Te ORA marks 30 years at Waipapa Marae: Hui-ā-Tau & Scientific Conference returns to Auckland, 4-6 September

Te Ohu Rata o Aotearoa (Te ORA), the national Māori medical practitioners' association, holds its 2026 Hui-ā-Tau and Scientific Conference from Friday 4 to Sunday 6 September 2026 at Waipapa Marae, University of Auckland, with sessions also running at the University's Owen G Glenn Building and an awards dinner at Cordis Auckland. The organiser's own event page describes this as a 30-year anniversary hui that "will return to Waipapa Marae, University of Auckland, the site of our very first hui", carrying the theme Titiro whakamuri, kōkiri whakamua — rendered by Te ORA as "Look back and reflect, so we can move forward." This corrects a directory listing that had the event in Rotorua at the Energy Events Centre with an October placeholder date; the official site and the organiser-run registration page both place it in central Auckland in early September.

Who runs it

Te ORA describes itself on its about page as "a unique organisation representing Māori medical students and doctors working as clinicians, researchers and teachers", with a vision "to provide Māori medical leadership to the health sector to effect Māori health development". Its stated strategies include increasing the Māori medical workforce towards population parity, improving Māori access to medical and health education and research, influencing the agenda for Māori health development, and developing clinical leaders.

The association's own history section records that a group of Māori medical practitioners came together in 1995 to establish Te Ohu Rata o Aotearoa, with the inaugural Hui-ā-Tau held in 1996, where a constitution was ratified, an executive elected and Te ORA registered as an incorporated society. The second Hui-ā-Tau followed in early 1998, alongside the first Scientific Conference, created to promote information exchange and give members a platform for their scientific and research work. Te ORA states the two have been held annually since. The organisation traces a longer whakapapa to Sir Māui Pōmare, Te Rangi Hīroa (Sir Peter Buck), Tutere Wi Repa and Pohau Ellison — the original members of the Māori Medical Practitioners Association — and honours them in the carving of its tokotoko. The board is chaired by Dr Kasey Tawhara as Kaihautū, per the association's website.

Te ORA also notes it has formalised relationships with key health organisations, sits on health committees, provides secretariat support to projects, sponsors summer studentships and supplies Māori clinical advice across the wider New Zealand health sector. The 2026 hui carries sponsorship from a broad slate of Australasian medical colleges and health bodies listed on the registration page, including ACEM, RANZCOG, RNZCGP, RANZCR, RACS, RANZCO, ANZCA, RACP, NZCPHM, Pharmac and MAS.

Who it's for

Te ORA's published FAQ states that Hui-ā-Tau is open to Māori medical practitioners, trainees, tauira, whānau of delegates, sponsors, and invited partners and supporters of Te ORA, and that the Annual General Meeting is restricted to members only. Non-members can register for the full conference or a single day. The published programme outline runs a pōwhiri and kapu tī on the Friday morning, whakawhanaungatanga, the Medical Careers Expo and a "Shark Tank" session, the AGM at 3:30pm and dinner at Waipapa Marae; a full Saturday of Scientific Conference sessions followed by the Te ORA Awards Dinner at Cordis Auckland from 6:00pm; and a Sunday morning of conference sessions closing with lunch and poroporoaki at 1:30pm. Te ORA flags the outline as initial and subject to change.

The Scientific Conference content comes through an open call for abstracts, which Te ORA closed at noon on Friday 17 July with author notifications by 31 July. Accepted abstracts are offered as 20-minute oral presentations or A0 portrait posters, and Te ORA states that presentations may be delivered in te reo Māori and/or te reo Pākehā. Te Rā Tūhura, the medical careers expo strand, typically draws over 100 participants including high school students, medical students and PGY1/PGY2 doctors, according to Te ORA's own description.

The venue

The organiser's venue table sets out three sites. Waipapa Marae, at 16 Wynyard Street in the Auckland CBD, hosts the pōwhiri and the Sunday conference programme. The Owen G Glenn Building at 12 Grafton Road carries the Friday and Saturday programme, including the AGM, the Medical Careers Expo and the Scientific Conference. Cordis Auckland at 83 Symonds Street, Grafton, hosts the Awards Dinner. All three addresses sit within the University of Auckland city precinct on the eastern edge of the CBD, close enough together to move between on foot.

For delegate movement and stay, Te ORA states it has arranged a discounted delegate rate at Cordis, with the booking details shared by email with registered attendees rather than published openly. Catering is provided across the hui, and registration covers the full three-day programme including all conference sessions, wānanga and the Medical Careers Expo; the Awards Dinner requires a separate ticket. The precinct is served by Auckland's central bus network and is a short distance from the Britomart and Grafton rail stations, with Auckland Airport to the south of the city. Te ORA has advised that a formal tamariki programme could not be secured this year, but tamariki and whānau remain welcome under the supervision of a parent, guardian or caregiver, with tamariki registration requested for planning.

Why it matters

This is a milestone edition of one of the anchor events in the Māori medical calendar, deliberately returned to the marae where Te ORA began. It combines a professional AGM, a peer-reviewed scientific programme, a careers expo aimed at pulling more rangatahi into medicine, and an awards dinner recognising contributions to hauora Māori — a multi-format business event with a national delegate draw and heavy backing from the Australasian medical colleges. For the events sector, it is also a clear example of a kaupapa Māori conference built around a marae as the primary venue, with university and hotel spaces supporting rather than replacing it.