Ko te aronga nui o Manu Ao – he wāhi whakawhirinaki, whakarauika i ngā pūkenga, ahorangi kei ngā whare wānaga huri noa i te motu nei, ā, ko te whare wānanga o Te Ūpoko o te Ika a Māui tētahi o ngā waka kua whītikiria ki te tumu o te kaupapa e kīa nei ko Manu Ao. Ko tētahi atu o ōna mahi he whakatū wānanga. I whakarewahia, i rere tuatahihia te manu nei i te marama o Pipiri ki Te Herenga Waka Marae.
Ko ēnei ngā kupu kōrero ki tā Pita Sharples e pā ana ki Manu-ao,
“Manu-ao is an utterly positive initiative which at its core is about excellence, indigenous excellence. It is about the motivation provided by high calibre leadership. It is about the inspiration we can all benefit from in a well-qualified workshop. It is about exciting a generation of academics and professionals to advance indigenous scholarship.”
Ko te kaitakawaenga mō tēnei Whare Wānanga, ko Meegan Hall, he pūkenga ia nō te tari UTDC. Kua whāritea e ia i ētahi wānanga-ā-tuhi, ētahi wānanga e whakaako ana me pēhea te uiui tahi me te hunga pāpāho, me pēhea hoki te hautū i tētahi hui, wānanga rānei. Matangareka katoa a Meegan ki te mahi anō i te taha o ngā kaimahi Māori, ki te āwhina i a rātou, ki te tautoko i a rātou, ki te whakakaha ake i te taura here ki waenganui i ngā kaimahi mātanga Māori kei Pōneke.
Nā te pai o ngā hui whakaaturanga-ā-waha ki ngā kaimahi, ki ngā tauira hoki ka hīmata anō taua kaupapa hei te 22 o Hōngongoi.