University of Canterbury announces Office of Treaty Partnership, the Ngāi Tahu Centre

Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu and Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | the University of Canterbury (UC) have announced the establishment of an Office of Treaty Partnership, Kā Waimaero | the Ngāi Tahu Centre.

Today’s announcement signals progressive new changes to the structure of the University to acknowledge mana whenua Treaty Partners – believed to be a first for Aotearoa New Zealand universities. The UC Council and the board of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu have endorsed the establishment of an Office of Treaty Partnership on campus.

The establishment of the Ngāi Tahu Centre will create a tangible space that represents the partnership and works directly with the Vice-Chancellor to oversee the implementation of the partnership agreement and provide strong Māori academic leadership on a pan-university basis.

Associate Professor Te Maire Tau, who is also Ngāi Tūāhuriri Ūpoko, will become *Pou Whakarae of the Ngāi Tahu Centre, signifying a direct relationship with the Tumu Whakarae | Vice-Chancellor Professor Cheryl de la Rey, and a commitment to working towards an education system that includes te ao Māori, Māori world views and mātauranga, and upholding Te Tiriti o Waitangi at the University of Canterbury.

“We are inspired by the Ngāi Tahu whakataukī: mō tātou, ā, mō kā uri ā muri ake nei – for us and our children after us,” Professor De la Rey says.

“This is a journey the University of Canterbury began a long time ago in developing a greater understanding of cultural inclusiveness and the principles of the Te Tiriti o Waitangi in action. Building a strong relationship with Ngāi Tūāhuriri and Ngāi Tahu is fundamental to continuing our bicultural journey and engaging our Māori community. This is the practical manifestation of that,” she says.

The Ngāi Tahu Centre will enable the exploration and demonstration of academic achievement in all disciplines, its Pou Whakarae says, as well as upholding the mana and aspirations of tangata whenua.

“This is not just about mātauranga. This will contribute to the relevance of the University to the regional economy and to Māori,” Associate Professor Tau says. “This is a tangible demonstration of our strong Treaty relationship, and we look forward to cementing this further through this office and future initiatives.”

Kā Waimaero is the reo name for the Ngāi Tahu Centre, as it is grounded in the landscape, and it is part of the University of Canterbury.

Background

Ngāi Tūāhuriri and Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | the University of Canterbury signed a partnership agreement in March 2019 at Tuahiwi marae to formalise and extend the longstanding relationship between the hapū, including reconfirming the relationship with Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, and the University.

The agreement, which outlined the principles and mechanisms for working together into the future, is consistent with Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles. This includes supporting the use of te reo and Tikanga Māori at UC and supporting Ngāi Tūāhuriri and Ngāi Tahu students and aspirations for Ngāi Tahu development in the Waitaha Canterbury region and beyond. This relationship was originally signed by the previous Ūpoko, H.R. Tau, in 2001.

Since the signing of the partnership, the Director of the Ngāi Tahu Research Centre, and current Ngāi Tūāhuriri Ūpoko, Associate Professor Te Maire Tau and Vice-Chancellor Professor Cheryl de la Rey have met regularly to discuss academic strategy, investment opportunities, ceremonial activities, and the hosting of UC guests.

*Pou Whakarae is a term associated with the main post of a palisade within a pā, fortified village. It can also be interpreted as a prominent figure, or stalwart. Reflecting the Treaty partnership between Ngāi Tūāhuriri and Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | the University of Canterbury, the name also aligns with other naming conventions on campus, notably the Tumu Whakarae | Vice-Chancellor. Tumu Whakarae being a large carved post in the palisading of a pā, or the chief of highest rank, or chief executive. The common denominator between the two roles – whakarae – acknowledges the partnership between mana whenua and the institution, and more specifically, the working relationship between the Pou Whakarae and Tumu Whakarae.

Ka whakatū a Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha i te Tari Mana Tiriti, Kā Waimaero

Ka whakatū a Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu me Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha i te Tari Mana Tiriti, Kā Waimaero | the Ngāi Tahu Centre.

He tohu tēnei i ngā hurihanga hou kei te Whare Wānanga, me te herenga ō Tāngata Tiriti kia Mana Whenua i runga i te mana ō te Tiriti – he tuatahitanga tēnei ki roto i ngā whare wānanga ō Aotearoa me Te Waipounamu. Kua whakamana Te Kaunihera o Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha me Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu ki te whakatū i te Tari Mana Tiriti ki runga i taua whare wānanga.

He tohu te whakatū i Kā Waimaero i te herenga me te mahi ngātahi ō Mana Whenua ki te Tumu Whakarae, kia whakahaere i a rātou whakaaetanga mātāpono, me te akiaki i te mana whakatipu ō Ngāi Māori ki roto i ngā whare wānanga puta noa i te motu.

Ka riro a Ahorangi Tūhono Te Maire Tau, Upoko ō Ngāi Tūāhuriri, i te tūranga hou a *Pou Whakahaere ō Kā Waimaero. Ka mahi ngātahi a ia ki Tumu Whakarae Ahorangi Cheryl de la Rey, me te aro ki te pūnaha mātauranga, ngā kaupapa ō Te Ao Māori, ngā Tikanga Māori, Mātauranga Māori me te whakamana i te Tiriti o Waitangi ki Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha.

Hai tā Ahorangi De la Rey; “E ngākau nui ana mātou ki te whakataukī a Ngāi Tahu: mō tātou, ā, mō kā uri ā muri ake nei”

“Kua roa nei a Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha e whakawhanake ana i tō mātou māramatanga ki te whakawhaiti ahurei me te kawe i ngā whanonga pono ō Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Mā te hāpai i te hononga ki waenga i a mātou ko Ngāi Tūāhuriri me Ngāi Tahu ka koke haere tō mātou tikanga rua, me te manawanui ki tō tātou hāpori Māori. Koinei te hua ō ērā wawata,”
Hai tā te Pou Whakarae; ka taea e Kā Waimaero, te ruku, te whakaatu hoki i ngā whakatutukitanga ō te mātauranga i roto i ngā momo akoranga katoa. Ka hāpai hoki i te mana me ngā wawata ō tāngata whenua.

“Ehara ko te mātauranga Māori anake te take. Ka whakaatu te Whare Wānanga nei i tōna whaitake ki te taiōhanga rohe me Te Ao Māori”, hai tā Ahorangi Tūhono Tau. “He whakakitenga tēnei i te mana ō te Tiriti, tāria te wā ka puta ngā hua mai i tēnei tari, ka tino harikoa.”

Ko Kā Waimaero te ingoa Māori mō te Ngāi Tahu Centre, ka tapaina tēnei ingoa hai tūhonohono ki te whenua ō tēnei rohe, me te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha.

Whakamārama

I te marama ō Maehe 2019, i hainatia e Ngāi Tūāhuriri me Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha i tētahi whakaaetanga mātāpono ki te marae ō Tuahiwi e whakamana ana i te herenga ki te hapū, me te whakahou i te herenga ki te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu hoki.

Ki roto i te whakaaetanga mātāpono, ko ngā whanonga pono me ngā rautaki mō te mahi ngātahi a ngā rōpū nei, ka whakapū ki ngā mātāpono ō te Tiriti o Waitangi. Ka hui katoa ngā kaupapa ō Te Reo Māori, ngā tikanga Māori ki te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha, te tautoko i ngā tauira me ngā wawata ō Ngāi Tūāhuriri, ō Ngāi Tahu hoki ki roto i te rohe ō Waitaha, ā puta noa. Nā te Upoko ō mua a H.R.Tau i whakamana i te tau 2001.

Nā te hainatanga ō tēnei whakaaetanga mātāpono, kua kaha hui a Ringatohu ō Kā Waimaero, te Upoko ō Ngāi Tūāhuriri a Ahorangi Tūhono Te Maire Tau me Tumu Whakarae Cheryl de la Rey i ngā kaupapa ō te rautaki mātauranga, mahi haumi, tikanga me te manaaki manuhiri.

*Ko te Pou Whakarae he kupu e hāngai ki ngā pou ō te pā, ki tētahi tangata aukaha hoki. Kua tapaina tēnei ingoa mō te tūranga hou kia whakaatu i te herenga ō Ngāi Tūāhuriri me te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha. Ka hono hoki tēnei ingoa ki tētahi tūranga kē o te Whare Wānanga, arā, ko te Tumu Whakarae | Vice-Chancellor. Ko te Tumu Whakaraehe, he pou nui o te pā, he kupu anō mō te kaiwhakahaere matua ō tētahi kamupene. Ko te mea ōrite ō ēnei ingoa, ko te kupu whakarae – e whakamānawa ana i te herenga ō mana whenua ki te whakanōhanga ō te Whare Wānanga. Mātua i tērā ko te mahi ngātahi ā te Pou Whakarae me te Tumu Whakarae.