Embassy Staff & Friends Visit Kapiti Island to Take Part in the Unveiling Of New Information Panels. Two weeks back was National Park Week in the U.S. and in celebration the U.S. Embassy joined the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) to unveil new signs on Kapiti …
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By Mara Hosoda, Public Affairs Section, U.S. Consulate General, Auckland. On April 13 and 14, 2016 the U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert and his wife, Mrs. Nancy Gilbert, made their first official visit to Dunedin, New Zealand. The Gilberts met with a cross section of Dunedin’s government, business, university, and civil society sectors. It was a …
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By Mara Hosoda, U.S. Consulate, Auckland Mana moana (“the power of the ocean”) was especially strong this month, connecting Kanaka Maoli (native people from Hawaii) to their Maori and Pacific cousins in Aotearoa. The U.S. Embassy and Consulate are proud to support and be a part of the many Hawaiian exchanges that occurred in March. …
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Press Statement John Kerry Secretary of State Washington, DC February 4, 2016 On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of New Zealand on the 176th anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi, or Te Tiriti o Waitangi, this February 6. The United States and New Zealand are …
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The latest Wahine Toa post by By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. This month I’d like to introduce Gina Rangi of the Ngāti Tūwharetoa and Ngāti Raukawa iwi. Everything about Gina – her intellectual pursuit, ambition to create positive outcomes for Māori, and social life – is based on the premise that leadership is …
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By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. As part of our now well established Wahine Toa series, I traveled to “King country”, home to the Waikato-Tainui iwi and a dear friend, King Tuheitia Paki. Pioneers of Kingitanga , (a collective spirit to unify Māori tribes under a Māori monarchy) the iwi holds an incredible …
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By Nancy Gilbert, wife of U.S. Ambassador Mark Gilbert. I continued my Wahine Toa journey south to the city of Christchurch, which is the base of New Zealand’s wealthiest tribe, Ngāi Tahu. At their impressive new headquarters I met Charisma Rangipunga, who, like so many Māori women I have come across, is talented on many …
Read More» By Public Affairs staff, U.S. Consulate Auckland. Fifty ‘Future Leaders’ from 19 Pacific Islands (#FPL15), including 30 New Zealand based participants, gathered in Auckland in early September for a four-day conference on social entrepreneurship and leadership. An important goal was to connect participants with Pacific diaspora communities in Auckland, the city with the largest Pacific …
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By U.S. Ambassador, Mark Gilbert. A little while back I had the wonderful opportunity to participate in the official opening of the Matariki Festival at the Dawn Karakia, alongside Auckland Mayor Len Brown and prominent Maori leaders. I had heard about the Matariki Festival prior to my arrival in New Zealand, and Nancy and I were excitedly …
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