Mō Mātou | About Us

Jen Margaret

Jen is Pākehā, of Cornish, Scottish, Danish and German ancestry. Her ancestors arrived in Te Wai Pounamu in the 1860s. Raised on the Canterbury Plains, in the rohe of Ngāi Te Ruahikihiki, Jen was a late learner about Te Tiriti, first engaging with it at university in the 1990s. Since then, she’s been active in Te Tiriti education and has been guided in this work by many inspiring Māori and Pākehā people.

Groundwork is run by Jen Margaret, a dedicated advocate and educator for Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Jen is a knowledgeable and skilled facilitator. A recipient of Winston Churchill and Loxley Fellowships, Jen has researched the work of non-indigenous allies in North America, Australia and Aotearoa. Jen is driven by the question posed by her mentor Mitzi Nairn, “How might we be the honourable people that the rangatira thought they were entering into relationship with in 1840?”

Jen lives in Te Whanganui-a-Tara. She collaborates with colleagues around the country to provide workshops and services that support personal, organisational and societal change.

victoria owen

Victoria began working as a facilitator with Groundwork in 2019. Of Pākehā, English, Scottish and Irish descent, she was born and raised in Aotearoa and currently lives in Kaitoke, Upper Hutt.

Victoria is one of Groundwork’s deeply experienced Te Tiriti facilitators.

Victoria has been involved in Te Tiriti education for more than 20 years, working alongside central and local government, and with community organisations. Victoria is skilled in group facilitation and adult education. She enjoys working with organisations to design strategies and put them into practice, including through training and resource development for people on the ground.

Hannah kyle-parker

Hannah is of English and Irish descent. She was born in Ōtautahi and raised in the small town of Whakamarama in the Kaimai Ranges, and now lives in Upper Hutt.

Hannah keeps Groundwork running!

Hannah has skills in accounts, IT and Human Resources and has worked in government, NGOs and the private sector. Hannah has also been an active member of a number of community conservation groups over the last 15 years.

Hannah brought her skills to Groundwork in 2020. She set up and runs our online learning system and supports our work through her organisational and systems management skills.

stanley sarkies

Stan is of English and Armenian descent. The Sarkies family travelled from Armenia to India at the turn of the 20th century, before arriving in Aotearoa in 1949. Stan grew up on the south coast of Te Whanganui-a-Tara, which is where he now lives.

Stan built Groundwork’s website and provides behind the scenes support.

Stan started working at Groundwork in 2022, providing systems and facilitation support. Before he joined Groundwork he worked as a geotechnical engineer. Stan is committed to helping the engineering profession better engage with the relationships and responsibilities set out by Te Tiriti o Waitangi. 

Jordan Green

Jordan is a descendant of Ngāti Porou and Te Whānau ā Apanui and has ancestors from The Netherlands, Scotland and England. Her whānau have lived in many places across Te Ika a Māui, and she is now based in Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta, Upper Hutt.

Jordan connects with those who are interested in working with Groundwork and shares our work and resources with the community.

Jordan’s background is in social and narrative research underpinned by kaupapa Māori research principles. She has supported NGOs, Government and iwi to develop communication approaches that build understanding and support for long-term social and environmental change. Jordan is passionate about sharing strength-based narratives that lead to Te Tiriti action and a world where our mokopuna and Papatūānuku can thrive.

Darryn Ooi

Darryn’s ancestors lived in the Guangdong and Fujian provinces of China before migrating to Malaysia.  In the late 1980s, his parents moved to Tāmaki Makaurau where he was born and raised.    

Darryn is the newest member Groundwork’s workshop facilitation team. 

He brings a background in law and legal research.  Darryn graduated from Te Herenga Waka with an LLB(hons)/BA and worked as a judges’ clerk at Te Kōti Matua o Aotearoa.  He recently completed the immersion Reo Māori programme at Te Wānanga Takiura o Ngā Kaupapa Māori.  

Darryn is interested in the direct relationships between tangata whenua and tauiwi nō Āhia, and the implications for constitutional transformation and decolonising the tangata Tiriti sphere.    

Darryn’s involved with community Te Tiriti education and a founder of Asian Legal Network, an organisation focussed on Te Tiriti-based advocacy for Asian communities in Aotearoa.    

GWYN John

Gwyn is a 6th generation Pākehā of English, Scottish, Welsh and German ancestry. She was born and grew up in Ahuriri, Te Matau a Maui where she still lives. 

Gwyn is passionate about social justice and has worked in the community sector in a variety of roles for the past 25 years. 

She has been actively involved in the Pākehā Tiriti education movement since the 90s and is committed to working with people and organisations to understand our history and work to develop positive Tiriti-based relationships.

Alex Barnes

Alex is a Groundwork associate, providing strategic support and occasional facilitation. He works closely with teachers, school leaders and communities to help re-imagine Te Tiriti-based relationships that are culturally and socially just. 

Alex is fifth generation Pākehā and a graduate of the Kaupapa Māori educational movement.

As an educator, facilitator and researcher, with affiliations to Mātaatua, Tainui and Te Tai Tokerau, he is interested in what supports, and inhibits, mutually advantageous relationships between tangata whenua and tangata Tiriti. He’s been a Groundwork associate since 2018 and a member of Te Tiriti education networks since 2001.