Completing the Level 3 Te Whāinga o Te Ao Tikanga programme with Te Wānanga o Aotearoa has given Cameron Johnson the confidence to not only understand, but also express the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in his work.
Cameron works for Te Papa Atawhai – The Department of Conservation – and particularly enjoys working regularly with tangata whenua.
“Being a representative of the Crown gives me the unique privilege of working alongside whānau, hapū and iwi on a day-to-day basis with taonga species and waahi tapu,” he says.
“To have the tools that tikanga and te Ao Māori provides me to move through this space with integrity and resilience has been critical to my success and will no doubt be a critical element of our future success as a nation.”
Cameron says studying with Te Wānanga o Aotearoa has “been a waka of transformation”.
“It has helped me understand the innate value of acknowledging and connecting to my whakapapa. This process has actually connected my whānau to a long lost whanaunga, which has been priceless.”
Cameron was one of our online graduation speakers. You can watch his speech in the video above and find information about our graduations on our graduations page.