Tuiloma Lina Samu

Liaison Officer

Tuiloma Lina Samu is the Like Minds, Like Mine Liaison Officer for Maori and Pacific island communities. She is a fluent speaker of Maori, Samoan, Tongan and English, and has embarked on a PhD in Maori Studies at Auckland University.

Her title 'Tuiloma' is a prestigious leadership title given to her by a council of matai (chiefs) from her maternal grandfather's village of Sapunaoa, in Samoa's largest district of Falealili. It is an orator chief's title and recognises her leadership ability across generations.

Lina splits her time between the Like Minds programme, for which she has been involved in various capacities since its inception, and her work as a literacy and numeracy tutor with Literacy Aotearoa.

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her daughter, singing karaoke and following Grand Slam tennis tournaments.