Precious Clark (Ngati Whatua, Te Uri o Hau, Waikato, Ngati Hē, Ngati Pāoa and Pākehā)

As Tume Whakare (Chief Executive), I lead Maurea in our vision to advance Aotearoa through Māori culture. After graduating from Auckland University with a conjoint degree in Law and Arts, I began my career in public policy and intellectual property, later moving into the primary industries. I then ventured to London, where I served as a Legal Policy Officer for the Security Industry Authority. In 2011, I returned to Aotearoa and worked as a consultant in strategy development. This role inspired me to establish Maurea in 2012, and in 2016, created Te Kaa, our highly acclaimed training program designed to enhance Māori cultural competency. I have been privileged to work with thousands of people across the globe helping them learn, understand and fall in love with Māori culture.I have extensive governance experience and currently sit on the board of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Trust,  Tindall Foundation, Whai Maia, and am Chair of the Māori advisory board to the Auckland Museum.  My past governance roles include positions with Whai Rawa Ltd (a $1.5 billion investment company), Foundation North, the Auckland Regional Amenities Funding Board, the Centre for Social Impact, the Independent Māori Statutory Board and as Chair of Te Tira Kautū.

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Shaneel Lal 

Shaneel Lal is an activist, writer, and public commentator based in Aotearoa New Zealand. They were named Young New Zealander of the Year in 2023 and received the One Young World Journalist of the Year Award in 2025 for their work advancing human rights through writing. Lal is the founder of the Conversion Therapy Action Group, which led the national movement to ban conversion practices in Aotearoa. They have also been involved in campaigns to remove discriminatory blood donation policies and have contributed to wider efforts aimed at strengthening protections against incitement of violence, particularly for women, disabled people, and rainbow communities. Lal holds a Bachelor of Laws and is currently completing a Master of Laws, focusing on the intersection of queer rights, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and international law. Lal has contributed to national initiatives such as Aotearoa’s National Action Plan Against Racism and the development of the country’s Social Cohesion Framework. Lal has worked with the Centre on International Cooperation at NYU on people-centred justice, served on Amnesty International’s Global Youth Task Force, and represented Aotearoa as a Youth Ambassador to the Open  Government Partnership. They have joined calls for the Pacific to support the decriminalisation of homosexuality. Alongside their advocacy, Shaneel has been a columnist for The New Zealand Herald. Their work is driven by a commitment to ensuring that all people, particularly those at the margins of society, have the freedom to live safely and authentically. At the Gender and Education Association conference, Lal will explore the relationship between queer rights and Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

“I’m really looking forward to connecting with the people attending the conference, especially those who have been working in activism to advance the rights of queer people, women, and other marginalised communities. Spaces like this are rare, and the opportunity to be in conversation with others doing this work, sharing experiences, and learning from each other is something I deeply value.”

Tangaroa Paora (Muriwhenua) 

Dr. Tangaroa Paul is a Māori academic, creative practitioner, and Associate Dean Academic within Te Ara Poutama at Auckland University of Technology. His work sits at the intersection of Māori media, takatāpui identities, and Kaupapa Māori methodologies, where storytelling becomes both a method and a means of cultural resurgence. Through film, photography, and poetic inquiry, Tangaroa explores Indigenous expressions of gender, identity, and belonging—centering Māori ways of knowing, being, and relating. His research and creative practice are grounded in whakapapa, relationality, and the transformative power of narrative to reimagine futures for our communities.

As an educator and leader, he is committed to nurturing the next generation of Indigenous storytellers, ensuring that our voices are not only heard, but held with integrity, mana, and purpose. His contribution to GEA 2026 reflects an ongoing dedication to Indigenous-led conversations around gender, education, and equity.

“I’m most excited about the gathering of many voices—woven together like ngā manu o te wao—each carrying their own stories, struggles, and visions for change. GEA 2026 offers a space where Indigenous knowledge, gender diversity, and education can meet not in tension, but in possibility. I look forward to the wānanga, the moments of connection, and the ways we might challenge, uplift, and reimagine together. More than anything, I’m excited for what emerges in between us—in the kōrero, in the silences, in the shared understanding that our futures are collective, relational, and deeply rooted in who we are.”

Louisa Allen

Louisa is a Professor in the School of Education and Practice, in the Faculty of Arts and Education at the University of Auckland. Her research spans the areas of young people, gender, sexuality, the non-human and schooling. She is interested in how to conduct research that mobilises innovative research methodologies that seek to engage hard to reach populations. To undertake this work she draws on queer, critical masculinities and feminist new materialist theoretical frameworks, along with sensory methodological approaches. Louisa is an Associate Editor for the journal Sex Education.      

“We are currently in a moment of regressive gender and sexual politics in which historical gains are being eroded. This conference offers an opportunity to occupy a space in which we can connect, think, and strategize together about how to meet these challenges in education and beyond.”

Fetaui & Josh Iosefo

Fetaui Iosefo and Josh Iosefo are mother and son, born and raised in South Auckland, with their ancestors’ bones in Sāmoa and their presence carried in their veins. Fetaui is the daughter of Fuimaono Luse Vui Siope and the late Sua Muamai Vui Siope, who migrated to Aotearoa in the late 1950s.

Their work emerges through vā—the sacred relational space—where difference, including straight and queer identities, is navigated through alofa, talanoa/gafa tala, and time—where genealogy is not recalled but lived—held and enacted as embodied praxis. Guided by Va Wayfinding Critical Autoethnography (VWCA), their collaborative practice weaves poetry, performance, and gafa tala as living expressions of aiga. Together, they move and speak as aiga.

“We are excited to be part of this conference and are especially looking forward to sharing breath and space with others—listening, learning, and being moved through the collective vā this gathering holds.”

Welby Ings

Dr Welby Ings is a professor in narrative design at Auckland University of Technology. As a queer activist he was arrested multiple times during the 1980s homosexual law reform protests. He is now a renowned educational reformer, award winning author, designer, and film-director. His short films have qualified for the Oscars and his most recent feature film PUNCH (2022) was awarded the New York Times critic’s pick. Welby has written widely on issues of social injustice, queer identity and pedagogy. In 2001 he was awarded the Prime Minister’s inaugural, Supreme Award for Tertiary Teaching Excellence. His best-selling books Disobedient Teaching (2017) and Invisible Intelligence (2025) are widely cited in current education debates surrounding agency, marginalisation and inclusion.

"I love conferences that forsake hierarchies. As people we need spaces to share and think that transcend division and stratifying. At a time when gender has become the target of ignorance and hostility - it is good to be able to gravitate towards something more considered and inclusive."