Kōrero
We have observed, listened and now we act.
This is our third phase of our project, committing to action and sharing.
Te roopū Māori trip to the states & our Zine, April 2025
Te roopū Māori created our first zine as a koha to give to communities we connected with. From April to May, te roopū Māori travelled to the states, beginning with Phoenix, on the ancestral lands of the Hohokam and the contemporary territories of the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, Gila River Indian Community (Pima and Maricopa), Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, and Tohono O’odham Nation. After four nights in Phoenix, we travelled to Albuquerque, where the region is home to the Pueblo peoples, including the Sandia and Isleta Pueblos, as well as the Jicarilla and Mescalero Apache and the Navajo Nation. We connected with the Labriola National American Indian Data Centre at Arizona State University Library and thank them for their manaakitanga. We then moved to Albuquerque, where we attended the Gathering of Nations and presented at the 2025 Reclaiming Indigenous Ecologies of Love (RIEL) conference, hosted by the International Network of Indigenous Health, Knowledge and Development (INIHKD) at the Tamaya Resort from 28 April to 2 May. The conference brought together Indigenous scholars, practitioners, and activists worldwide to share and amplify Indigenous voices, focusing on health, wellbeing, and the healing power of Indigenous ancestral love, while celebrating cultural resilience and sovereignty. Here we gifted our zine to participants.
Something Awkward, May - Nov 2025
In these times of fascism and ongoing genocide - with their intensified sense of urgency, scarcity and fear - both university and activist spaces are increasingly inhospitable to anticolonial forms of knowing - whether embodied, inspirited or more-than-human. With this public lecture series, the Pākehā collective experiment with something other-wise, something awkward. Beginning at Matariki, we are gathering for six months around the new moon to respond to a call by Nigerian post-activist Bayo Akomolafe that these times require us to move not simply forward or backward. With our ancestors and the darkness, we co-host local speakers and other performers to instead help us collectively listen for/to/with the awkward: ancestors, grief, spirit, wonder, love, land(back). How does settler colonialism dismiss, distort, deport, detain, denigrate, demand these otherworldly wisdoms, and what might their awkward stance and dance suggest for our decolonial movements in Aotearoa and beyond? Big mihi to Audio Foundation in Tāmaki for having us <3 And click here if you’d like to join!
State of the Pākehā Nation, May 2025
Lillian Murray, one of our Pākehā co-researchers, was invited to give the annual State of the Pākehā Nation Address - hosted by Network Waitangi Whangārei since 2006. The essay was delivered live at the end of May, leading to a lively Q&A on the politics of Pākehā communing with ancestors. You can read the essay here!
Ngakinga, March 2025-Feb 2026
As a follow-up iteration of Inhabit (see also Whakarongo section), Pākehā co-researchers are growing a 1-year community dye garden to restore the mauri to a piece of whenua at the puna of Papa ki Awataha, Northcote – a majority Brown, working class, immigrant community in Tāmaki Makaurau. Building on the work of the Kaipātike Project, Ngakinga is a collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples and native and non-native plants to co-create public art, ritual and other care practices that weave together our diverse ancestral threads while respecting Māori sovereignty, in honour ultimately of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Peita me te Porotēhi
for our mokomokomokopuna
aro ki te wairua o te hā acts of aroha, self care, resistance & joy
Recover, Restore, Rejuvenate, July 2024
Our communities are exhausted from on-going climate emergencies, high inflation, and ongoing colonial violence, exacerbated by the systemic removal of Te Tiriti O Waitangi from the very systems that are meant to serve Māori. In these testing times, we turn to what we can control. And we are learning that the greatest investment we can make is in ourselves. Ahikaa Associates, a grassroots organisation, and Tākuta Teah Carlson, from Te Tīpuna Project, advocates for kaupapa Māori community research, supported whānau to give from an overflowing cup rather than a half-empty one. “What we are learning in the Tīpuna Project is aroha and self care can be our greasiest act of resistance as a people,” says Dr Teah Carlson.
"What a positive event! It was nice to be with good company at a good kaupapa and empowered to enjoy being wahine toa. I can’t wait for the next one!"
Generations Transforming Challenges into Opportunities
The relaxed and chilled vibes of the infamous Café 35 provided the perfect locale for our wānanga. Tākuta Teah facilitated with her laid-back, no-pressure approach, Tākuta Carlson who also spent time growing up in Tokomaru Bay, shared personal experiences creating an atmosphere of open dialogue and mutual learning.
Hapori ranged from Baby Boomers and Millennials to Generation X and Gen Z. However, it was Gen Alpha, with their fearless boldness and youthful creativity, who encouraged their parents and grandparents to be creative by diving right into the blank canvas with no apprehensions. This made the event a rich tapestry of intergenerational knowledge exchange.
One rangatahi shared their thoughts on the wānanga, “my social battery is usually on critical bars, so I find it hard to be around humans sometimes. But it was really cool just painting and listening to the kōrero, it was so easy to connect with everyone. I will sign up for the next wānanga for sure."
“Let's focus on supporting kaupapa that enriches us, plan for joy, laughter, and tears. What a concept!”
Tākuta Teah
Tokomaru Akau
Set against the backdrop of the remote and resilient Tokomaru Bay—an area severely impacted by recent climate disasters—this initiative highlights the importance of whanaungatanga and taking time to recover. Despite the hardships of flooding, road closures, isolation, and limited access to essential services, the community is coming together to rejuvenate and support one another.
Peita me te Porotēhi is a unique rural kaupapa Māori initiative that brings a distinct twist to the increasingly popular “brushes and beats” social events sweeping urban centers across Aotearoa. Inspired by the need to be activation-ready in the current political climate, this event aims to explore the profound concept of mana motuhake through the power of whanaungatanga and mahi toi. Deliberate acts of re-indigenising ones self through creativity focusing on supporting wairua as opposed to reacting under pressure when disasters like cyclones or political sabotage hit.
Let's create & seek out spaces
grounded in aroha
Much like the relentless impact of climate change on the once pristine taiao of Te Tairāwhiti, the current political pressures are shaping and transforming our communities. Peita me te Porotēhi harnesses these transformative forces, turning challenges into opportunities for growth and empowerment. Just as lumps of coal are turned into bright and shining diamonds, symbolising resilience and strength, so too are the people of Tokomaru Bay. Befitting the home of the “Diamonds” haka roopu Te Hokowhitu Atu, who also endured social, and political challenges back in the hay day, instigating the revolutionary era of cultural leaders such as Tuini Ngawai, Ngoi and Ben Pewhairangi and Anaru Takurua.
As Aotearoa's political landscape evolves, being prepared and informed is paramount. Peita me te Porotēhi showcases the strength of community, the power of creativity, and the importance of kotahitanga. This is not just an event but a movement. Join us in celebrating our shared identity and embracing our collective journey toward emancipation and resistance.