Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, 21, is a New Zealand politician representing Te Paati Maaori, the only indigenous party in the country. She is the youngest MP since 1853. Her involvement in the political realm has allowed young Maaori and the younger generation to have a voice within New Zealand's democracy.
Maipi-Clarke has ancestry to many native tribes in Aotearoa, including Ngapuhi, Ngati Porou, Te Atiawa, Waikato, and Ngai Tahu. Her grandparents are staunch activists in Nga Tamatoa; her great-grandfather (x4), Wiremu Katene, became the first Maaori Minister of the Crown when he was appointed in 1872.
Maipi-Clarke received her education at Te Wharekura o Rakaumanga, a first-generation full immersion school, where she learned and became fluent in her native language. At age 17, she published her first book, Maahina, about the Maaori lunar cycle calendar and astronomy. She has gone on to create other educational resources, which she has applied within and outside of classrooms to educate young Maaori by decolonising the educational system with traditional Maaori knowledge and practices.
She, among others, founded a community garden in her local tribal area, Raahui Pookeka, to restore indigenous practices around food sovereignty. She then went on to create Aotearoa's first Food Sovereignty policy. Maipi-Clarke supported the Make It 16 campaign in parliament to lower the voting age.