Ruahine (Roni) Albert

In 1987, Roni co-founded Te Whakaruruhau (Waikato Women’s Refuge) in response to the clear need for culturally grounded support for Māori women experiencing violence. What began as a small, community-driven initiative has grown into Aotearoa’s first Māori women’s refuge and today remains one of the largest refuges in the country. From the beginning, Roni believed that safety for Māori women and children must protect and uplift their mana, identity and right to determine their own futures.

As Chief Executive, Roni has guided Te Whakaruruhau with integrity, courage and compassion. Her leadership is relational and values-led, placing people, whakapapa and lived experience at the heart of the organisation’s work. Under her stewardship, services have expanded to include crisis response, advocacy, housing support, prevention initiatives and community education — providing holistic, wrap-around care to thousands of wāhine and tamariki each year.

Beyond Te Whakaruruhau, Roni is respected nationally for her contribution to conversations about family and sexual violence in Aotearoa. She has worked alongside government, justice and social service sectors, encouraging thoughtful reflection on the wider social and structural factors that contribute to harm, including colonisation and inequity. Her advocacy remains grounded in the belief that meaningful solutions must be Māori-led and community-informed.

Those who work alongside Roni speak of her steady presence, her honesty and her humanity. She holds space for complex and often difficult conversations with grace, always guided by hope, collective responsibility and the possibility of change. She reminds us that violence is not inherent to Māori communities but is shaped by wider systems — and that healing grows strongest when it is culturally grounded and locally led.

While her contributions have been acknowledged through national and civic honours, Roni’s focus remains on the everyday work — ensuring wāhine and tamariki are safe, heard and supported, and that their voices continue to shape the systems designed to serve them.