I’m in a Wellington cafe, at a coffee meeting with a colleague from Ngāti Kahungunu. We are both born in Hastings, so that is a nice start. Then after a while he says, “Actually, I am not really from Hastings, I am from Flaxmere.” And I say, “Actually I am not really from Hastings either,…
Continue reading →When I was asked to speak on Steven Moe’s Seeds podcast, my friend and colleague Haimona Waititi from Tūmanako Consulting suggested that I share some of the missteps I have made as part of different organisations trying to better support Māori aspirations. So, I talked on the podcast and shared three personal stories of situations…
Continue reading →How do we, as funders, better engage with and support Māori communities? What does it mean for a funder to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi? And what is our role in building an Aotearoa of tomorrow where Te Ao Pākehā (the Pākehā world) and Te Ao Māori (the Māori world) work in synergy for the…
Continue reading →Looking for an inspiring read over the holidays? “Te Kai a te Rangatira – Leadership from the Māori world” is an extraordinary book, and is highly recommended. It shares the wisdom of over 100 rangatira from across Aotearoa, sometimes in English and sometimes in Te Reo Māori. Here’s a few quotes: You carry your thousand…
Continue reading →If you are like me, you want to be better informed about Aotearoa NZ’s history, but you learned little or nothing on the topic at school, and most of the very worthy NZ history books seem a bit big and daunting. But I have belatedly found a way to fill some of my knowledge gaps,…
Continue reading →How can we best respond to online racism and hate? Social media is the “new village square,” and is increasingly the place where everyday racism is amplified. In extreme cases, it is also where white-supremacist-leaning people are radicalised and turn to violence, as we saw with the horrific murders of 51 people in Christchurch mosques…
Continue reading →The Philanthropy Summit, held in Wellington from May 15 – 17 and created by Philanthropy New Zealand, was one of the best learning opportunities I have had in a long time. Here are the top four things I learned: There is a curious and delightful parallel between dental health and a racism-free world. One of…
Continue reading →What does it mean to be a good Pākehā? How do we build better relationships with Māori? And how might this play out in the world of funding? Here are my thoughts. A few years back I set myself on a journey to be a better Pākehā. For me, this means questioning what it means…
Continue reading →The following was first published here as an opinion piece in the Dominion Post 11 May 2018 I have been thinking about harmony – in music and in our land. When I sing a line of notes I create a tune – hopefully a nice enough thing. But when we add other voices, instrumental…
Continue reading →One of many useful resources from Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Māori language week) is this user-friendly online quiz put out by Newshub, described as the “100 words and phrases the Ministry of Culture and Heritage says every New Zealander should know.” Have a go! But let’s not succumb to either shame, if…
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