Royal Society Te Apārangi gathers 250+ early-career researchers for He Pito Mata 2026 in Auckland

He Pito Mata 2026 is a two-day national conference for Aotearoa New Zealand's next generation of research leaders, running 9:30am–5:00pm on Thursday 10 and Friday 11 September 2026 at the University of Auckland's Sir Owen G Glenn Building in the central-city Grafton precinct. The organiser reports gathering more than 250 early-career researchers. The programme covers securing funding, international collaboration, mentoring and leadership, interdisciplinary research, media and science communication, and translating research into impact, alongside sessions on data sovereignty, the future of Vision Mātauranga, and the role of artificial intelligence in research. Three facilitated workshops (women in research, storytelling from a Māori perspective, and AI in research) are each intended to result in an academic publication on which delegates can be named authors. A dedicated Māori and Pasifika wānanga runs on the afternoon before the main event, on 9 September.

Who runs it

The conference is hosted by Royal Society Te Apārangi (the Royal Society of New Zealand) through its Early Career Researcher Forum. Per the Society, it is an independent not-for-profit that advances science, technology and the humanities, incorporating New Zealand's national Academy and more than 1,500 Fellows, Companions, Members and staff plus around 60 member organisations. The Society has run a Forum for early-career researchers since 2016; a previous He Pito Mata edition was held in 2023. Named speakers for 2026 include Dr Gill Jolly (Chief Science Advisor, MBIE), Justine Daw (Chief Executive, Royal Society Te Apārangi), Professor Nancy November FRSNZ, Professor Tahu Kukutai FRSNZ, and Associate Professor Sereana Naepi (University of Auckland).

Who it's for

The event is aimed at early-career researchers from across Aotearoa New Zealand spanning the sciences, technology, humanities and social sciences. Māori and Pasifika early-career researchers are additionally invited to the dedicated wānanga to connect and to explore Māori and Pasifika leadership in the research, science, innovation and technology sectors. Registration closed on 31 August 2026 ahead of the event.

The venue and logistics

The confirmed venue is the Sir Owen G Glenn Building at 12 Grafton Road, Auckland CBD — the University of Auckland Business School, in the Grafton/Symonds Street precinct on the eastern edge of the central city. As reporting context: the location sits within central Auckland, walkable to Symonds Street bus routes and a short distance from the Grafton and Britomart transport hubs, and is surrounded by the CBD accommodation cluster that typically absorbs delegate demand for multi-day central-city conferences. A single central campus venue means most delegate movement over the two days is on foot within the precinct.

Why it matters for New Zealand MICE

He Pito Mata is a recurring, nationally significant academic gathering that draws researchers from around the country to Auckland for a multi-day programme, making it a representative example of the domestic scientific-congress segment. Its scale (250+ delegates), central-city university venue, and mix of a main conference plus a preceding wānanga illustrate the kind of association and higher-education conference activity that underpins New Zealand's business-events calendar.