(Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Pūkenga, Te Aitanga-a-Hauiti, Ngāti Awa)

Jack is a master celestial navigator, maramataka expert, and one of Aotearoa’s leading voices in traditional Māori knowledge systems. With more than 35,000 nautical miles of open-ocean voyaging across the Pacific, he has helped revive the ancestral practice of wayfinding—guiding waka hourua such as Te Aurere and Haunui using only the stars, ocean swells, and environmental indicators.

Recognised as a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Māori and education, Jack is also a respected authority on maramataka Māori and Matariki. His teachings reconnect thousands to the rhythms of the environment, embedding Māori lunar knowledge into everyday life.

For Jack, voyaging is more than a journey across water. It is, as he says, “the restoration of pride and dignity… a science that sustained our ancestors and still guides us today.” Through his leadership, he continues to steer new generations toward deeper connections with their whakapapa, mātauranga, and the world around them.