M9: Learning te reo before English has paved the way for Te Aorere Pewhairangi

M9 is a ground-breaking hybrid of 'Ted Talks', a theatre show and a ‘micro’ conference, and designed to be accessible to all Aotearoa, M9 presents nine unique Māori voices in celebration of Te Wiki o te Reo Māori through Whakaaturanga, Whakaari, Whakawhiti Kōrero - Presentation Performance , Conversation.

To celebrate Te Wiki o te reo Māori M9 presented Whiua ki te ao! - Cast the Māori language to the world!

Te Aorere Pēwhairangi (Ngāti Porou) is a product of kōhanga reo and kura kaupapa Māori, immersing him in his first language, te reo Māori.

The language became his passion and he went on to graduate in Te Pinakitanga and Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo Māori (The School of Māori Language Excellence). He has dedicated seven years in the Māori broadcasting industry, gaining skills in a range of areas including directing, translating, commentating, scripting, reporting, te reo Māori consulting, presenting and in more recent years has turned to social media to create humorous content.

In addition to the experience, he’s gain throughout his career, he also graduated with his Master’s degree in Māori broadcasting at the University of Waikato with First Class Honours. He now looks to complete a PhD that Massey University.