Rachel Maia

Defying gravity, redefining resilience, and rising through adversity

Rachel Māia is a world-class Para-climber, motivational speaker, and advocate for resilience and belonging.

After a life-changing climbing accident, Rachel made the courageous decision to have her leg amputated and went on to make history as New Zealand’s first international Para-climber and World Cup medallist.

A single parent and survivor of domestic violence, she shares her story with authenticity and heart, helping audiences reimagine strength, leadership, and purpose.

Living with chronic pain and disability, Rachel’s message is clear: belonging matters more than inclusion, resilience is built in community, and courage is an everyday practice.

Rachel Maia Book as a speaker/entertainer for your next event

Key Points for Rachel Maia

Rachel Māia is New Zealand’s first international Para-climber and the nation’s first World Cup medallist in the sport.
She speaks to corporate, health, and education audiences about resilience, belonging, and mental wellbeing.
A survivor of domestic violence and advocate for disability awareness, she inspires change through authenticity and lived experience.
Rachel empowers audiences to turn inspiration into action and to create workplaces and communities built on courage and belonging.

Topics for Rachel Maia

Resilience, leadership, wellbeing, and belonging
Reclaiming self-worth, setting boundaries, and rediscovering strength after trauma
Navigating change, building resilience, and creating environments where people can thrive
Inclusion, belonging, compassion, and community

Testimonials for Rachel Maia

Professional Conference Organiser

The team at ICMI offer a fantastic and professional service that allows us (event organisers) to focus on the delivery of our events

Corporate Client

I was very happy with the whole process from initial call through to performance, every question or detail was explained in a professional friendly manner. I will definitely be in touch with ICMI again.

Insurance Client

All ICMI staff I dealt with were exceptionally efficient, collaborative and responsive to ensuring our talent was informed.

Government Client

ICMI were flexible and accommodating, this year finding a speaker for your event that would work in a virtual setting was a challenge, but we ended up with a very successful event and the perfect speaker! Always patient and responsive to my calls or emails.

Corporate Client

Association Client

We were impacted by a COVID-19 outbreak in South Australia that threatened to de-rail our Northern Territory based event, but the ICMI logistics team made it happen when the window of opportunity arose.

NFP Client

ICMI listened to our needs and were very supportive with the change of plans with dealing with the pandemic. They gave great advice and helped us secure the right talent for our event.