Writer and publisher Mairātea Mohi, from Rotorua, has been named on the 2025 YWCA’s Y25 list. Photo / Supplied 15
Mairātea Mohi found her “place on the page” after growing up on a Rotorua marae and being surrounded by orators and storytellers.
“I’ve had a very rich inner world that I feel like I can best express on the page,” the 25-year-old said.
Today, the Auckland-based writer and publisher has been recognised as one of 25 young women and non-binary people doing incredible things for their people, communities, and planet.
Mohi (Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Te Arawa whānui, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui) is one of two Bay of Plenty winners who made YWCA’s Y25 list this year.
The organisation’s annual list celebrates women and non-binary people aged between 15 and 25 who are “stepping forward to lead change” and offers a six-month programme for the winners.
The former Rotorua Girls’ High School student told the Rotorua Daily Post she moved to Auckland about six or seven years ago.
Driven by a desire to find and share the links between te ao Māori and Asia, she did a Bachelor of Arts degree in Asian studies at the University of Auckland.
In 2021, Mohi became the maiden te ao Māori editor of Craccum - the university’s student magazine - and launched Taumata Rau, the magazine’s first Māori and Pasifika-led issues.
She said it was important to have “behind the scenes” represented “in front of the camera”.
“You shouldn’t be having Māori kaupapa if, say, the person running it ... is not a Māori. You want it to be reflected throughout.
“Trying to represent ourselves in our fullest is what I hoped to achieve during that time.”
Later, as co-editor, she introduced the inaugural Pasifika editor role, further embedding kaupapa Māori and Moana perspectives in the publication’s leadership.
At the end of 2023, Mohi started working as the te reo Māori publishing associate at Auckland University Press, doing a lot of editing and acquisitions.
The most rewarding part of her role was “being the bridge that gets our stories across the line”.
Last year, Mohi spent six weeks in Oxford, England, doing the Columbia Publishing Course. As she did not have a publishing degree, she did an “expedited course” to gain those skills.
She learned the trade, but more importantly, “it helped me carve out the unique landscape that Aotearoa lives in”.
The biggest thing she learned was how intertwined stories of England and Aotearoa were.
In Oxford, she said there was a collection from Whakarewarewa tourist guide Mākereti Papakura, who was one of the first Māori scholars at Oxford.
When she went to an op shop, the owner asked if she was from New Zealand because he saw her hei tiki [greenstone neck pendant].
“We are recognised abroad, and I think that’s a power that we’re still coming to learn ourselves.”
Mohi said she felt “so lucky” and grateful to be on the Y25 list. She recalled the news being a “beacon of sunrays” when she found out on a rainy day.
She was looking forward to meeting everyone and hearing their stories during the six-month programme.
Mohi has also been selected to represent Aotearoa at the Gothenburg Book Fair - a literary and cultural exchange - in Sweden in September.
“I really couldn’t have done anything without my whānau and all their care for me and all the stories that they’ve embedded in me.
“I want the Aotearoa that I grew up in with all its multiplicity ... its colourful varied stories out on the international stage.”
YWCA chief executive Dellwyn Stuart said young women and gender diverse youth were often “mischaracterised” by the media, politicians and their elders.
“They tend to be seen, but not to be fully heard. We want to change this.”
Stuart said this year’s group were using “their youth as a superpower” and showing new ways to succeed in Aotearoa.
“However, they do need support, access to networks and resources, and a safe place to be themselves and connect with others. This is what the Y25 programme provides for them.”
YWCA Tāmaki Makaurau youth engagement manager and Y25 lead kaimahi 2025 Mary-Lynn Huxford said it was celebrating trailblazers who were “beacons of hope”.
“Whether they are breaking barriers, representing their communities, creating joy and art, or helping solve some of the complex problems in our society.
“Many have faced challenges and used these experiences to build their tenacity and determination to make our country better.”
The full list would be announced at an event in Tāmaki Makaurau today.
Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.