Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Porou
Associate Professor Tristram Ingham is a public health physician, academic researcher, and disability advocate based at the University of Otago, Wellington. He is the Co-Director of the Te Ao Mārama Māori Health and Wellbeing Panel and Executive Lead of FERNZ – the Foundation for Equity Research New Zealand. His research and leadership centre on health equity, Māori and tāngata whaikaha Māori wellbeing, and the application of kaupapa Māori and human rights frameworks in policy and systems design. Dr Ingham has played a leading role in national disability and Māori health governance, including as Co-Chair of the Establishment Partnership Group for Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People, and as a member of the Royal Commission on Abuse in Care Disability Reference Group. He has extensive experience working at the interface of government, iwi, and the health sector to advance Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations and uphold Māori data sovereignty. As Principal Investigator for the Te Ao Mārama Panel, he provides strategic oversight of study design, governance, and data kaitiakitanga. His work seeks to transform evidence systems so that Māori voices, experiences, and aspirations shape the policies that affect their lives — building a fairer, healthier Aotearoa for future generations.
Ngā Wairiki, Ngāti Apa
Bernadette is a Māori health researcher and registered nurse with lived experience of disability. Her research focuses on long-term conditions such as asthma and COPD disproportionately affecting Māori whānau. She has led multiple HRC-funded projects and is recognised for her ability to translate evidence into improved access and equity for tāngata whaikaha. She maintains strong community and professional networks nationally, building high-trust, co-productive teams. In Te Niwha, she co leads project governance, ensuring that research outcomes are grounded in Māori realities and deliver tangible whānau benefits.
Meredith is a physiotherapist and researcher with mixed-methods expertise in accessible environments and disability research. Her lived experience as the mother of two disabled children shapes her commitment to dismantling systemic barriers in health and education. She is active in disability NGOs including the Blind Foundation and ParaFed. In Te Niwha, Meredith contributes to qualitative and quantitative analysis, engagement with disability organisations, and dissemination of academic outputs.
Te Aūpouri, Te Rarawa, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Whātua, Waikato-Tainui, Ngāti Maniapoto
Paula is a public health physician and researcher whose work spans Māori health inequities, Indigenous rights, and systemic transformation. She has provided strategic leadership on multiple national initiatives at the Crown–Māori interface. Within Te Niwha, Paula strengthens the team’s capacity in clinical epidemiology, Māori health equity frameworks, and translation of findings into public policy.
Ngāti Apa, Rangitane, Te Rarawa
Andrew is a senior Māori statistician and founding member of Te Mana Raraunga (Māori Data Sovereignty Network). He has over two decades’ experience leading innovations in official statistics, including the NZ Census Mortality Study and linked administrative datasets. He has held leadership roles across several National Science Challenges. In Te Niwha, Andrew supervises survey design, Māori-responsive statistical methods, and IDI linkage, ensuring cultural safety and methodological excellence.
Ngāpuhi, Pākehā, Tararā
Lara is a Rutherford Discovery Fellow (2024–2029) and leading scholar in Māori politics, identity, and participation. She has led major projects on Māori roll choice, electoral systems, and intersectionality, and co-edited Government and Politics in Aotearoa New Zealand. Her international collaborations include Horizon Europe (EU-CIEMBLY). Lara’s expertise in survey methodology, political behaviour, and intersectional analysis is central to the Te Niwha panel’s design and policy relevance.
Barry is a social scientist and Director of the Centre of Methods and Policy Application in the Social Sciences (COMPASS), with extensive experience leading large-scale surveys and longitudinal studies. He has directed the NZ Election Study and International Social Survey Programme, and co-designed iwi-led surveys with the James Henare Māori Research Centre. Barry brings international standing in survey methodology and data collection and will oversee Te Niwha’s probabilistic survey implementation and quality assurance.
Ngāti Whakaue
Tom is the lead developer of iNZight, a free, R-powered tool for data analysis and visualisation, with expertise in Bayesian and computational statistics. His work bridges statistical computing and accessible tools for non-specialists. In Te Niwha, Tom leads on data infrastructure and innovative statistical modelling, advancing real-time analysis and visualisation.
Ngāti Pāoa, Ngāti Tamatera, Ngāti Hako, Ngāti Tara, Tokonui, Tāwhaki, Te Māhurehure
Taki is the Deputy Chair of Te Ao Mārama Aotearoa Trust (TAMA), the national Māori disability trust established to ensure tāngata whaikaha Māori have a strong, independent voice. He provides governance leadership across kaupapa Māori health, disability, and social equity, and has been central to TAMA’s role in shaping the establishment of Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People. Through his governance roles, Taki advocates for Māori data sovereignty, equity in health and disability systems, and whānau-centred approaches to policy. His contribution to Te Niwha strengthens the project’s connection to tāngata whaikaha Māori communities and ensures that governance, tikanga, and accountability remain grounded in Māori worldviews.