Our Kaiwhakahaere Gary Williams is influential in driving change for whānau with disabilities, both in Aotearoa and globally.
Together with his wife Ruth Jones, Gary helped to bring Hei Whakapiki Mauri to life as a way to āwhi whānau to connect with each other, their culture, whakapapa, and tūrangawaewae.
Alongside his mahi for disabled Māori, Gary works to modernise support systems, accessibility, and attitudes towards disabled people generally. He was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2012 for his work.
Gary has more than 40 years’ experience in management and governance roles, including 11 years as CEO of the Disabled Persons Assembly. Gary now sits on the National Leadership Group for Enabling Good Lives and is a Director of forward-thinking disability organisations ImagineBetter and AccessAbility. He is also a Trustee of Ngā Hau e Whā National Marae.
As a global leader, Gary was influential in the development of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and continues to work on world-wide projects as a member of the International Initiative on Disability Leadership. Most recently, Gary was one of five non-officials on a technical working group to develop options on how New Zealand might implement the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.
Nurtured in beautiful Tokomaru Bay, Gary now lives in Christchurch and is a Dad, and Poppa G to three mokos.