Te Riria is now blazing a trail for young Māori planners - having just finished a Bachelor of Environmental Planning (Te Ara Taiao: Maori and the Environment) at Waikato University and working for a major engineering consulting company.
Supported by WSP and the NZ Planning Institute (NZPI), the Papa Pounamu Whakatutukitanga Scholarship has helped Te Riria make valuable industry connections. It’s awarded annually to a student studying an NZPI accredited planning degree – recognising excellence and attainment by a student planner involved in Māori planning in an environmental framework.
One of the projects Te Riria has been working on recently is the Te Ture Whaimana revision – a long term vision and strategy for the Waikato River, which is reviewed every five to ten years. She’s been enjoying the ‘people’ side of the project and working with communities to create positive outcomes.
“It’s been amazing to see what a project of that scale looks like, how it works and how stakeholders including iwi and hapu are brought together and involved in the plan.”
With major resource management reforms underway, there's set to be no shortage of planning issues for Te Riria to get involved in down the track. Ultimately, she’d like to specialise in co-governance policy and iwi engagement. But in the meantime, she’s spring-boarding off the Scholarship to soak up as much experience as possible and build her planning knowledge.
For any young person thinking of applying for the 2023 Papa Pounamu Whakatutukitanga Scholarship, Te Riria says “go for it”.
“My experience with the Scholarship has been really positive; the people I’ve met and connections I’ve made at WSP and NZPI. There are limited numbers of Māori in environmental planning degrees, so I definitely encourage others to take the opportunity.”
NZPI is now taking nominations for the 2023 Scholarship. Applications close 10 February 2023. To find out more and apply, visit the NZPI website.