Dr Vini Olsen-Reeder

Vincent is a second language learner of te reo Māori, having started his learning at Victoria University of Wellington in 2008. Since then, the Māori language and its revitalisation have become his passion and main subject of research. His teaching in Te Kawa a Māui centers mainly around te reo Māori. Vincent’s doctoral research investigated the effectiveness of bilingualism as a theoretical approach to revitalisation, and the ways in which a bilingualism approach could remove some of the anxieties surrounding Māori language use among Māori speakers. It is the University's first thesis to be written and defended in te reo Māori.

Currently, Vincent is working on a project investigating the well-being of our most proficient Māori language speakers. He is currently working with tāne, as that is how he identifies. However, he hopes to open up this space in an appropriate way to wahine and takatāpui to lead similar projects in the future. Publishing of that project, called, Te Whare Kōrero o Te Ure Tārewa, should begin in late 2021. Additionally to research, Vincent also contributes to the resourcing space. He is a published historical fiction and fiction author, poet, song-writer, and also translates.