The project Te Tira Taiao for the rangatahi of Waipiro Bay and Te Puia Springs has the vision “Restoring our Māori world view, wisdoms and knowledge, through inter-generational participation and connection with taiao”.
In this story, Poutautoko Pearl Beattie shares some of the mahi that has happened in the first part of 2025.
Kōrero tīmatanga
He pūrongo tēnei e pā ana ki ngā mahi o Te Aho Tū Roa i roto o Te Tairāwhiti, ko Te Tira Taiao te kaupapa matua.
Whakamāramatanga mō Te Tira Taiao.
Te Tira Taiao – he kaupapa mō ngā taiohi o Waipiro Ākau me Te Puia, hei whakakotahi, hei whakamana i o rātou tuakiritanga ki te hono ki o rātou whanaunga, whenua, moana hoki. He whakautu tēnei karanga runga i te mea kua aukati ngā kura, ngā Kōhanga Reo, kei te ngaro haere ēnei mātauranga.
Hei tāpiri atu, he maha ngā raru i konei e pā ana ki ngā āhuatanga o te whakamahana o te ao, arā, ngā āwha e wero nei i a tātou. I roto i te wā o te āwha Keipiriera, i pakaru ngā rori o Waipiro, kāore ngā tamariki e taea ki te puta ki te kura/Kōhanga hoki. I kuraina ngā tamariki ki te marae o Taharora tae rānō ki te wā ka haumaru te hoki ki te kura. Mā tēnei āhuatanga i kite mātou he oranga mō ngā tamariki, mō te whānau ki te ako ki ngā marae, ki te rongo i te aroha me te manaakitanga o ō rātou ake marae kāinga.
Nā reira ko Te Tira Taiao he kaupapa hei hiki, hei whakaora anō i ngā kaupapa matua e wero nei i tātou o te Ākau, otirā o Te Tairāwhiti. Ko te ngahorotanga o te whenua ; ko te wero ki te kaunihera ki te whakatika i ngā rori, i ngā tai o te moana e horo ana i te whenua ; ko te māuiuitanga o ngā rākau hoki. Nā reira ko te taiao, ko te kaitiakitanga ngā kaupapa whakahirahira o Te Tira Taiao. Ko te whakatinanatanga o te kaitiakitanga hoki te mahi i ia huihuinga.
He oranga tēnei kaupapa mō te whānau, hapū, marae hoki. E mahitahi ana ngā tuākana/teina, ngā tīpuna, ngā mātua, ngā reanga katoa.
Whakamāmaramatanga mo te ingoa hou.
Nā tētahi o ngā taiohi te ingoa o te rōpu nei i tapa.
Te ingoa hou mō Te Tira Taiao = Tai Pūrēhua
Whakapākehātanga: The tide of Pūrēhua
Whakamāramatanga mō te ingoa
tai – tai rāwhiti, taiohi, tai aroha, taiao
“the youth of the East Coast with a tide of love for the environment”
Pūrēhua = ingoa tawhito mō te ākau o Waipiro
Kaupapa matua
I roto i ngā marama e whā mai i te tīmatanga o Te Tira Taiao kua tūhura mātou i ēnei kaupapa : mahi uku, te hanga taonga puoro, te tirohanga ki te mana motuhake, arā, te ako ki te tiaki kai. te kaitiakitanga – ko te tirotiro i ngā rākau mō te māuiuitanga Myrtle Rust, ko te patu paihamu hoki. Arā anō, ko te ako i ngā waiata me ngā hītori, te aro ki ngā whakairo me ngā tukutuku me te tūhura ki tātahi.
Te rere o te kaupapa:
I rere pai te tīmatanga o Te Tira Taiao, ka āwhina mai ētahi o ngā mātua hei whakareri i ngā kai mā ngā tamariki. Ka tae mai ngā mātanga o ngā kaupapa taiao ki te whakaako i ngā tamariki. Ko ētahi o ngā mātanga ko ngā mātua, tīpuna o ngā tamariki.
Ngā hua
Ko tētahi hua nui ki ngā tamariki me te whānau ko te ako i te ingoa tūturu mō Waipiro ākau, ko Pūrēhua. Kua hiki te hīkaka i roto i ngā tamariki ki te hui tahi ki te marae. Kua kite ngā tamariki he kaupapa harikoa i ngā marae. Ka mōhio ngā tamariki he hononga ki ētahi o ngā whanaunga.
“quality time with kids – Waipiro relations” – Opua-komata 14 years old.
“seeing friends from school and the food, games, planting and porotiti ” – Pounamu 9 yrs old.
“look after the trees and we do the possum traps and i like when we dancng like kararehe and i like doing the karakia too” – Oriwa 5 yrs old.
“was good getting out and seeing the kids and everyone – i don’t usually go out” – Nanny Max 62 yrs old.
Me kī pēnei kua piki te harikoa, te oranga o te hapori, kei te whakakotahi i te hapū. He whānau noho motuhake te nuinga o ngā tāngata o Waipiro. Nō reira he kaupapa papai hei whakakotahi i a mātou.
Ngā wero
Ko te wāhanga o te tau – te makariri, te ua me te māuiui o ngā tamariki.
Te tuku pānui ki ngā tamariki mēnā ka panoni ngā rā. He wero hoki ki ngā tamariki e noho ana ki Te Puia kia tae mai. Anō nei ko ngā rori o Waipiro, kua tīmata ki te whakatika, engari he mōrearea tonu. E rua ngā marae e kati ana ki Waipiro, ko Taharora kua kati mō te whakatika whare, ko Iritekura e manaaki ana i ngā tāngata e kimi oranga ana ki te patu i te ngau o te tarutaru pī. Ka oti tērā ā te mārama o Akuhata.
OFF GRID LIVING WITH IRIORA CHARITABLE TRUST
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- Ko ngā tamariki o te Tira Taiao e ako ana ki te hanga pihapiha ki Te Kiekie Marae.
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- Ko ngā tamariki o te Tira Taiao kei mua o TeKiekie marae.
Working on clay bowls at Te Kiekie Marae
MAKING OKO FROM UKU WITH MATUA ERIHA
Matua Eriha is a parent of two of the tamariki of Te Tira Taiao and local bus driver. He took the clay workshop – part of our segment on mahi uku. After their tour and demonstration of Kōkā Sheree’s uku creations, the tamarki went back to the marae to create oko from uku while the pizza they had made with Kōkā Sheree finished cooking (see above).
The clay is from Matua Eriha’s whenua in Te Puia and is known for its healing properties. Matua Eriha also makes taonga puoro out of native wood.
The clay dried naturally in the window at the marae for a few days, only 5 of the 14 didn’t crack. It was a great hands on experience for the tamariki.
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- Teaching the tamariki o Te Tira Taiao how to make clay bowls at Te Kiekie Marae
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- One of the māmā helping tamariki with the uku
Tama e whakarite ana i ngā whītoa
MAKING PRESERVES – TIAKI TĀNGATA, TIAKI KAINGA
Tiaki tangata, tiaki kainga is a kaupapa under Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Porou, a response to emergency preparedness. It includes all aspects of self-sufficiency and alternative methods of survival in communities on the East Coast.
Papa Bill Hughes – tiaki tangata, tiaki kāinga, taught the tamariki a game called Hoha, which ensured all the tamariki participated in peeling, chopping and dicing fruit. He talked about the old people and the importance of kaua e moumou kai. Each whānau were given a few jars each to take home.
MAKING TAONGA PUORO WITH – MATUA HONE MC CLUTCHIE
Matua Hone works at Ngāti Porou Oranga supporting whānau and providing oranga activities and support for men. He is a well known carver and artist of the area. He came to tautoko Te Tira Taiao.
Tamariki learned about traditional uses of porotiti and its importance in healing, and the connection to Tāwhirimatea. The activity included learning about using native wood, tōtara and how to sand, shape and tie the string to the porotiti. Tamariki then practiced how to hold, twist and get the porotiti moving to glide and make the healing rythmic sounds.
Highlights from this activity
- seeing one of the parents fall in love with this mahi as a form of healing!
- Seeing the tamariki gain self-confidence as they figure out how to make the porotiti spin and sing!
Tamariki were highly focused and engaged in this mahi.
