February 2025 Newsletter
He Karere nā te Heamana
Kia ora te Uri o Ngāti Rehua,
On behalf of the Trust Board, we want to thank all the whānau who have supported our kaupapa over the past 6 months. As a board, we have been working hard to create and provide more opportunities for our people to thrive and grow, such as securing funding for conservation, education, and mātauranga Māori projects.
We have started our 12-month work programme and established our new steering groups so that more of our people can be part of important decision-making over a range of kaupapa. Your voice and input are essential to making these kaupapa successful, and we invite all our whānau to come home to the island and participate. Our upcoming wānanga are a great opportunity to be together as a people, and we have a range of fun activities for tamariki, rangatahi, and kaumātua. We look forward to seeing you there!
Toitū Ngāti Rehua!
Fletcher Beazley
Chairman – Ngāti Rehua Ngātiwai ki Aotea Trust Board
Four Wānanga Scheduled for 2025
Join Us!
Kia ora Whānau
We are excited to announce that we have four wānanga scheduled for this year, offering opportunities to come together, learn, and grow as a community. These gatherings are an important part of our mahi, and we are looking forward to connecting with as many of our beneficiaries as possible.
Spaces are limited!
Due to funding constraints, we may not be able to accommodate everyone at each wānanga. To ensure fairness, please select from the four wānanga and rank them in order of your preference. Additionally, we have set aside funding to support travel costs. if you need the cost of your flights covered, please indicate this in the registration form.
This approach allows us to accommodate as many whānau as possible throughout the year. We appreciate your understanding and support as we work to make these wānanga accessible and meaningful for everyone.
Ngā mihi nui.
Tāiao Wānanga
🏢 Kawa Marae
📅 27-30 March 2025
Join us for a special wānanga to share and learn Ngāti Rehua-Ngātiwai ki Aotea mātauranga, guided by tohunga and kaumātua. The wānanga features marae-based learning and visits to significant sites, including a boat journey to Rākitu.
Rāranga: Weaving
Rongoā: Traditional medicine
Moana: Moana-based activities
Hītori: History and whakapapa, genealogy
Whenua: Native flora and fauna, pest control
Education: Career pathways in the taiao
Matariki Wānanga
🏢 Kawa Marae
📅 4-6 July 2025 TBC
The Pou Whakapapa Matariki Wānanga connects generations, preserves mātauranga Māori, and strengthens community bonds to restore Māori culture and identity.
Matariki: Exploring our relationship with te tāiao and our co-existence
Kapa Haka and Tikanga: Strengthening identity through waiata, karakia, and whakapapa
Taonga: Focus on Aotea's night-sky sanctuary
Whakapapa: Understanding our origins and future direction
Oranga Wānanga
🏢 Kawa Marae
📅 26-28 September 2025 TBC
A collaborative learning environment aimed at empowering the Uri of Ngāti Rehua-Ngātiwai ki Aotea through activities and discussions on mental health, rongoā, educational aspirations, and pathways.
Taha Tinana: Body care through movement and interaction.
Taha Hinengaro: Mental health resilience and support tools.
Taha Whānau: Building connections and relationships.
Taha Wairua: Identity, whakapapa, and future aspirations.
Rangatahi Camp & Kaumatua Treaty Claim Hui
🏢 Kawa Marae TBC
📅 3-7 December 2025 TBC
These two wānanga will happen side-by-side
Rangatahi Camp
Build resilience, independence, skills, and connections for rangatahi while deepening their understanding of whakapapa, Papatūānuku, and mātauranga.
Tākaro: Waka ama, fishing, tramping
Kaitiakitanga: Planting and pest eradication
Matauranga Māori: Develop haka, waiata, and karakia tied to whakapapa kōrero.
Hauora: Mental health resilience tools for self and others.
Treaty Claim Hui
Seek kaumātua and whānau guidance on Ngāti Rehua-Ngātiwai ki Aotea issues, including the Treaty Settlement.
Present Treaty Settlement progress to kaumātua and whānau.
Discuss past approaches, lessons learned, and next steps for completing the settlement.
Click the "REGISTER HERE" button below to express your interest in attending any of the wānanga.
Kaumatua Dinner at Valentines, 2025
Pou Rangatiratanga
Kaumatua Dinner
Thank you to everyone who joined us at Valentines in Tāmaki Makaurau for the Kaumātua dinner. It was a wonderful time filled with connection and aroha.
A special thanks to Jan Piahana and the Trustees of Kawa Marae for organising such a memorable event. Your efforts made the day truly special. We look forward to seeing you all at the next gathering which is to be held on the 28 March, 2025.
Keela and Kokowai Tamihana - Aotea
Pou Tāiao
Whenua and Moana
We are excited to host our three-day Taiao Wānanga to strengthen whānau connections to Papatūānuku.
As kaitiaki of Aotea, Hauturu, Mokohinau, and surrounding islands, this wānanga offers opportunities to deepen relationships with these taonga while learning from our tohunga and kaumātua. Highlights include trips to significant sites, rāranga, rongoā, hītori, pest control, and more.
Our Taiao Wānanga isn’t all we’ve been busy planning for the past few months. As well as supporting our pest eradication programme, Tū Mai Taonga, in North Aotea, plans are progressing for the establishment of a Native Nursery close to our Akapoua Office. We also continue to work hard on providing a strong voice on issues within the Moana which includes the management of Caulerpa.
Pou Whanau
Community-Led Development Programme
We’re excited to announce a series of hui focused on community-led development (CLD) for northern Aotea. CLD is about empowering our whānau to take the lead in creating solutions that address our community’s unique needs, aspirations, and challenges.
Last week, we held our first hui on Kawa Marae. A big thankyou to those who came along for that first hui to identify some of our challenges and who shared their ideas to find pathways that uplift and empower the Aotea community with a focus on the north. There are two more hui where you can collaborate, share idea's and shape a sustainable and inclusive future for us all.
Also, please note, there are no current vacancies to sit on the CLD Steering Group; these have now been filled; as per our amendment to the TOR, any future EOIs will remain until names are presented to the Trust at the next available hui, and will no longer have a 10 day timeframe.
Scheduled Events
CLD Engagement Hui #2
📅 12 February, 2025
🕑 4PM - 6:30PM
🏢Claris Conference Centre - Kai provided
CLD Engagement Hui #3
📅22 March, 2025
🕑 3PM-5:30pm
🏢 Port Fitzroy - Kai provided
Pou Oranga
Health and Education
One of our recent highlights was welcoming Te Mahi Ako to the island, where they shared traditional Māori games with our rangatahi and taiohi. It was an incredible experience that not only brought heaps of fun but also helped our taiohi strengthen their connections, grow in confidence, and develop leadership and teamwork skills—all while earning valuable credits!
Looking ahead, we’re excited for the upcoming Taiao Wānanga, happening 27-30 March. This wānanga will give our rangatahi the chance to immerse themselves in activities focused on Te Taiao. We’re also busy preparing for the Matariki and Oranga Wānanga, Rangatahi Camp and Kaumatua Treaty Claim hui. We look forward to bringing everyone together, reflecting on, and celebrating our journey.
Don't forget to register your interest to our wānanga!
Te Pou Ramaroa Taiohi - Te Ako Sports Wananga at Orama
Huarahi Māori Teaching Graduates 2025
Spotlight on Success.
Whanau Achievements
Ka mau te wehi, Starrett-Leigh Iorangi and Maia Waetford!
We are incredibly proud of your graduation from Huarahi Māori. Your dedication and hard work are an inspiration, and it’s amazing to see Māori educators like you paving the way for future generations.
We are looking for two new members to join our steering groups. If you're interested in finding ways to rejuvenate Māori and Ngāti Rehua Ngātiwai knowledge, Te Reo, Marae customs and waiata then you can apply for the Pou Whakapapa Steering Group. If infrastructure and strengthening our economy is more to your liking, then you can apply for our Pou Whairawa Steering Group. If you would like to join one of these two steering groups, then email char@ngatirehua.iwi.nz
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