Te Whetu Tipiwai
Te Whetu Tipiwai, Napier, received the Insignia of a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Māori and rugby. He has been the chairperson of Ngāti Hineutu Iwi Incorporated for 18 years and is a member of the Ahuriri Māori Executive Committee and is a trustee of a number of Māori land trusts. He is also a member of the Takitimu Regional Council and is the Pou Kura Taiao manager with the Department of Conservation at the East Coast-Hawke's Bay Conservancy, where he has been the convenor between the department and the local elders of Ngāti Pahauwera of Mohaka, Ngāti Tu of Tangoio, and Ngāti Hineuru of Te Haroto, ensuring the approval and translocation of native birds in the area. Mr Tipiwai has been the chairperson of the Hawke's Bay Māori Rugby Board for 30 years, chairperson of the Central Region Board for 10 years, a member of the New Zealand Māori Rugby Board for some 15 years, and kaumātua for the New Zealand Māori Rugby Team for more than 10 years.