Dr. Robyn Manuel

Robyn (Te Rarawa, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Kurī) is a Chemist, Environmental Scientist, Public Health Professional and Kaiako/Teacher.  She established the University of Auckland's first tuakana-teina programme in the Department of Chemistry in 1991. She collaborated with Mike Walker who established the School of Biological Sciences tutorials and together, they created the much awarded Tuakana Programme.

Today her passion is improving the health and wellbeing of all, especially vulnerable communities facing all manner of inequities. Those communities are predominantly Māori and Pacific whose health and wellbeing is directly impacted by inequitable access to health services and over-exposure to toxic environments.

Robyn is the immediate past Chair of Pharmac's Consumer Advisory Committee where her whānau lived-experience of illness and inequitable access to health services motivates her to advocate for equitable access to medicines and devices for Māori and Pacific people. She leads Mahi Maioro's Health Technology Assessment (HTA) research comparing equity considerations in Aotearoa, Canada and Australia and producing a draft HTA framework inclusive of equity. Robyn is the inaugural Patients and Consumer representative on Pharmac's Pharmacology and Therapeutic Advisory Committee (since July 2022).

Robyn also manages Mahi Maioro's environmental monitoring stations and mobile water quality units.