Trustees appointed to the MAS Foundation

Five external trustees have been appointed to the MAS Foundation, a new philanthropic initiative which will support health promotion, initiatives, education and research.

The trustees are Jennifer Gill, Sharon Shea, Dr Julia Ioane, Professor Boyd Swinburn and Dr Carrie Bryer. The trustees were appointed after an extensive recruitment process, which saw more than 120 applications submitted for the five positions.

“I’m thrilled with the calibre of the trustees we’ve appointed, and I’m looking forward to seeing the strategic direction for the MAS Foundation take shape over the next few months,” says MAS Chairman Dr Harley Aish.

“We always knew the success of the MAS Foundation would depend on finding trustees with the right combination of governance skills and knowledge of both the philanthropic and health sectors. With these appointments, the Foundation is off to the best possible start.

“I would also like to thank all the applicants who expressed an interest in the positions and who took the time to submit an application. We have been overwhelmed by the support we’ve received for this initiative from our Members and the wider public, and the selection process was extremely difficult given the quality of all the candidates.

“Needless to say we are extremely grateful to all who applied, and we’ll be keeping you informed about the Foundation’s progress with regular updates.”

Jennifer Gill, ONZM

Jennifer has had a long and distinguished career in philanthropy in New Zealand. She recently retired as CEO of Foundation North, which is a major funding body for community groups in Auckland and Northland.

Jennifer has had extensive experience as a trustee and chair of a number of philanthropic trusts including Philanthropy New Zealand and the J R McKenzie Trust, and she is currently a Trustee of the Vodafone Foundation.

In 2017, Jennifer was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to philanthropy and was the inaugural winner of the Philanthropy NZ - Perpetual Guardian Lifetime Achievement in Philanthropy Award.

Sharon Shea, MNZM

Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Haua, Ngāti Hine and Ngāti Hako

Sharon is widely recognised as a leader in health and disability sector strategy, resilience and positive psychology, equity strategy and practice, change management, and systems and service design. 

She holds a variety of Board memberships including Ministerial appointed roles. These roles include chairing the Māori Expert Advisory Group for the Health and Disability System Review, and serving on the boards of the Auckland and Northland DHBs, Healthcare Applications Ltd, and Alliance HealthPlus PHO.

She was recently awarded an MNZM for services to Māori health and development.

Dr Julia Ioane

Folasaitu Dr Julia Ioane is a bilingual New Zealand-born-Samoan, raised in South Auckland with a Matai title from the village of Fasitoouta, Samoa. 

Dr Ioane is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at AUT and a registered clinical psychologist. She has board and governance experience in both the public and not-for-profit sectors. Dr Ioane promotes research that is practice-informed and evidence-based to ensure it has a meaningful impact on our communities; and that health education and promotion is delivered appropriately and inclusively for all diverse communities in Aotearoa New Zealand.  

O le ala i le pule o le tautua (In order to lead, one must serve). 

Professor Boyd Swinburn

Professor Boyd Swinburn is an internationally recognised public health physician, with more than 30 years’ experience in health research (obesity prevention, food policy, cardiovascular), whole-of-community programs to improve obesity and child nutrition, and food policy advocacy.

He is Professor of Population Nutrition and Global Health at the University of Auckland; a co-chair of the high-profile Lancet Commission on Obesity; and Chair of Health Coalition Aotearoa.

Professor Swinburn has been an advisor on many government committees, WHO consultations, and large scientific studies internationally. He has an excellent understanding of current health funders in Aotearoa and has advised and received funding from health-focused philanthropic organisations internationally including Bloomberg Philanthropy.

Dr Carrie Bryer

Ngāpuhi

Dr Carrie Bryer has a diverse background in Māori health, nursing and medicine. She is an advanced trainee in Public Health and recently completed her Master of Public Health (First Class Honours). Her dissertation focussed on Māori health inequities.

With a focus on eliminating health inequities and upholding Te Tiriti, Dr Bryer’s work includes hauora Māori research, health promotion, education and the wider determinants of health.