2025 Aotearoa Men's Wellbeing Summit

Aotearoa Men’s Wellbeing Summit 2025

Back in 2023 I had a calling to gather as many of the Tāne who have been through our Men’s Wellbeing Retreat, along with many good men I’ve met doing mahi in the wellbeing space, for a hui on Men’s Health in Aotearoa.

There are now many fires burning in communities throughout Aotearoa where men can sit and express themselves, and my vision was an annual event where we come together to share our stories, nourish our wairua and elevate our mahi.

I’m of the firm belief that to tackle the men’s health crisis in our country, we each need to take accountability and honesty for our own health first, and that inspiration will ripple out to others.

On 22 May 2025 that vision came to fruition and 50 beautiful Tāne gathered from all directions, meeting around the fire at Opoutere Beach on the Coromandel, in the elements. All from different ancestry. All from different walks of life. 22 years old up to 78 years old. Unity. Kotahitanga.

He atua, he tangata

Thank you to the 50 Tāne who gathered around the fire to release, purify and transform!

We came to remember our super powers, our spirit, our essence, our gifts, our mana, our mauri, our connection to the divine. All while dropping more firmly on to the earth in the vessels that carry us on our missions, nourishing them with good kai, movement, breathwork, stillness and connection to nature.

We came to step up on our path to manhood or elderhood.

Thank you for coming together to hold safe, non judgemental space for every man to speak, connect, release, purify and open up. We did this so we can all be better men, better Dad’s better sons and better brothers.

Remember, all our ancestors did this!

We followed a Rite of Passage framework for this gathering, spending some time at ground level to understand this ancient process, separating from the wider community and creating whanaungatanga in our new one. Then leaning in to the challenge and letting some things go that do not serve us, elevating, journeying and climbing to the Summit to reach a higher perspective. Seeing our own gifts, honouring the ones of those around us. Visioning up how we will turn these gifts into change and purpose. And once the mahi was done we’ve spread back into the directions we came from, back into our whanau, communities, organisations and environments to spread the light and positive ripples of change.

So much laughter! How could you not laugh with Rob Mokaraka in the whare. So much release. Lots of tears. Lots of real talk. New lifelong connections made.

Right now, more than ever, the world needs unity. Not division. Not conflict. We need to find common ground and listen to our brother.

Right now the world needs MEN - TĀne who are accountable for their own actions. We need visionaries,kaitiaki, cocreators, listeners and collaborators more than boys who compete and look after their own self interest.

This is how we heal the people and the land.

Kaitiakitanga - we planted a tree for every man attending in the whenua at our venue, weeded more rakau there that needed some love and will contribute more rakau to the Whangamata Mountain Bike Park through Destination Coromandel's Kaitiakitanga inititiative.

He atua, he tangata

Thank you to the team who helped put this together. Kaumatua Juniour for his blessing. The amazing Dr Arne Rubsinstein for bringing the wisdom all the way from Australia. My other Pou Tāne Rob Mokaraka for his world class theatre performance tackling the taniwha of depression and suicide head on with aroha, and Jemarl Paerata for your inspiring story of personal transformation. Matt Castle for your calm grounded gift of breathwork. My darling Tia for holding down everything operationally at the hui, and holding space. The engine room for the Kai - Graham Riki and Jordy and Jamie and David for the mahi.

Thank you to all the rest of the Tāne - who brought their own gifts - waiata, purakau, food forestry, regeneration, awhi, listening skills, storytelling, poetry and more.

I could not be more proud - looking around the circle at the GOOD MEN who heard the karanga. My brothers - forever!

We’ll be back same time, same new moon that looked after us with some beautiful weather - next year 2026 Aotearoa Men’s Wellbeing Summit - if you are looking at these photos thinking, man I should have been there…..be there next year! Sign up for updates below:

https://theprovider.co.nz/mens-wellbeing-summit

Thank you:

The Coromandel Destination Coromandel - Seed Funding

Bostock Brothers Organic Free Range Chicken - The Organic Protein!

Good Buzz Kombucha - keeping the beverages pure!

Cathedral Cove Naturals - keeping the kai pure!

Organic Nation Nz - huge ups for the generous donation of all sorts of organic ingredients that went into our kai!

Sulis Hot Tubs - the magic hot tub!