Meet our journalists: Inspirational tales from Māori affairs

NZME journalist Michael Neilson says he loves the job because you get to learn about something new and meet amazing people most days. Photo / Doug Sherring

Name: Michael Neilson
Age: 28
Job: Journalist
Location: Auckland
Number of years as a journalist: 3

The best story I've worked on, and why:

A feature on environmental issues in the Raukumara Forest Park. Not only did I get to fly into the rugged forest on a helicopter, but I got to experience the devastation in the ngāhere first hand alongside tāngata whenua, and be there to witness their grief and resolve to do something about it. It was a powerful experience.

The one that got away:

Lucky to say I don't have one yet.

Career highlight:

Funnily enough it was at the start of my career when I had the opportunity to intern at the Sydney Morning Herald's office in Jakarta, Indonesia. I got to try out being a foreign correspondent for a month, and dive head-on into some big stories including about rainforest destruction and LGBT rights issues. It was a very eye-opening experience.

I love journalism because:

You get to learn about something new and meet some amazing people every day, well, most days at least.

But if I couldn't be a journalist, I'd ...

Be a professional surfer