Haimona Ngata is from a small rural town on the east coast of Aotearoa called Uawa. He has been riding bikes for over 35 years, rode Freestyle BMX professionally for 20 years, travelled globally for cycling, and is a firm believer that cycle has the ability to change our society for the better. He has a background in film, television, and marketing, and has worked for some of the largest cycling brands in the world. He is also on a number of local and international cycling groups and organisations, including the UCI (Union Cyclisté International - the world cycling governing body) Freestyle BMX commission. The commission is charged with recommendations of all aspects pertaining to world series, world cups, global qualifiers, and Olympic qualifier rounds.

Dr James Berghan (Te Rarawa, Te Aupōuri) is a Senior Lecturer at the Wellington School of Architecture at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington. As an indigenous scholar, James has a keen interest in the interrelationships between people and the built environment, particularly through an equity lens. His current work includes research on indigenous conceptions of ‘home’, particularly for rangatahi (young Māori) and mātāwaka (Māori living away from their ancestral lands), as well as community co-design projects exploring climate-resilient kāinga (Māori villages).