The Ki te Hoe Wānanga was ‘life changing’

The Ki te Hoe Wānanga was a life changing experience. It was the permission I was searching for to feel able to identify as Māori. I learnt the meaning of whakapapa. I was safe to explore feelings around my cultural identify that I didn't expect to bubble up and finished with three generations of my whanau now registered with our iwi and about to visit the area, to walk in our awa and on our maunga.

What started as professional development very quickly became personal development. It's so hard to find time in our busy lives to reflect, learn, and grow. This series slows down time and very skilfully challenges belief systems, gives you real life experiences and unforgettable messages through storytelling. 

It's hard to put into words how this series has impacted me - some that come to mind are empowerment, honesty, confrontation, happiness, sadness. It's as focused on the past as the future. It highlights how we are all just a link of a chain in a moment of time. 

In terms of mahi, I now have the fire in my belly to be a voice of equity. To help restore the balance. To speak on behalf of my ancestors and truly, authentically represent Māori in Aotearoa. I am incredibly lucky and grateful to my manager Abbie Bull from Z Energy for allowing me to take this opportunity. We are already making changes to how we do things to better reflect Te Ao Māori and I couldn't be more proud.

- Haley Strickland, Community Specialist, Z Energy

Our third Ki te Hoe learning journey for funders wanting to better support Māori aspirations will start at Matariki this year, with three marae-based wānanga and four online wānanga held between June and December this year.  This collaboration between PNZ and Tūmanako Consultants provides professional and organisational development unique to this land, and comes highly recommended by previous participants. Keep an eye out for where, when and how to register via our newsletter, Giving Matters and our Ki te Hoe page.