Ngāi Tahu ki Waikato

He pēpi

Fallon Wharerauaruhe Dansay Stevens was born at home on the 1 August weighing a healthy 9 pounds.

Fallon is the first pēpi for Tony Stevens and Georgie Dansay (Tūwharetoa) and a first moko for Jane Stevens and Dave Macpherson.

Congratulations to all the whānau, the koru of new life has unfurled to give the whānau such joy after the grief of losing Phyllis, Ron and Peter Stevens in three short years.

Design competition

Young and old are invited to be a part of the creation of a strong symbol of our identity as Kāi Tahu Ki Waikato. We are looking for a design that can be easily recognised as Kāi Tahu but one that also includes the special aspects of the whenua we live in, in the mighty Waikato.

The ultimate use of the design will be for clothing, banners, publications and our Facebook site.
The design needs to include:

• One colour print, pounamu green. To initially be used on a black T-shirt or vest
• Can be used as a small design such as on a pocket and also a large design across the back of the T-shirt or vest, or on a large banner
• Is easily screen-printed.

Send your design in on a PDF to our email address [email protected] or on a plain white A4 page for ease of viewing and printing, and we will send an email back to show that we have received it and can print it. The completion will close on 20 March 2014. A prize of $100 will be given for the final design.

Thanks

I would like to express my immense gratitude to Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu for supporting me through my studies. I was blessed to be awarded a scholarship this year as well as receiving a grant the year before. It has been a long hard road to complete my Bachelor degree in Iwi Environmental Management and the financial support that I received has been invaluable. I am now looking forward to utilising opportunities that enable me to contribute back to our whānau, hapū and iwi.

Issues that risk diluting our shared connection to Papatūānuku must be identified. Rangatiratanga as tangata whenua must be exerted if our children are to have any hope for a decent life in this world of unprecedented climate change. Our tīpuna have left us a legacy of adapting and living sustainably with the whenua. It is our inherent responsibility as kaitiaki to ensure the whakapapa that binds all things physical and spiritual is maintained so that we can educate the corporate mind that we are not separate, but part of the whenua. Nā Brendon Tangiroa.