Travel and Learning Award for Oliver Skinner
Borrin Foundation Travel and Learning Award
Oliver’s plan
Oliver will use the travel and research award to travel to and speak at the North American Indigenous Studies Association conference, hosted at the University of Toronto in Tkaronto/Toronto. He will present on his research into legislation arising from Treaty settlements in Aotearoa/New Zealand, particularly as it relates to environmental management. A key focus of this research is investigating how settlement legislation incorporates or responds to tikanga Māori in its design. Oliver will also use this opportunity to make connections with other indigenous scholars and legal practitioners at an international level and bring back the learnings from these connections to Aotearoa/New Zealand.
About Oliver
Oliver Skinner (Waikato Tainui) was born and raised in Tāmaki Makaurau but now calls Te Whanganui-a-Tara home. He is committed to working with the Crown and iwi, hāpu, and whānau Māori to honour te Tiriti/the Treaty and has worked in a number of public sector roles to help realise this, including at Te Arawhiti – the Office of Māori Crown Relations, the Waitangi Tribunal, and the Office of Treaty Settlements. Oliver is also completing his PhD in Law at Te Whare Wānanga o Ōtākou, the University of Otago, which investigates Māori legal and environmental histories in the Wairarapa.
Grant Amount
$7,000 in 2023 to support travel
“It is a privilege to have this opportunity to travel and share my research with other indigenous legal scholars, to learn from leaders in this field, and to bring these learnings back to Aotearoa.”