Microsoft embrace Teresa Otineru as Indigenous Global Co-Chair in Ava Ceremony

Top executives of the Microsoft family in Aotearoa-New Zealand embraced the iconic Samoan Ava ceremony to welcome Kiwi/Samoan colleague Teresa Otineru as the new Global Co-Chair for the Microsoft Indigenous Employee Resource Group (ERG).

The traditional Ava Ceremony which underlies recognition, acceptance and inclusiveness, accented the role that Teresa will take up with a focus on the indigenous sector.

Held at the Microsoft House at the Viaduct Harbour Avenue, Auckland CBD on Monday 29 April, the ceremony was attended by Microsoft Asia GPS Lead – Heather Gordon, the CEO – Vanessa Sorenson, former Chair – Dan Te Whenua Walker, Lisa Urquhart, Dylan Apera, and selected executives who were each presented a cup of kava in recognition of their support.

Now in its third year, the Indigenous Microsoft Employee Resource Groups initiative looks at bridging the past and the future. These are through raising the community’s voice, fostering awareness of Indigenous cultures, traditions, and values, assisting in outreach to recruit and retain Indigenous talent, and sharing the power of perspective to help shape inclusive technologies.

The Microsoft family led by the CEO – Vanessa Sorenson, Asia GPS Lead – Heather Gordon and former Chair – Dan Te Whenua Walker with members of Teresa’s families from New Zealand and Samoa after the Ava ceremony.

The work the Indigenous community at Microsoft has done include building a self-sustaining model of empowering indigenous communities through software and leveraging the power of technology as a bridge between generations by continuing traditions of oral and visual indigenous storytelling.

This is more urgent as the nearly 7,000 languages spoken around the world today, it is predicted that between 50% and 90% will disappear by next century. When a community loses a language, it loses its connection to the past – and part of its identity.

For some time now, Microsoft has been collaborating with the Māori Language Commission and other experts in New Zealand to weave te reo Māori – the indigenous language now spoken by only 3% of the population – into the technology that thousands of New Zealand residents use every day. The goal is ensuring te reo Māori remains a living language with a strong future.

Dancing the taualuga and supported by Microsoft staff and families.

This collaboration has most recently resulted in the development of Minecraft educational resources as well as the inclusion of te reo Māori into the free Microsoft Translator app via the AI for Cultural Heritage initiative.

As Co-Chair of Indigenous at Microsoft, Teresa Otineru’s primary responsibilities involve collaborating with the other Co-Chair and the leadership team to oversee the initiatives and activities of the Employee Resource Group (ERG).

These include Strategic Planning, Community Engagement, Advocacy and Representation, Collaboration and Partnerships and Education and Awareness.

With family who traveled from Samoa for the ceremony are Lancelot Polu, Anton Otineru, Teresa Otineru, Patu Apulu Lance Polu, Angie Polu, Laulu Terence Otineru and Gerwin Polu with son Liam.

In taking the final cup of the Ava Ceremony, Patū Apulu Lance Polu of Teresa’s family from Samoa who were part of the ceremony, invited Microsoft New Zealand for future collaborations in Samoa to help bridge the digital divide through digital education and capacity building especially for women and vulnerable indigenous groups at the grassroots level.

The ceremony ended with the new Global Co-Chair dancing the taualuga (the final dance) and the Microsoft family reciprocating with the Microsoft haka led by the former Chair, Dan Te Whenua Walker.

Former Chair, Dan Te Whenua Walker leading the Maori Microsoft haka.