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Moe mai rā, moe mai rā, e oki!
We join Te Waipounamu in acknowledging the passing of Ngāti Tama kaumātua John Tahana Ward-Holmes who passed away on Sunday. John will be remembered as a humble leader and a staunch kaitiaki of the environment. Our aroha and thoughts are with his whānau. Moe mai rā e te rangatira.
Ubiquitous. It’s not a word I use often. In fact I had to look it up. It means ever-present; universal; popular; over-arching, far-reaching, wide-ranging.
This week I was a panellist at the Kia Puawai symposium hosted by the University of Canterbury Ngā Pae o te Maramatanga research team. The fabulous Professor Angus McFarlane referred to the concept of ubiquitous in his presentation about practices of sustenance – the contours of wellness. You can find out more at www.maoriflourishing.com.
He was taking us through various concepts of mana, namely:
According to Matua Angus, over all of these is mana whānau.
In other words, while it is important to have a sense of identity, connection and belonging; to know our special places; to be strong and resilient – the opportunity for whānau wellbeing to be realised in our every day life; to be flourishing and thriving is paramount.
That is what I have absolutely cherished, every moment of every day in serving the kaupapa of Whānau Ora. It is seen in the precious impact of whānau-centred self-determination; to ensure the strengths, assets and abilities of whānau are fully utilised. It is evidenced by the reality that in Whānau Ora whānau decide their own solutions; that they participate and lead change – and in doing so build their capability.
And most of all, what we know is that whānau dreams and aspirations are worthy of investment.
One of our initiatives in RUIA, summed it up: “I learned things about myself that I recognise are my strengths and I am here to make a difference to my whānau.”
I learned things about myself that I recognise are my strengths and I am here to make a difference to my whānau.
This week we were delighted to welcome Flying Geese to Te Whenua Taurikura, to share our beautiful office space. We have had a longstanding relationship with the whānau at Flying Geese and we are looking forward to having them around kanohi ki te kanohi.
Flying Geese is a creative organisation that embodies the aspirations of its founder, Faumuina Felolini Maria Tafuna’i. It takes the wisdom from celestial navigation and ocean voyaging into a thinking framework that can be used to understand and solve the issues faced by businesses, whānau and individuals. This framework is called Wayfinding, and was developed under the guidance of master voyager and navigator Hoturoa Barclay-Kerr of Te Toki Voyaging Trust.
We have been working with Flying Geese and their team of Wayfinding Guides who are establishing WERO – taking rangatahi through exercises that are fun and engaging, playful and creative. They teach rangatahi to create a business, who to put on their team, the questions they should ask of themself, the market, and the product.
They teach how to look at it with a critical eye to see what could go wrong and how to make it better. And how you can actually turn disaster into an opportunity.
We are proud to support digital strategy and communications agency Sister Sister, who this week hosted a panel for rangatahi to share their whakaaro around sexual health. This event was one of the first steps in building a social media campaign targeting sexual health and literacy for rangatahi Māori in Waitaha. Sister Sister is dedicated to making the rangatahi voice front and centre of this campaign, and this week’s panel was an opportunity to hear directly from rangatahi about the issues and challenges they would like to see addressed.
Recently the team from Māui Studios travelled to Murihiku to catch up with Jade Ward from Reigning Downs, one of our Wave 14 initiatives. They were there to film her team in action and put together a digital story about the equine education centre. Reigning Downs works with rangatahi who may not be succeeding in mainstream education settings, helping them to identify their strengths, set and achieve goals, and develop essential skills – all with the help of Jade’s team of 10 horses. Reigning Downs uses the unique Māori philosophy of health comprising of Taha Tinana, Taha Hinengaro, Taha Whānau, and Taha Wairua to ensure it has whānau holistic well-being at the forefront of its focus.
Check out the photos below, and keep an eye out for the Reigning Downs digital story in the coming weeks.
We are still welcoming applications for Tama Ora, for kaupapa that will support the wellbeing of our tamariki and rangatahi through physical activity. You can apply for anything that will support these outcomes, whether it’s the costs of running a wānanga, a salary for a kaimahi to work in this space, or the resources you need to provide a service. Click here to learn more and apply.
We are looking for three kaimahi to join our team at Te Pūtahitanga o Te Waipounamu and support our Whānau Ora Navigation model across Te Waipounamu. We have roles in Te Tauihu, Waitaha and Murihiku.
Pouwhirinaki – Navigation Regional Relationship Managers
Te Pūtahitanga o Te Waipounamu
location: Murihiku / Waitaha / Te Tauihu
$70,000 – $90,000
• A workplace founded on te ao Māori and tikanga Māori.
• A job that contributes to making a difference for whānau.
• A sense of purpose through service to whānau
