Upon her move to London, Kiwi marketer Amelia Murray was determined to immerse herself in the new city and all it had to offer - from career development to weeknight pints in the pub.

Despite having moved with a couple of friends and having a Kiwi contingent in London, she launched herself into the hunt for a job and worked on securing herself a spot in a flat with a group of new British friends.

Two and a half years later, Amelia, a 28-year-old seasoned Londoner, speaks of having embraced the challenges that came with these experiences and thriving in the change. She’s now somewhat come back to her roots, working for New Zealand-based company Xero In their customer and partner marketing team, and living in north London with Kiwi friends.

As a kaiāwhina (leader) at the Ngāti Rānana Māori club in London, Claire has honed her leadership skills at events on the world stage, performing here in the UK and most recently at Expo 2020 in Dubai. Combined with a career as a programme consultant, it's all part of how she lives her life: “Put in the effort, make friends and do things you enjoy,” she says.

Claire is Ngāti Porou and grew up in Lower Hutt with her parents and three sisters. After finishing school, she moved to Perth in Australia, along with her family, where she studied biological science at Murdoch University.

After going on to do a post-graduate diploma and a masters degree in Marine Science at Otago University, Claire started her career in Wellington. Her first job was at Te Puni Kōkiri, the Ministry of Māori Development, as a policy analyst, focusing on marine resources and aquaculture reforms and was involved in the historic foreshore and seabed consultations. She also worked on international indigenous issues and participated in the development of the Government’s policy in relation to the Convention of Biological Diversity and the draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.

Steph Lee was sitting in the 02 preparing to get on stage to dance in Ed Sheeran’s opening performance at the Brit awards, when she had a moment.

“I had Adele literally two metres to my left and Olivia Rodrigo two metres to my right, knowing I was about to go on stage for Ed Sheeran, and I thought to myself, ‘wow, I’ve made it’,” she says.

Steph describes the three days of rehearsing earlier this year, leading up to the event itself; a spectacle involving pyrotechnics, flying dancers and a surprise appearance from British rock group Bring Me the Horizon, as “epic”.

“That was the first time that I actually felt like I had made it in the industry,” she says. “I was just trying to soak it all in.”