Kia ora and welcome to Poutama Pounamu

Facilitator

Poutama Pounamu was excited to wānanga with the Lower Mataura Schools' principals, kaiako, local Ministry of Education and Ngāi Tahu Iwi at the Hokonui Rūnanga in Gore.

After 18 months of participating in the three-year government initiative Te Hurihanganui, the wānanga provided a perfect opportunity to gather together and kōrero about the journey so far. The wānanga enabled participants to revisit the Te Hurihanganui blueprint and identify next steps of learning as part of their action planning.

From left to right: Jo Brand (Hokonui Rūnanga), Sheree Keenan (Gorge Road School), Liz Eley (Poutama Pounamu), Debbie Ruwhiu (Poutama Pounamu), Sam Walker (Mataura School), Patricia Emia (Te Kōhanga Reo Kia Ngāwari), Nardine Rhind, (Little Ones Early Learning Centre), Susan Dennison (Mataura School), Karen Stirling (Glenham School), Rodney Trainor (Hokonui Rūnanga), David McKenzie (Edendale School), Karley Wilks-Forde (Poutama Pounamu), and in front Matu Coleman-Clark (Hokonui Rūnanga). Absent from the picture: Kath Luoni (Menzies College), Tina McMullen Tokanui School and Teri Pikia (Ministry of Education).

Aspirations
Part of the day utilised the expertise of Ngāi Tahu Iwi Jo Brand and Matu Coleman-Clark. Iwi were able to articulate their aspirations from an Iwi perspective, for ākonga Māori and their whānau, living in the local rohe.

Ngā Tumuaki are still on a steep learning journey, their progress and the whanaungatanga development as a roopu is evident and strengthening the cultural environments of their schools.

The understanding of true partnership has enabled teams to engage with Iwi appropriately and respectfully to ensure we can, together, support outstanding experiences for our Tamariki and Rakatahi who will lead our future.
- Jo Brand

The day included a tour of the local area and a rich historical cultural narrative retold by historian Rodney Trainor as summarised below.

Mataura Te Awa Mataitai
The Mataura Te Awa Mātaitai is the first freshwater reserve in New Zealand.

The Mataura River remains an important mahinga kai for Ngāi Tahu for gathering kanakana (lamprey) and tuna (eels).

It also provided nohoanga (campsites) along the river for annual fishing expeditions.

The Mataura River notably offered an access route between coastal Murihiku (Southland) to Fiordland and the West Coast for the gathering of pounamu for Ngāi Tahu whānui.

Tuturau Reserve — Mataura
The Tuturau Public Reserve stands in memory of an historic battle which took place on the site in 1837.

It is said that the last shot of New Zealand’s Musket Wars was fired at Tuturau.

Ngāti Tama warriors, led by Te Puehe from near Nelson, undertook a remarkable journey in the hope of capturing the Murihiku Lands of the Mataura.

Their initial raid was successful; however, this success was only short-lived as the famous local Chief Tuhawaiki heard about the invasion. He gathered a party of warriors to counter attack where Te Puehe was slain and the rest of his warriors were taken prisoner, some to be later released.

We returned to the Hokonui Rūnanga for a tasty lunch, concluding with poroporoakī, a chance to acknowledge the rich cultural perspective that has been gained to date through the ongoing interactions with the Te Huirhanganui kaupapa.

“Tino Rangatiratanga – mo tātou, a, mo, ka uri a muri ake nei”.
“Creating and controlling our own destiny, for us and our children after us”.

Mīharo Murihiku Trust and Poutama Pounamu, as part of Te Hurihanganui, are collaborating in a joint effort to mentor rangatahi from local secondary schools.

The mentoring initiative, first introduced by Mīharo, is aimed at mentoring youth to gain leadership skills and workplace experience.

Key leaders work with youth to mentor them and guide them with the intention of youth becoming leaders at Mīharo events.

Te Hurihanganui Poutama Pounamu facilitators work alongside the Mīharo mentoring programme Whakamanahia te Rangatahi, by guiding rangatahi through the specifically designed Rangatahi Blended Learning platform. This version of the platform was developed in collaboration with rangatahi and whānau.

The aim is to provide a safe space for rangatahi to discuss the issues they may face within schooling and wider society. Content includes a wide range of examples of individuals and groups who have resisted the status quo.

In response to feedback from rangatahi, their reflections are shared online across the group enabling them to learn with and through each other.

Face-to-face interaction is facilitated by Poutama Pounamu facilitators. The objective is for rangatahi to build their confidence to activate an understanding of ‘self’ as having agency to act critically, when required.

Thus far, Poutama Pounamu has engaged in three learning wānanga with rangatahi, and with Iwi support, at Te Rau Aroha Marae in Bluff and at the Mīharo gallery in Invercargill.

Students from Menzies College, Aparima College, Central Southland College, James Hargest College, Southland Girls High School, Southland Boys High, Aurora College and Poutama Pounamu collaborated once again as part of the Mīharo Polyfest whānau to put in to practice what has been learnt, to support a community event.

Ngā mihi to Whaea Trish Emia and her sister Rōna for sharing their extensive knowledge during a Mana Wāhine wānanga at Te Kōhanga Reo o Kia Ngāwari, sponsored by Te Hurihanganui ki Te Tai Tonga.

Kōhanga Māma’s, Poutama Pounamu and wāhine in the Mataura community were able to gain knowledge around Hauora a-wairua, a-Hinengaro, a-Tinana, a-Whatumanawa kei raro i te maru o te Te roopū Te Hurihanganui.

The day commenced with whanaungatanga, ko wai au and an overview of the day.

Whaea Trish, also a Blended Learning Kaiwhakaako shared her whakaaro on decolonising and indigenising education systems.

Her kōrero emphasised Māori are not to blame for the inequities that Māori experience on a daily basis that have been perpetuated by those who have little understanding of Mātauranga Māori. This kōrero guided wāhine to engage in powerful discussion around racism from personal experiences and how they can support their tamariki.

Whaea Trish Emia explains the background to this event:

This wānanga came about as a result of whānau feedback to personal concerns about themselves their whānau and especially the education system to which they said does not listen or include us.

After karakia, hīmene, and waiata, empowerment was seen as they were walked through their own Atuatanga/God like qualities they did not know they possessed.

From Io ki te ao mārama, they now know the mana they carry as Māreikura. The energies escalated during Hikitia te Hā that saw them stay connected to Atua.

This was apparent through kõrero shared at the time and the questions asked...Kua piki haere te manaakitanga o tõ tātau whanaungatanga. The confidence to question, the strength to act when inequalities are before them was discussed and I witnessed a renewed strength of character and could see how they truly can carry the mana not just of themselves, but their whānau and hapori.

Waikato Tainui are custodians of the lands on which the University of Waikato is located in Hamilton. To consolidate and respect this relationship, staff and students dedicate one day each year to come together to remember, celebrate and develop more authentic understandings about the Kīngitanga movement. This day is known as Kīngitanga Day.

Waikato tribes started the Kīngitanga movement in the late 1850s in an attempt to unite the tribes under a single sovereign, prevent land sales, and to make laws for Māori by Māori.

The early years, under the leadership of Kīngi Tāwhiao, were dominated by the invasion of the Waikato and the wars that followed. Aspirations that emerged from these foundational struggles have influenced what has continued to be one of New Zealand’s most enduring political movements. The seventh successive sovereign since the inception of the Kīngitanga, and the current Māori King, is Kīngi Tūheitia.

• You can read more about the Kīngitanga movement on the Te Ara website

Celebrations
In the past, Kīngitanga Days have been cultural celebrations with students and staff from across the campus coming together to participate in a range of activities. Many of these activities remember and celebrate these important beginnings. Other activities consider what has been and is being achieved through the academy to ensure more mutually evolving respectful relationships going forward. Many are about celebrating and sharing who we are and what we stand for as people and as a campus. Others are about taking our collective thinking into the future.

This year, in order to follow the precedent set by the online Koroneihana (Coronation) celebrations - and to comply with the COVID Alert Level Guidelines - for the first time, the day’s events were delivered completely online.

• Click here to learn about the day's events and to see a video of the proceedings:

Kīngitanga day online for the first time meant it could be viewed nationally or globally. This meant Poutama Pounamu staff were able to check out the programme and join in, no matter where in the country they live and work. Below are comments we heard from their reflections on some of the events on the programme.

Miranda Joass: Ka tuku te mihi ki tō tātou nei Kingi a Tuheitia, rātou ko te whare Kāhui Ariki, Rire rire hau paimarie!

For me, Kīngitanga Day was a celebration of mana wāhine, from the kaiwhakahaere Maria who led discussions throughout the day, to the numerous kaikōrero and kairangahau, sharing with us matauranga on their respective kaupapa. References by tāne to our mareikura past, present and future, paid homage to the roles of wāhine as leaders, empowerers and drivers of change.
- “...if you have a look around the country from the top to the bottom you will find that the leadership in all of this journey were women.” Timi Maipi
- "Empowered knowing that people, and women who are leading the way with research…” Julian

Dawn Lawrence: Being able to be a part of the day whilst in level 4 lockdown here in Tāmaki Mākarau lifted me out of the challenges of the moment, creating an opportunity to connect with people, places and ideas beyond my four walls.

What a great way to start - Timi Maipi and his moko Hana. It was fascinating to hear his stories about Ngā Tama Toa, his involvement with the Polynesian Panthers and the connections he made to the issues of today. What I particularly enjoyed was the way in which he created space for Hana and the ako evident in their interactions. I was both humbled and warmed by the respect, love and trust between them that shone through.

Rāwini Ngaamo: Listening to the reflections of Matua Timi Maipi and those of his beautiful moko Hana was bittersweet and inspiring. His stories of Ngā Tama Toa and their courageous actions are important reminders to us to keep going.

These stories helped me to reflect on how long our people have worked to uphold and protect the mana of our reo, our tikanga and our deep connection with the whenua. It was a privilege and an honour to witness the rākau being passed on from one generation to the next.

Johnson Davis: I too enjoyed listening to parts of the kōrero by Timi Maipa and his moko - Hana. It was inspiring to hear, feel and connect to the multitude of struggles, acts of resistance, revitalisation and reclamation that Matua Timi in particular has endured, sustained and championed over time. Simply, breathtaking.

Another theme that ran through all of the speakers' kōrero was the importance of reaching back into kaupapa Māori spaces in order to decolonise the systems in which we live and work.

Dawn Lawrence: I also enjoyed the kōrero from the Integrating Kaupapa Māori across Programmes PGCert in Tertiary Teaching paper panelists.

Within the work of Poutama Pounamu, asking critical questions of our current euro-centric curriculum and seeking ways to give mana to mātauranga Māori has been an ongoing conversation so it was heartening to see that such questions are also being asked within the university. I loved the methodology lesson within the kōrero from Mere, Lesley and Tracey. What can read as quite lifeless on the page spoke of possibility, excitement and hope when shared through stories, pictures and the obvious connectedness of each of the speakers.

Presentation
Tracey Mauria Ngatoko, Lesley Rameka and Mere Berryman were invited to share an aspect of their Marsden research about Languaculture.

In this paper, we present understandings from kaumātua (elders both male and female) and whānau (parents and extended family members). These people live in a close-knit hapū (subtribe) community close to their marae or ancestral meeting space. Their marae continues to be essential in the promotion of Māori knowledge, language and ways of being. Kaumātua and whānau recall important cultural understandings and practices from this journey. From growing up largely in te ao Māori (the Māori world) they consider ‘languaculture,’ the interrelationships between language and culture as foundational to their future ‘hope’ for collective cultural strength and wellbeing.

View their presentation in the video below. Also, a draft of this paper can be downloaded here.

• An earlier news story about this research can be found here.

We end with Melissa’s comments which seem relevant and empowering to take with us out of what was a truly memorable day. We are grateful to this kaupapa that continues to create spaces in our institution to unlearn, relearn and learn. What has emerged from these historical events can take us all forward, Māori and non-Māori, towards more participatory mana ōrite spaces in Aotearoa.

Melissa Corlett: Lately my work as a Pākehā Poutama Pounamu team member has led me to challenge my own understanding of partnership, where these ideas come from and how useful they may or may not be.

I listened intently when Will ‘ilolahia spoke about what it means to him to be “at the table” and I smiled to hear Timi Maipi talk about the successes of the Māori ward debates where people realised for themselves the significance of Te Ao Māori. I also appreciated Tracey Mauria Ngatoko speaking of the mythtakes of colonisation and discussing one of the aims of the languaculture research as revitalising important understandings of Te Ao Māori.

How amazing to hear these three inspiring women researching back to power from within the very institutions that helped develop the mythtakes they seek to undo. As Maria Huata stated: "we must continue to challenge the status quo, to challenge ourselves and do the mahi".

He mihi maioha mo tēnei mahi whakahirahira. Mauri ora!

Chair of Manurewa Marae Rangi McLean and Dr Therese Ford

In August of this year Te Hurihanganui was officially launched in Manurewa. Dr Therese Ford, herself a member of the Mātanga group that developed the blueprint for Te Hurihanganui, was invited to share the hope she had for te Hurihanganui. The following is the address she gave at the launch.

When I talk about the hope that we have - I want to talk about hope from the perspectives of the Mātanga group and the perspectives of Poutama Pounamu, the work team partner which will work alongside communities to give life to Te Hurihanganui.

I did some important learning about hope when the Mātanga were developing the blueprint for Te Hurihanganui. During one wānanga I told Wally Penetito - one of the rangatira in our group - that I felt optimistic about the kaupapa.

Wally informed me that optimism was a Western construct that is secular and derived from science.

He then added that hope, however, is closer to indigenous ways of thinking because hope is spiritual; it’s about vision and it involves the heart. It is this kind of hope that I want to talk to you about today.

The Mātanga group was made up of 10 predominantly Māori educators and included Pacific and Pākehā leaders who had a wide range of experience and expertise. We were asked to collectively pool our knowledge to develop a blueprint for transformative system shift; a kaupapa that would address racism, strengthen equity and accelerate the educational achievement and wellbeing of ākonga Māori and their whānau. The focus on ākonga Māori was intentional because our research had shown that all learners benefit from leadership and teaching practices that work well for Māori.

The Mātanga group comprised Jim Peters, Professor Wally Penetito, Mere Berryman as the chair, Daniel Murfitt, Professor Roberta Hunter, Te Waipounamu Teinakore, Dr. Lesley Rameka, Hurae White, Therese Ford and Whetu Cormick.

As Mātanga we hope that people understand that Te Hurihanganui is a “by Māori, for Māori, for all” response.

We took many months to develop both the pou and the principles to guide systemic shift and to decide on a name that would best capture our vision for this kaupapa. Te Hurihanganui seemed perfect because the monumental turning of Papatūānuku perfectly reflected the seismic shift we need to see in our education system to address racism, strengthen equity and accelerate the educational achievement and wellbeing of ākonga Māori and their whānau.

We were advised, however, that accepting this name for the kaupapa came with significant responsibility. If we were to take the name Te Hurihanganui we needed to live up to this name and make sure that the seismic shift happened. I see Wally’s concept of hope - spiritual, vision and heart - represented in this responsibility.’

As Mātanga we hope that the pou and the principles of Te Hurihanganui are understood and enacted responsively and with integrity so that we will all benefit from the seismic shift. Making this shift a reality is now the responsibility of all of us.

Poutama Pounamu is the work-team partner that will have the privilege of working in the Manurewa community with mana whenua, whānau, ākonga, schools, early learning and alternative education centres, your Pacific community and with your wider community organisations.

We have been undertaking educational research and development for over three decades.

Sarah Asher, Director for Te Hurihanganui, Ministry of Education.

In this time we have done a lot of learning about what works, but we recognise that we have much to learn from and with you. We are excited about learning, growing and transforming together with the Manurewa community.

We, Poutama Pounamu, humbly enter the ancestral homelands of the mana whenua of Manurewa. We recognise your important cultural status as guardians of this whenua and the critical mahi that you are doing with whānau, hapū, iwi, the Pacific community and the wider community.

Working with all whānau to understand and achieve the goals that they have for their tamariki mokopuna has always been central to the work of Poutama Pounamu.

We hope to learn alongside whānau about what works best for you and to understand how we might strengthen connections so that you can thrive alongside your tamariki mokopuna.

We do not take for granted the privilege it is to work with leaders and teachers in learning settings - ECE centres, schools and alternative education centres.

We take a strengths-based approach to engaging with learning settings and we seek to work in respectful, relational and responsive ways to collectively understand evidence and collaboratively develop critical actions.

Poutama Pounamu Kaumātua Whakaruruhau Tamati Tata

From our initial engagements, we understand that there are many in this community with visions that are consistent with the kaupapa of Te Hurihanganui.

We hope that we can bring our pathways together and work in reciprocal and mutually beneficial ways.

‘We acknowledge the leadership of Minister Davis, his fellow ministers and the Ministry of Education. They have courageously responded to the evidence of systemic racism and intergenerational inequity for Māori by prioritising investment in Te Hurihanganui and other important initiatives.

We hope that we can continue to learn together with the Ministry of Education about what it takes to implement actions that engage the policy levers and give life to critical policies like Ka Hikitia - Hapaitia.

I want to finish with a message of hope that is embedded in my whakapapa. I descend from Awarau who was the last paramount chief of Ngāi Takoto. Awarau signed Te Tiriti in February 1840 on behalf of my people and I feel that hope informed his decision to sign. I believe that Awarau envisaged that my people would prosper from Te Tiriti and I am certain that he never anticipated the cultural suppression and social disadvantage that many of his mokopuna - my whānau - have experienced for over 160 years. This story is common across many whānau Māori.

For me, Te Hurihanganui represents our opportunity to disrupt and dismantle these intergenerational cycles of inequity and trauma for Māori and fundamentally re-orientate the pathways of both tangata whenua and tangata tiriti so that the potential and the promises inherent in Te Tiriti might finally be realised for all who call Aotearoa home.

In 1975, Whina Cooper asserted that ‘Not one more acre’ of Māori land be taken. In 2019, iwi leaders sent a clear message to Oranga Tamariki with their stance of ‘Not one more child’.

I hope that Te Hurihanganui will epitomise the notion that ‘Not one more generation’ will experience an education that ignores, suppresses and belittles their culture, language and identity. It’s 2021 - let this be the legacy we leave for all of our tamariki mokopuna - those that are here now and those that are yet to come.

Nō reira – tena koutou, tena koutou, tena tātou ka toa.

See also:

• Celebration and Challenge
• What is Te Hurihanganui?

Poutama Pounamu whānau Dawn Lawrence, Rāwini Ngaamo, Tamati Tata, Therese Ford with Iti Joyce of Ngāti Tamaoho.