Rāwiri Taylor Kaiako: Kaitiaki Whenua – Trainee Ranger and Te Tāpoi Hau Toa Adventure Tourism
With a lifelong passion for conservation and outdoor education, Rāwiri Taylor brings a wealth of experience and deep cultural insight to his role as kaiako at NMIT.
Rāwiri is both a kaiako (teacher) and a cultural advisor. He teaches in the Kaitiaki Whenua – Trainee Ranger programme and in Te Tāpoi Hau Toa Adventure Tourism.
In the Kaitiaki Whenua – Trainee Ranger programme – he focuses on bringing a te ao Māori perspective, promoting kaitiakianga, and instilling respect for wāhi tapu (sacred places). In Te Tāpoi Hau Toa Adventure Tourism he focuses on bringing te ao Māori to outdoor guiding.
Rāwiri studied Parks and Recreation at Lincoln University. He has held positions as a commercial skipper, a Conservation Ranger, a Conservation Field Centre and Area Manager, and an Outdoor Instructor with Outward Bound.
“Conservation and outdoor education are both inseparable from te ao Māori,” Rāwiri says. “In fact, working in the conservation field was what prompted me to learn more of my own whakapapa and develop cultural capability to contribute both to my own iwi and ensure Te Tiriti o Waitangi was being honored.”
This drive led him to the Pou Tairangahau(external link) role with the Department of Conservation, where he built relationships with tangata whenua and championed respecting and protecting the land from a cultural perspective within the organisation.
Rāwiri has been a kaiako with NMIT since 2022, where his conservation skills and cultural capability have found a home. The teaching philosophy Rāwiri adopts is centred on whakamana — empowering learners through doing, reflection, and shared responsibility for learning. He is passionate about creating authentic learning experiences that connect ākonga with iwi and local environments, fostering both ecological understanding and cultural awareness.
“Te taiao, the natural world, is my preferred classroom so I'm always considering how to get outside,” Rāwiri said. “Authentic experiences with iwi are a goal and present rich learning experiences.”
“NMIT is proactive in fostering connection with iwi and being a good treaty partner, and my part in enabling transformational learning is very rewarding,” Rāwiri says. “I feel empowered to help develop cultural capability that will enable a re-indigenising of Aotearoa New Zealand.”
