Latest news with #tamariki
RNZ News
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Mātauranga Māori science fair applies traditional thinking to modern-day problems
William Anaru said Te Arawa Lakes Trust always intended to expand the fair beyond Rotorua. Photo: Supplied/Cornell Tukiri A Rotorua-based science fair engaging tamariki in mātauranga Māori is expanding its registrations to the entire country for the first time. Te Tūkohu Ngāwhā Mātauranga Māori Science and Design Fair is run by Te Arawa Lakes Trust and, this year, it will be held from 23-25 July at the Rotorua Energy Events Centre. Te Arawa Lakes Trust environment manager William Anaru (Te Arawa) said the fair began as an idea five years ago to engage more tamariki around Rotorua in science. "The science fair wasn't just aimed at your traditional western science model, we also incorporated mātauranga Māori, sustainable design, we've got an art component and, this year, we are looking at climate resilience." Since it began, the fair has grown significantly, with a huge variety of projects, from exhibits on rongoā Māori to a camera used to identify invasive catfish, he said. "Last year, the winner of the science fair, their team actually put in an exhibition that looked at whether or not Hinemoa could hear the flute of Tutanekai, when the sound was going across the lake, so the level of things that kids are testing these days is pretty remarkable." The team determined that, yes, [ Hinemoa could have heard Tutanekai's koauau] (flute) across the waters of Rotorua, although Anaru said, these days, there was a lot more background noise. "It's not just baking soda volcanoes - there's quite a lot of variety," he said. Anaru said Te Arawa Lakes Trust had always intended to expand the fair beyond Rotorua. This year, students as far afield as Fielding, Tokoroa, Auckland and Whangārei had entered. "We just want to continue to grow it and grow it and grow it, because some of the ideas that these kids have, they are pretty awesome to hear. "It's all about providing a platform for them to showcase their ideas and show it to an audience that is open to soaking up some of that stuff." Mātauranga Māori has assisted larger projects in the Rotorua, such as uwhi - a large harakeke mat that was used to suppress invasive weeds on the lake beds, he said. "There are definitely things that our ancestors - not just the ancestors of Māori, but from around the world - there's ideas that have been shared for thousands of years between different groups. "There's elements of all those ideas that input into modern science, as well as mātauranga, so I do think there are solutions for everything that we've got facing us." Anaru said people just had to be open and willing to adopt some of those ideas, and that was why they wanted to give children from around the North Island a platform to showcase their ideas. Whangamarino School principal Rehua Mihaka (Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Rongomai) said they have been involved with the fair for the last two years. Last year, projects among the school students focussed on the water quality of Lake Rotoiti, which was right on the school's doorstep. "This was really good for our tuākana [older class] to actually monitor the mauri - or the life of our waters - how clean it was, how polluted it was and gauge what can we do as kaitiaki to fix te mauri o te wai." At this stage, Mihaka said having a hands-on experience might not mean a lot to the kids, but one day, they might look back, and realise the connection between water quality and health. "Ko te kōrero ka hoatu au ki ngā tamariki, ki te ora te wai ka ora te whenua, ka pērā hoki ki te ora te whenua ka ora te wai, ki te ora te wai me te whenua ka ora te tangata. "It's all about us giving back to our taiao [environment] and those are the sorts of teachings we want our tamariki to come away with." The fair definitely improves the tamariki's understanding of the western sciences, as well as mātauranga Māori, he said. When the kids see mātauranga Māori and western science being treated equally, they get very excited. "Ka tino harikoa ngā tamariki ki te kite i te tauritetanga o ngā mātauranga Māori ki tō ngā mātauranga pūtaiao. "They actually do get excited, when they find those findings within their studies." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
New Report Confirms Oranga Tamariki Is Failing Tamariki And Government Is Failing Māori
Press Release – Green Party We cannot continue to repeat history and pave the way for another Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. We cannot let the Government give up on our most vulnerable kids by repeating cycles that have been continuing for generations. A new report, 'Outcomes for tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau in the oranga tamariki system 2023/24,' has confirmed that Oranga Tamariki is severely failing our most vulnerable Māori youth. 'The Government is setting our tamariki up to fail by throwing them into a system that harms instead of helps our kids who are most in need,' says the Green Party's spokesperson for Children, Kahurangi Carter. 'Our tamariki and rangatahi deserve to be loved, nurtured and safe in whānau and communities that have what they need to support their wellbeing. 'Today's report confirms that tamariki and rangatahi Māori are significantly over-represented in the Oranga Tamariki system and significantly under-supported. Māori youth make up two-thirds of those in state care, and make up almost 50 per cent of reports of concern made to Oranga Tamariki. 'We cannot continue to repeat history and pave the way for another Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. We cannot let the Government give up on our most vulnerable kids by repeating cycles that have been continuing for generations. 'Minister Chhour has deliberately undermined Oranga Tamariki by scrapping 7AA and cutting $120m of funding for services contracted to support vulnerable youth. This resulted in Kōkiri Marae, a marae which runs education, health and social services in Pito-one, losing $1.5 million of funding overnight. This is unacceptable. 'A Green Government would create a system that centres tamariki Māori in all levels of government, with dedicated structures that ensure accountability to them. We will uphold the tino rangatiratanga of every tamaiti by centring whakapapa and te ao Māori, with whānau and hapū leading decisions affecting tamariki and rangatahi. 'The oranga of our tamariki and rangatahi must be at the heart of decision-making. It really is as simple as that,' says Kahurangi Carter. Notes Other key outcomes of the report are: Māori who have been in care are far more likely to face mental health issues and housing instability as adults. Intergenerational cycles persist, with 70% of Māori parents who were in care now having children involved with OT. Despite some efforts, the below barriers persist: High thresholds mean many reports of concern result in no action. Whānau-led processes like Family Group Conferences are under-resourced and poorly implemented. Early support is often missed, increasing the risk of deeper system involvement. Funding decisions have undermined trust and reduced effective services, particularly for iwi and kaupapa Māori providers. There is insufficient prioritisation across agencies and siloed approaches worsening outcomes.
RNZ News
11-06-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Oranga Tamariki report finds stark outcomes for Māori in state care system
Independent Children's Monitor chief executive Arran Jones said the report was a "story of consequence" and of needs not addressed Photo: RNZ The Independent Children's Monitor has found Māori children in the Oranga Tamariki system are overrepresented and being let down; and the outcomes for Māori adults involved in the system when they were younger "paint a stark picture", with higher mortality rates over time than those not involved. Those same adults who had experience in custody or in care were nine times more likely to have used emergency housing as an adult and half as likely to be in employment, Children's Monitor chief executive Arran Jones said. He said the report was a "story of consequence" and of needs not addressed by a system that could not always get the right support in place at the right time. "The needs of tamariki and rangatahi then multiply as they escalate through the system." The inaugural report in a new annual series, focused on whether the system was delivering outcomes for tamariki and rangatahi Māori, looked at the period between 1 July 2023, to 30 June 2024. What this report did, compared to the usual monitoring of Oranga Tamariki operational activities, was "lifting up and looking at outcomes in terms of the life course for young people and their experiences", Jones said. The report emphasised that most young Māori had no involvement in the Oranga Tamariki system. Jones said this context was important because narratives can "get away on us." A third of those aged between zero and 18 in New Zealand were Māori - around 330,000 young people. In the 2023/24 reporting year: But when young Māori are involved in the system, "there are increasing levels of over-representations" Jones said. The report stated the over-representation of Māori at every level within the care and protection system was a "clear indicator the system is not performing". Around half of the reports of concern made to Oranga Tamariki were about tamariki and rangatahi Māori, the report showed. They also made up two-thirds of young people in state care, and more than three-quarters of those in youth justice custody. In 2022, young Māori in care or custody achieved education qualifications at almost half the rate of Māori with no involvement in the system; those in the Oranga Tamariki system were significantly more likely to be hospitalised for self-harm than those not; those in care used mental health and addiction services at nearly five times the rate of those not involved, and rangatahi Māori in youth justice custody used those services at 15 times the rate. "Considering 92 percent of these rangatahi had reports of concern made about their safety and wellbeing when they were younger, this is no surprise," said Jones. When it came to involvement with the police, data showed a difference in the severity of proceedings against tamariki and rangatahi Māori in 2023/24: Jones said the further these young people went into care, the worse their short- and long-term outcomes. For older Māori between 27 and 30 who had been through the care and protection system, the report said their outcomes were "sobering". "The data paints a stark picture of the consequence of the Oranga Tamariki system not doing more to help." "Māori adults who had been in the system as children are less likely to be employed, less likely to have a driver licence, more likely to be on a benefit, more likely to be in emergency housing, and more likely to be hospitalised for self-harm than Māori who had no involvement. "Mortality rates are double or triple those of Māori with no involvement in the Oranga Tamariki system for vehicle accidents and for self-harm (including suicide)." Jones said 10 in 1000 of those young Māori will have taken their own lives by the age of 27 to 30. And for Māori parents between 27 and 30 who had previously been in care themselves, 68 percent had children involved with Oranga Tamariki in some way and one in eight have had one or more children in care at some point. It acknowledged some progress was being made, but "barriers" remained. Improving outcomes would require tough decisions on where to prioritise services and sharing power and funding, it said. ACT MP and Children's Minister Karen Chhour. Photo: NZME / Mark Mitchell Other key findings: The focus to date for the Independent Children's Monitor had been the experiences of young people in state care, but it was mandated to look at the whole Oranga Tamariki system, including youth justice and intervention services. "Our legislation requires that we also do an annual report on outcomes for tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whanau for the very reason that they are over represented in the system," Jones said. He acknowledged some of this data had been reported about young people generally, but this was the first time a lot of it had been focused on young people with experience in the system. He said what was important was the extent of the disparity and outcomes. The report looked at the aspirations of those in the system, and found those were not "that much different from all children in New Zealand", Jones said. "They all want to aspire, to be healthy and happy, to have jobs, to be well-educated and to have children that they can keep safe and secure and go on [and live] happy lives." The report showed that was not happening, he said, and made a strong case for investing early before the impact of what brought them to Oranga Tamariki's attention multiplied as they went through the system. He acknowledged Oranga Tamariki had made progress in terms of frameworks and approaches to work better with tamariki Māori and their whānau, but there were operational barriers that remained preventing staff from working in the way they wanted. The report also pointed to changes in funding and contracts impacting on relationships or the ability to maintain a trusted relationship. Jones said he had heard from families, providers and Oranga Tamariki's own staff about the cuts to funding and services making it harder for them to get the help that young people need. "That's a message that's come through clearly." Jones acknowledged Oranga Tamariki could not control the reports of concern that come to the agency, but once it became aware, "it's about what level of investment is made right across the system to support these families so things don't escalate, and hopefully that young people can go on and lead good lives". He stressed the finding that 92 percent of young Māori involved in the youth justice system had concerns raised about their safety and wellbeing when they were younger, and said there was opportunity for the system to prevent some of the later behaviours that led to offending if the right support was put in place at an early stage. "It creates this decision to be made about whether you build more ambulances at the bottom of the cliff and you deal with the harm that results, both to young people but also to communities, or whether there's an opportunity to invest much earlier." The report highlighted various partnerships with iwi as positive examples of intervention, particularly in the space of youth justice. Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver The report highlighted various partnerships with iwi as positive examples of intervention, particularly in the space of youth justice. It described Oranga Tamariki delegating powers and functions to Best Care (Whakapai Hauora) Charitable Trust - a subsidiary of the iwi authority for Rangitāne o Manawatū - since 2020, allowing for a youth justice social worker in this particular role. The report said Whakapai Hauora worked to prevent rangatahi from reoffending. The Trust could facilitate FGCs, as well as engage rangatahi involved in youth justice in a range of initiatives. These included Mana Wahine (life skills for female rangatahi who have offended), Mana Taiohi (restorative FGC plans) and Whakapai te Waka (where rangatahi work to pay for their reparations). Other wraparound services included gym visits or community-based clinical support for mental health issues and alcohol and drug use. Many of the programmes were run in groups, with whānau included, which the Children's Monitor heard were more successful than conventional approaches and led to better outcomes. The report said it was hard to measure the impact of different approaches, but Oranga Tamariki said one marker of success for the youth justice delegation in Rangitāne was that for many years only one rangatahi referred to Whakapai Hauora had been proceeded to a court order. Another example it gave was that some rangatahi who had completed youth justice programmes with Whakapai Hauora had returned as mentors. It also described the case of a young man who had committed retail crime, but was now employed by the company he had stolen from. "This transformation is the result of the Whakapai Hauora whakaoranga process, where all parties met to hold the tāne accountable for his offending. "We heard that this was made possible by "the aunties" who build and maintain strong community relationships and work in a te ao Māori way that meets the requirements of the Oranga Tamariki Act and Oranga Tamariki practice standards." Wayne Blissett, executive director at Whakapai Hauora, told RNZ the devolution of those powers meant they carried on with the statutory obligations but were able to do so in a way that allowed "culture and meaning to be delivered in a conducive environment to healing and change". "The opportunity for whanāu to take the chance for change is a lot more conducive in an environment which is supportive, acknowledging, and I think fair." He said when those processes were delivered in a "mana-enhancing" way, it empowered whānau to make positive choices about some of the changes they wanted to make. He referenced the example of the young man gaining employment where he had offended, saying when the victim saw the opportunity to be a part of the solution and work with the person that offended against them "that's pretty amazing". Blissett believed the best way of improving outcomes for young Māori overall was to prevent them coming into care in the first place, which required earlier intervention and assessment, building communities, "as well as getting in sooner, better, faster, to create a wraparound support for whānau". "Some of the challenges at the moment is that we're focusing on the individual, I don't like the word, but perpetrator, as opposed to looking at the whole whānau system, and what's created this environment." He said the cycle had to be broken, and to do that required real opportunities with real solutions in a realistic setting for whānau. "If we just keep working with the young people in isolation, we're not actually creating the chance for the whole whānau to break out of the cycle." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
24-05-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
An 'uncle's' Māori-driven rugby camp taking the world by storm
Each camp begins with a kia ora and a hongi. Photo: supplied Admit it, we've all stood in front of the telly to passionately mimic the All Blacks performing "Ka Mate" - and it's not just Kiwis who do. From Aotearoa to Ireland to Japan to Mozambique, Troy Nathan has been touring the world for the past 10 years taking haka and rugby to young, aspiring tamariki of all different backgrounds and cultures. "They want to be future All Blacks regardless of if they're Kiwi or not," Nathan said. "As much as what we're doing overseas promoting our culture and sharing our kaupapa, it's also important for our Māori to understand what we're doing and know how much our culture is appreciated around the world." Haka Rugby Global is a programme with over 30 'born-and-bred Kiwi' coaches, balancing rugby with tikanga Māori, for children aged 8-16 years old. Each camp is kicked off with a pōwhiri, whaikōrero, waiata, and a hongi, and throughout the camp they learn a haka that is specific to the kaupapa. A poroporoaki (farewell) is led by the children at the very end. Each camp is kicked off with a pōwhiri, whaikōrero, waiata, and a hongi, with a poroporoaki (farewell) led by the children at the end. Photo: supplied Nathan said it changes the lives of children over the course of just three days, often leaving parents in tears. The reviews on Facebook show appreciation for a "a unique experience immersed in Māori culture for three days", one read. Another review stated their sons hadn't stopped talking about their experience and practised the haka everywhere they could. "Yeah it is a rugby camp, but there's more alignment with Māori culture," Nathan said. There have also been kids who have gone through the Haka Rugby Global system and became mentors for the younger generations. "To educate kids on a deeper level, that's a massive driving factor for us. But our vision is to utilise multicultural and rugby as a tool to help create future world leaders," Nathan said There are approximately 140 keen kids per camp and each round is funded by parents, it's the interest that keeps the coaches touring. This year, Haka Rugby Global will hit its 100th camp with the biggest one yet to happen in London on 8 August with around 160 kids registered, coincidentally two weeks shy of the Women's Rugby World Cup in England. Tamariki learning a specific haka. Photo: supplied Despite the high number of participants, Nathan said it was "easy" to keep the kids in line. "It's down to the multicultural. When we say, 'hope' (the action), everyone puts their hand on their hips. Whereas if you blow a whistle and you tell them to shut up, they're not going to, right?" "If you tell them to pūkana, everyone will pūkana together - that is the most powerful thing that we do, it's utilising the multicultural, and that's what brings in discipline." The tamariki have also adopted mana waves and words like "tu meke, mōrena, and ka kite" as well, and coaches are referred to as "uncles". Nathan said he does his mahi to show tamariki in Aotearoa that there are professional pathways abroad. "Everywhere I go I represent who I am and my people. It's not just for myself, we're not just representing our family, but we're representing everyone back home." The tino rangatiratanga flag at the front of a group photo. Photo: supplied Nathan (Ngāpuhi) grew up in West-Auckland and was an academy rugby player who ventured to professional rugby in Ireland, Italy, and Scotland respectively. He thought he'd be playing rugby forever. "I went through a transition period where I thought, well, if I finish rugby, I'll be in a rut." So, he propped up a few businesses and when he hung up his boots, he created Haka Rugby Global. "I feel, and especially Kiwis as well, we know how to work outside the box. I think that'd be something that we're brought up with - we know how to go from A to Z and not stumble at C." It was a kaupapa he doesn't want to fizzle out. "It's like a dopamine hit. You just want it again and again and again because you're with the boys the whole time, and you're having [heaps of] giggles and laughs, it's easy. It becomes natural, you want it again." [picture id="4K6Y3QX_pro_aciZ8R3n_jpeg" crop="16x10" layout="full"] Photo: supplied The camp for tamariki is one main driver, but Haka Rugby Global also softens the blow for former professional rugby players transitioning into work, he said. "That's a big focus point of ours because we want our people, especially in Europe that have gone out and played rugby, we want them to succeed as well. "The reason why boys go into a bit of a rut is because they miss the socialism. Like, there's nothing better than playing rugby and you get to travel to all these countries and go to hotels and just meet different cultures." For a lot of the coaches, it was still like being in the professional rugby realm, but they were getting their "wairua fix" through teaching others tikanga Māori, Nathan said. "If the All Blacks weren't [one of] the most dominant teams in the world, we wouldn't be in this situation, but I know deep down that it's the Māori culture, that's what it has done." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
07-05-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
The small regulatory shift that could have big impacts on mokopuna Māori
A'oga Fa'a Samoa. Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly Research shows that when children know who they are and feel strong in their cultural identity, they succeed. So why is the government moving to scrap the requirement for ECE centres to support each child's right to do so? Downgrading a law compelling early childhood centres to acknowledge children's culture is a backward step which may see tamariki Māori left behind while profits are put first, critics say. The government plans to remove the legal requirements for the ECE sector to acknowledge Māori as tangata whenua, to support children's right to cultural confidence and teach about Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Minister for Regulation David Seymour said the changes are to "streamline" operational requirements and reduce the regulatory burden on centres, but opponents said it amounted to recolonisation. "Initially I was angry," said Hawke's Bay-based Kaiako Penina Ria (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Pārau). "Not just for myself, but for my ancestors and whānau that fought for us to be recognised as tangata whenua. From that point of view, it feels like we're starting all over again." Ria said the proposed law change reminded her of the stories she had heard from her grandparents and great-grandparents about how they were treated by the education system. Early Childhood Education teacher Penina Ria (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Pārau) says supporting the culture of tamariki is empowering. Photo: Supplied Assimilation enforced by the Native Schools Act in 1867 saw schooling conducted entirely in English, with the curriculum skewed towards instruction in manual and domestic skills. Mātauranga Māori and cultural practices were sidelined, and for decades Māori were also punished for speaking te reo Māori at school, contributing to the loss of the language and deepening educational inequities. "Our whānau went through so much so we could have the future that they wanted. I feel like it's important that we carry that on for them, and also for our future generations," Ria said. Currently, ECE centres must meet minimum standards set by the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008. The review recommended that only 26 of the current 98 licensing criteria be retained in full with the rest amended, merged, downgraded or removed. "The government is addressing ECE regulations to ensure child safety is priority number one, children's education is number two, and parental choice is number three," Seymour said. "The ethnic background of the child shouldn't have any bearing on this, and providers shouldn't be forced to worry about the treaty when their priorities are keeping children safe and educating." Academic research has previously highlighted the importance of children feeling secure and supported in their culture. "There is little doubt that a secure cultural identity is essential for wellbeing and for educational and societal participation and success. It is a key factor in people's sense of self and their relationships with others," a report commissioned by the Education Review Office (ERO) said. Ria said for preschool children, acknowledging culture included using waiata, karakia, speaking te reo Māori, and teaching of purākau (traditional Māori stories). "We value where they come from, we learn about their whakapapa and what's important to them, a lot of recognition of who they are, their uniqueness. "Working in mainstream and seeing the importance for tamariki Māori, to know where they come from and learn about their heritage. To me, that's important, it's something that I wish I would've had when I was younger." While there was a focus on te ao Māori, ECE centres also support other cultures, such as celebrating the start of Chinese Lunar New Year. Kirikiriroa-based kaiako and NZEI Te Riu Roa Early Childhood representative Zane McCarthy said that while his centre will likely opt to keep the bicultural aspects, he worried some centres would drop them altogether. "There are bad actors. There are bad apples and poor employers who will quash it. It's basically colonisation again." Zane McCarthy is a ECE kaiako based in Kirikiriroa Hamilton. Photo: supplied McCarthy was particularly concerned about the private centres, which he said made up around 75 percent of the sector. "A lot of that 75 percent have profit-driven motives. When you've got a teacher workforce who are crying out for professional development to learn about te ao Māori, they're needing support in order to uphold Te Tiriti and mokopuna Māori. But that comes at a cost, and so when you've got profit-driven motives, they're going to look to scrap that aspect in order to make the bottom line look better." He said there have been big benefits of the cultural requirements in the past. "Whānau have learned, have grown and learnt alongside their tamariki, when they're coming home with new kupu, waiata, purākau, that they're learning from them, and they're becoming even bolder in their own culture and identity as well." Green Party MP and spokesperson for ECE Benjamin Doyle said the move prioritised corporate greed and profit over public good and well-being. "There will be some private ECE owners who are looking to make a profit over everything else, and so they'll see that as an unnecessary thing to do anymore, because it's not related to their licensing, they'll just opt not to." Doyle said celebrating culture and identity can make Māori learners feel seen. "When they are nurtured by waiata and purākau, when they are nurtured by those values of manaakitanga and whānaungatanga, it increases their hauora, their well-being. And that is not intangible, right? It's tangible." By taking the current requirements away, Doyle said, the evidence shows tamariki Māori will not thrive. "Learning does not occur. It cannot occur when we do not celebrate identity and culture. So it will have a huge impact on our tamariki. And we know that when tamariki thrive, whānau thrive, and if tamariki are suffering, whānau suffer." The Early Childhood Council represents childcare centre owners and managers in the ECE sector, speaking for more than 1500 centres across Aotearoa. Early Childhood Council chief executive Simon Laube said he was not concerned the change would result in a lack of acknowledgement of children's culture, and questioned whether they should have even been a requirement for centres to open in the first place. "Was it really right to give it to a service provider as a regulation?" Responding to the argument that private providers will prioritise profit over the well-being of children, Laube said that was not the reality he saw day-to-day. "We spend our time trying to support providers who can't actually pay their current costs of business so they are not profitable and that's a strong kind of trend across the sector. It's quite hard to even really engage with that argument properly, because we're struggling to just keep our centers going with what the current expectations are." Chief executive of the Early Childhood Council Simon Laube. Photo: Supplied Removing requirements around cultural aspects would not even necessarily result in cost-savings, Laube said. "If you really do think about it in terms of business costs, what could they save money on there? You still need to have resources for learning, would they not have language in them? Would they not have people in them? Would that not include culture? It's very hard to cut out culture from a people-based industry." Cabinet has accepted the recommendations, and Regulation Minister David Seymour will introduce the Education and Training (Early Childhood Education Reform) Amendment Bill in July.
