Sir Collin Fonotau Tukuitonga KNZM is a Niuean-born New Zealand doctor, public health academic, public policy expert and advocate for reducing health inequalities of Māori and Pasifika people. He has held several positions in public health and government in New Zealand and internationally.

He was appointed a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to Pacific and public health, in 2022.

Sir Collin has held several highly influential offices, including Director General of the Pacific Community (SPC), Commissioner and Co-ordinator for WHO Geneva, Chief Executive of the Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs and Director of Public Health, Ministry of Health. He was also instrumental in establishing Pacific Language weeks as an Aotearoa New Zealand government initiative, and in his home of Niue, he established the biannual Niue Culture and Arts Festival.

Sir Collin is one of our most prominent Pacific figures in the health sector in Aotearoa and globally. His voice was crucial in advocating for Pasifika during the Covid crisis in Aotearoa, and he has been consistently vocal in pointing to inequities for Pasifika in the health system and pushing for policy to impact Pasifika in better ways.

His current positions at the University of Auckland are Associate Dean Pacific, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences Administration; Associate Professor, Population Health; and Director – University Research, Centre for Pacific and Global Health. He is currently President of the New Zealand College of Public Health Medicine.

Roannie is Samoan from Leone, Apia and Savaia, Lefaga. In 2021, Roannie joined the University of Auckland, where she helped to establish the University Research Centre for Pacific & Global Health as a Co-Director. She is also a Principal Analyst for Malatest International, an organisation specialising in progressive evaluation and market research.

She has previously held research positions at the Australian National University, where she led Pacific capacity-building initiatives and was involved in large-scale Pacific development research projects.

Roannie has 15 years of research experience specialising in human geography, and Pacific health, education, and development.

With a strong background in research design and conducting research projects of all types, including qualitative, mixed-methods, longitudinal and cross-sectional studies. She has strong project management, stakeholder engagement and evidence-based policy development skills.

She has vast research experience in the Pacific region, Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia and the United States. Her most recent research collaboration with the University of West Indies and the Lancet Countdown focused on the development of climate change and health policy for Small Island Developing States.

Yvonne, the Programme Manager of the Knowledge Hub in the Office of the Associate Dean – Pacific, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Auckland, holds a degree in Sociology and English as a recent Arts graduate.

Her future plans involve pursuing further studies in 2024 while nurturing her strong passion for Pacific peoples and the community, evident through her dedicated roles at the University in supporting education and advocacy. Proudly born and raised in the vibrant Māngere, South Auckland, Yvonne’s cultural roots extend also to the villages of Matatufu and Afega (Samoa).

Asetoa is the Programme Delivery Manager within the Office of the Associate Dean – Pacific, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Auckland. His role currently supports Pacific health workforce initiatives – Pacific Health Wayfinders and the PMA Knowledge Hub.

He is a PhD candidate also at the University of Auckland exploring wellbeing, self-care and burnout amongst Pacific peoples. Asetoa, while a proud son of Central Auckland, also hails from the villages of Avatele and Alofi Tokelau (Niue) and Sato’alepai and Vailoa Palauli (Samoa).