Dr Te Ripowai Higgins, QSM, of Lower Hutt, ONZM for services to education and Māori
Dr Te Ripowai Higgins (Ngāi Tūhoe) was a foundation board member for Te Ataarangi, a community-led Māori language revitalisation movement, and built relationships with Indigenous communities globally, sharing Te Ataarangi approaches. She was Senior Lecturer and Head of School at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington’s School of Māori Studies, and ruahine (female leader) of Te Herenga Waka marae, helping community educators transition into postgraduate study. She was a member of the Law Commission’s Māori Liaison Committee, and provided tikanga training to the judiciary. She was a foundation Board member of Te Ipukarea the National Māori Language Institute, served on the Board of Te Māngai Pāho and helped establish Te Upoko o te Ika, New Zealand’s first Māori radio station. Dr Higgins was kuia and cultural advisor to former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy.