Te Taumata Panui – June 2025

Europe Day Reception | Parliament, Wellington – 7 May 2025

Te Taumata Trustees Hone McGregor and Teresa Tepania-Ashton attended the 2025 Europe Day Reception at Parliament, hosted by Hon Todd McClay, Minister of Trade and Investment and H.E. Lawrence Meredit, Ambassador for the EU. The event celebrated 1 year for the FTA and marked the enduring partnership between Aotearoa and the European Union. Te Taumata used the opportunity to advocate for deeper Māori inclusion in EU trade frameworks and explore cultural diplomacy pathways and for implementation of the FTA’s Māori economic cooperation chapter.

India NZ Business Council: Boardroom to Border – 9 May 2025

Held at the Pullman Hotel in Auckland, this India-New Zealand leadership forum was themed Boardroom to Border, focusing on strategic trade collaboration and business ecosystems. Te Taumata Trustees Hone McGregor and Ethan Jones joined government ministers and Indian trade leaders, including keynote speeches by the Prime Minister and Deputy PM & Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Winston Peters. This forum stepped off the recent Biz Leaders’ Mission to India led by the Prime Minister Luxon, attended by Hone, that included the Māori business interests. India NZ Business Council are looking towards the India-NZ FTA’s potential, Māori trade opportunities, investment in sustainable agriculture opportunities, and cross-cultural business protocols.

French Embassy Dinner – 12 May 2025

On the evening of 12 May 2025, Te Taumata Chair Hone McGregor joined H.E. Ambassador Laurence Beau from France and officials from New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) at the Résidence de France in Thorndon, Wellington for a formal signing event. The occasion marked the signing of the French–Māori EU FTA Roadmap—an innovative and forward-looking initiative designed to implement Chapter 20 of the EU–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (EU-NZ FTA) and strengthen ties between the French and Māori economies.

This significant milestone also commemorated the 80th anniversary of diplomatic relations between France and Aotearoa New Zealand. The EU FTA French Govt-Te Taumata roadmap was born out of discussions initiated during the 2023 French Pacific Business Forum, where the French Minister for Foreign Trade engaged with Māori economic leaders, including Te Taumata, to explore new models of cooperation between French Pacific Territories and Māori businesses.

The signed roadmap outlines three key objectives:

  • A long-term commitment to bilateral collaboration
  • Strengthening economic and cultural bonds
  • Agile, operational, and specific project-based cooperation

Shared values underpinning this agreement include climate and environmental responsibility, biodiversity preservation, gender equity, and the principles of a socially fair and circular economy. The partnership will focus on practical collaboration in green transition technologies, innovative agriculture, tourism development, and scientific exchange.

Read more about the Roadmap and its long-term vision.

 

ASEAN Roundtable with Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn – 14 May 2025

Te Taumata Chair Hone McGregor attended a closed-door Chatham House roundtable with ASEAN Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn. The Asia New Zealand Foundation-hosted event discussed ASEAN’s evolving regional architecture, Indigenous economic participation, and the future of NZ-ASEAN diplomatic and trade ties and marked the 50th Anniversary of NZ ASEAN dialogue partnership. Aotearoa and ASEAN also had a Commemorative Leaders’ Summit with the launch of a new Plan of Action, and ongoing discussions about the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Dinner with H.E. Prasanna Gamage – 22 May 2025

Te Taumata Chair, Hone McGregor, joined a diplomatic dinner with Sri Lanka’s new High Commissioner to New Zealand, H.E. Prasanna Gamage, which was hosted by the AsiaNZ Foundation. Discussions centred on strengthening Māori–Sri Lankan trade pathways, with particular interest in education, agriculture, and traditional medicine collaborations. H.E. Gamage is the first High-Commissioner from Sri Lanka to NZ, presenting his credentials to the Governor-General of New Zealand, Dame Cindy Kiro, on 31st January and officially assumed his duties in Wellington on 3rd February 2025.

French NZ Chamber of Commerce 40th Anniversary – 5 June 2025

Celebrating 40 years of French–New Zealand economic collaboration, this Auckland event also publicly launched the Māori–French Roadmap to business leaders, politicians, the Mayor of Auckland and diplomats. Hone McGregor was interviewed with Te Ao Māori TV and NBR editor Mike McRoberts, reinforcing the importance of Māori perspectives in international trade and innovation. Pictured: Mike McRoberts, Hone McGregor, Vincent Gremeret (Deputy Head of Mission).

ASEAN YBLI Delegation to Te Tauihu – June 2025

A group of ASEAN Young Business Leaders Initiative (YBLI)s, hosted by the Asia New Zealand Foundation, spent two insightful days in Te Tauihu engaging with Te Taumata and leading Māori business, Wakatū Incorporation. Their visit included a strategic briefing with Wakatū kaimahi, focusing on Māori AgriBiz vertical integration and Wakatū’s intergenerational, values-based 500-year vision ‘Te Pae Tawhiti’. The delegation also toured Kono LLP’s Horticulture sites and the advanced pack house at Golden Bay Fruit, gaining a deeper understanding of Māori-led innovation in vertically integrated food and farming enterprises. The group continued on to Fieldays in Waikato (Mystery Creek), where Te Taumata Trustees Hone McGregor and Rawson Wright met with agribusiness sector business leaders, diplomatic missions and international agricultural envoys – to further Indigenous trade and engagement.

Fieldays 2025 – 11 June 2025 (Day 1)

Fieldays remains a pivotal platform for agri-tech and international engagement. Hone McGregor and Rawson Wright met with Māori Agrbiz sector leaders and also caught-up with Hon.Todd McClay Minister of Agriculture & Export, Chair Charles Finny (New Zealand Trade & Enterprise NZTE Chairman – pictured here), Irish and French delegates, and ASEAN agricultural envoys. Discussions ranged from farming and agriculture science and innovation to Indigenous IP, climate-smart farming, and agri-export potential.

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Hone Tiatoa – Trustee at Te Taumata

Hone Tiatoa

Trustee

Ngāti Awa ki Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Manaia ki Ngāpuhi, Uri o Pou ki Ngāpuhi
John holds multiple chairman and executive roles focusing on research and development for whānau, hapū, and iwi trusts and charitable organisations. John is also a Policy Advisor for the Māori interest within Article 2 of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Prof. Dr Robert Joseph

Trustee

Tainui, Tūwharetoa, Kahungunu, Rangitāne, Ngāi Tahu
Dr Joseph completed his Bachelor and Master of Laws degrees at Waikato and was admitted to the Bar in 1998. He is a Barrister and Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand and was a senior research fellow for the Te Mātāhauariki Research Institute at the University of Waikato under the leadership of Judge Michael Brown and Dr Alex Frame. Dr Joseph completed a PhD in Law in 2006.
Victor Goldsmith – Trustee at Te Taumata

Victor Goldsmith

Trustee

Ngāti Porou
Victor has held governance and executive roles across numerous sectors, including Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee for Ngāti Porou Forest Limited, Director of Awanui-Moana Limited Partnership, Independent Director of Ngāti Pahauwera Commercial Development Limited and Trustee of the Mānuka Charitable Trust. He has also been the National Operations Manager of ApiMed Medical Honey Limited, the General Manager of Ngāti Porou Miere Limited Partnership, CEO of Te Aupouri Iwi and Group CEO of Te Kaahui o Rauru
Ernestynne Walsh – Trustee at Te Taumata

Ernestynne Walsh

Trustee

Ngāti Porou, Te Whānau-a-Apanui

Ernestynne joined the trust through He Tukutuku Koiora, the future Māori directors programme led by Tapuwae Roa. Digital and data governance is her area or speciality having provided digital and data governance support for various advisory groups including ACC, MBIE, NZSIS and DIA. At Te Taumata, she supports with digital trade chapters and indigenous trade research. In 2025, she won a Te Hapori Maithiko award for corporate change.

Ethan Jones – Trustee at Te Taumata

Ethan Jones

Trustee

Ngai Takoto, Te Aupouri
Ethan joined the Foundation’s business programme in May 2021 and is based in Auckland. He spent five years living, studying, and working in China. Ethan first moved to China to continue studying Mandarin after completing his bachelor’s degree in Chinese and Modern Languages. He later worked in sales for ABI, a global Fortune 500 beer company, where he helped develop their portfolio and presence in the Shanghai craft beer sector. During his time in China, he was an active member of both the Hangzhou and Shanghai New Zealand business communities. In 2019, Ethan returned to New Zealand and started a company focused on Chinese tourism in regional areas.
Teresa Tepania-Ashton – Trustee at Te Taumata

Teresa Tepania-Ashton

Trustee

Ngāti Kahu ki Whangaroa, Ngāpuhi.
After a 12-year career working internationally with Citibank (Vice President), CEO of Te Rūnanga o Ngāpuhi and 10 years as CEO of Māori Women’s Development Inc., Teresa continues to thrive as a Senior Executive, to put her decades of community and corporate governance experience to work for her people. Teresa was awarded the Dame Mira Scazy Alumni Award (1999) from Auckland University, a finalist in the ‘Women of Influence Awards’ in the Not-for-Profit Category (2015) and Board & Management Category (2016). In June 2016, Teresa received a Member of the NZ Order of Merit for services to Maori and business.
Rawson Wright – Deputy Chair of Te Taumata

Rawson Wright

Deputy Chair

Te Uri o Hau, Ngāti Whatua, Ngati Porou, Te Whanau A Apanui, Ngāti Hine
Rawson leads and advocates for several large Māori business initiatives in farming, forestry, and economic development. He has collaborated on indigenous research in South America and enjoys the relationships with our whanaunga in Canada, USA, Russia, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Australia, and the Pacific. His expertise lies in farming, forestry, carbon trading, housing, and IT. He has a Post-Graduate Diploma in Management from University of Auckland and NZ TCB in Dairy Farming.
Hone McGregor – Chair of Te Taumata

Hone McGregor

Chair

Rarua/Te Ati Awa, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Te Atiawa, Te Atihaunui-a-Päpärangi, Ngāti Kahungunu/Ngāti Kere, Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, Rarua, Rangitāne, Ngāti Kuia

Hone specialises in Māori business development, international trade, and research, holding several key governance roles in New Zealand. Hone has served on the Trade for All Advisory Board and the National Research Priorities panel, supporting New Zealand’s trade and research strategies. Currently, Hone chairs Wakatū Incorporation and Kono LLP, exporting premium Māori food and beverage products to over 30 countries, including key markets across Asia. Hone’s leadership extends to Māori trade research and economic development through his work with the Tauhokohoko Research Steering Committee.