Te Tumu scholar part of Kāhui Kairuruku the national Hautapu for Matariki
Ko Kare Tipa tōku ikoa, my ancestry comes from many hapū of Kāi Tahu iwi: (Kāti Ruahikihiki, Kāti Hāteatea,Kāi Te Aotaumarewa, Hinematua, Kāi Tuke, Kāti Huirapa, Kāti Rakiāmoa, Kāi Tuahuriri, Kāti Hinemihi, Kāti Wairaki, Kāti Urihia On Friday 28 June I was honoured to be part of the Kāhui Kairuruku, a collective of language and cultural practitioners that delivered 13 karakia as part of the national Hautapu ceremony held 2,008m above sea level, adjacent to the mighty ranges of Kā Tiritiri O Te Moana, on a pituresque mountain widely known as Treble Cone. Matariki allows us to reflect on whānau and experiences at a time when we welcome the new year. It is also a time to farewell the old, the past year gone.
It was appropriate to hold the hautapu ceremony in Wānaka. Māori history tells of Wānaka where early iwi, in particular ‘Waitaha’, assembled for learning of tribal lore. Wānaka is Kāi tahu alternative form of the word ‘wānanga’ referring to the ancient schools of learning. The area boasts of rocky alpines, tussock foliage and lakes dug out from the eponymous ancestor Rākaihautū. From the ski field on Treble Cone, one is able to feast eyes on the visible features of the land, the aesthetic appeal formed by the digging stick of Rākaihautū. Lakes dug out in Te Waipounamu are known as Kā Puna Karikari a Rākaihatū (the springs of water dug by Rākaihautū).
From ancestoral acts of the past to what is experienced today, Kāti Ruahikihiki descandants (the kairuruku for the hautapu) are made up primarily of young language assailants raised in the Kāi Tahu language revitalisation strategy: Kotahi Mano Kāika (KMK). KMK leads the charge to reinvigorate our language within Kāi Tahu homes and communities. It is a 25 year old strategy which aims to have at least 1000 Kāi Tahu kāika speaking te reo Māori by 2025.
As a practitioner, I have been both a beneficiary of and contributor to KMK. My children and grandson are part of the collective to revitalise and change the narrative with language normalisation here in Te Waipounamu. To be apart of the collective with our young adults is a tremendous highlight for me as a hākui in the strategy. The Hautapu ceremony is shared with a different iwi annually, this recent ceremony is historical for Kāi Tahu, it highlights the language strategy in action alive and vibrant, it sets a precedence of first language speakers who can conduct formal tikaka in te reo. I may not be here to stand with this collective when the Hautapu returns to Kāi Tahu iwi in the future, but I’m proud to have had this moment of standing with first language speakers adding to the histories of today.
Inaugural Te Tumu Symposium a showcase of diverse research excellence
On Wednesday 5 June, Te Tumu, School of Māori, Pacific and Indigenous Studies, hosted its inaugural research symposium to share and celebrate research from Te Tumu. The day began with a welcome from Te Tumu Dean Prof Patrick Vakaoti and a history of Te Tumu from Prof Michael Reilly. The programme included four sessions of Te Tumu staff and postgraduate students’ presentations, constructive question and answers segments, feedback, and encouragement.
Supported by Te Tumu’s Research Committee and Postgraduate Committee, the event welcomed attendance from those who are based in Ōtepoti, as well as distance students who are based in Te Whanganui ā Tara, and as far afield as New Caledonia. With special Tītī and fry bread kai, this gathering was truly an inspiring occasion and speaks to exciting research work that Te Tumu staff and students are doing locally, and regionally that are important contributions for their communities, and for the growth of Māori, Pacific and Indigenous Studies scholarship.
Session 1 was facilitated by Dr Paerau Warbrick, a lecturer in Māori Studies, and included presentations by Te Tumu staff member Paia Taani on intergenerational language transmission; and PhD students, Jenni Tupu who presented about transracial adoption, and Ella Cameron-Smith who presented on Ngaati Korokii Kahukura kai identities.
Session 2 was facilitated by Dr Telesia Kalavite, a lecturer in Pacific Studies, and included presentations by four PhD students: Frédéric Dichtel who presented on te reo grammatical structures; Regina Maniam who presented on engaging Indigenous values and methods in doctoral research; Stacey Kokaua-Balfour who presented on Cook Islands’ creative texts relating to the environment and climate change; and Jay Quintos who presented on critical perspectives on films about the Tboli people in the Philippines.
Session 3 was facilitated by Prof Michael Reilly, the Postgraduate Chair of Te Tumu. The session included staff member Prof Richard Jackson who presented on non-violent approaches to counterterrorism, and two PhD students: Jude Bautista who presented on visual social semiotics and critical lenses in discourse analyses; Kim Cope Tait who presented on personal sovereignty in the poetry of Hinemoana Baker.
Session 4 was facilitated by Dr Emma Powell, lecturer in Indigenous Studies and Programme Coordinator of the Master of Indigenous Studies (MIndS). The session included three MIndS distance students: Melissa Denzler, based in Te Whanganui ā Tara who presented on the cultural taxation of kaiako Māori; Elizabeth Hamilton, based in Whakatū, who presented on a approach for honouring Te Tiriti specifically relating to language learning policies for migrants and former refugees; and James Uri-Puati, based in the Cook Islands, who presented on a critical Indigenous framework for theorising second language learning.
