Tipene O'Regan

Tā Tipene O'Regan has been recognised for his decades of mahi in fulfilling his dreams of an equitable and bicultural Aotearoa.

Pou Tiaki is our commitment to equity and fair representation of all people in New Zealand, and why we tell stories like this. She cannot think of a more worthy recipient, as someone who “contributed more than most in being able to see the future and give people the courage to grasp it”. Even if it is an intergenerational one. He stands for “being honest about the past, and being optimistic about the future, and we should be both”. She felt privileged to witness the speech of a courageous and “groundbreaking leader” that day, describing him as an “outstanding orator”. He reflected on more than 100 years of Ngāi Tahu experience, the last seven years of negotiations, and whether the settlement was enough – “completely transfixed as he spoke”. He says he aspires to “change the water in the bowl we are all swimming in”. O’Regan helps “New Zealanders understand their country better”, and the award is a “fitting tribute”, Bolger says. She says her father is a “huge source of inspiration for me”, particularly in fighting for equity for all and “the belief in hope”. “The legacy of tenacity and the legacy of drive and passion, and the legacy of perseverance of justice is something I have seen in him my whole life. “For someone who has given his life for service in that way, for kaupapa (principles), for rights, for knowledge transfer, the service of all of those things, to know that’s the space he is still in and still contributing, that’s why it was emotional.” With a wry smile, he says, “for a historian not to be able to predict the future is a great weakness”.