Lisa Taouma was named an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit in this year's New Years Honours list for services to Pacific arts and the screen industry.   Lisa is a producer and director of the largest pool of Pacific content on screen in New Zealand, having created the Polyfest series, the longstanding Pacific youth series ‘Fresh’, five award-winning documentaries, the feature film ‘Teine Sa’ and two short films.   Lisa is an 'Old Girl' of AGGS 1981 to 1984 and in 2011 along with her sister Olivia was a recipient of the AGGS Founding Day award.

Lisa also created the ground-breaking site ‘The Coconet TV’, which has connected Pacific peoples across the globe and is recognised as the premium online platform for Pasifika content in New Zealand. Her body of work has been instrumental in building an audience of Pacific peoples who expect and want to see themselves represented on screen, as well as developing strong training models and employing up-and-coming Pacific talent in front of and behind the camera. Her documentary ‘Marks of Mana’ on the female history of tatau (Samoan tattoo) has won awards at international festivals. She has published academically on the arts both nationally and internationally, curated a range of art works and performances, and been a keynote speaker across different disciplines. Lisa has held a range of roles including member of the Pacific Islanders in Film, Television and Online (PIFT) Board, the Pacific Islands Media Association New Zealand, Hawaii Film Association’ ‘Pacific Islanders in Communication’, Creative New Zealand Arts Panel from 2001 to 2019, and Tautai Arts Trust Board Member from 2002 to 2005.