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On flicking through the pages of this issue for the first time, what initially struck me was the important and varied role marae continue to play for whānau and their local communities – the beating heart. Nowhere has this been more apparent in recent times than Takahanga Marae in Kaikōura – the extraordinary effort of…
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As I sat down to reflect on this year my initial thought was how quickly time has rushed by – is that a sign of aging, or is it that I have become so fixated on packing so many things into my life that I have created a new norm? Recently, a wise young person said to me that is OK, as long as they are the right things!
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In the last five years I’ve gone from being a student who happens to be “part Ngāi Tahu” (whatever that means) to a Ngāi Tahu person who happens to be a student. Other than learning about myself and those who came before me, an important part of this never-ending journey is discovering that some things I’ve been taught are “wrong”. One of these things is how to “do research”. This is all in the context that I’m trying my best to conduct a Kaupapa Māori research project in a city which is almost as physically far away as you can get from our takiwā. From where I am in Sheffield, Ōtepoti and Ōtautahi are the two farthest-away cities in the world.
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It became obvious to me that we need to have a hard look at the way we deal with prisoners, youth, and our justice system in general. Before I get into what I mean let me say this: there are many initiatives in place in New Zealand prisons like opportunities to obtain trade skills and NCEA qualifications. The staff are incredible people with genuine care for the boys, and this is in no way a criticism of them or the work they do. It is more my opinion on our society and the current way we do things.
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