Michael is a PhD student at Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington. He gained his MSc at Victoria University of Wellington, which focussed on using gravitational microlensing to find planets around other stars. After completing his MSc, he worked for several years in education, teaching physics and mathematics at secondary school and polytechnic levels. He started his PhD research in early 2023 and this research focusses on mathematically modelling Māori language revitalisation.