New visitor centre a living thing
Water features will ensure Waikaremoana Tribal Authority's new visitor centre is in keeping with its rainforest...
Tanatana Marae in Waimana has won the commercial/industrial architectural design section award. The award is based on Ngāti Rere's new building which cost $300,000. This project is about incorporating traditional ideas with a contemporary twist. Marae committee representative Martin Rakuraku told Te Kāea they wanted to move with the times, “We thought we would incorporate a house to cater to two purposes; a place to mourn and...
In New Zealand, Lands and Rivers Can Be People
Can a stretch of land be a person in the eyes of the law? Can a body of water? In New Zealand, they can. A former national park has been granted personhood, and a river system is expected to receive the same soon. The unusual designations, something like the legal status that corporations possess, came out of agreements between New Zealand’s government and Maori groups. The two sides have argued for years over guardianship of the...
There must be something in the air at Ruataahuna. More than 30 years after the death of the beloved performer Prince Tui Teka his hometown is still pumping out talented...
Thousands expected for Tuhoe festival
About 20,000 people are expected to descend on the Rūātoki Valley in eastern Bay of Plenty over Easter for the biggest event on the Tūhoe calendar. Te Hui Ahurei a Tūhoe is a festival held every two years to bring the iwi together to celebrate and preserve its traditions. The festival began more than 40 years ago when Tūhoe from Auckland and Wellington met in Rotorua to compete against each other in a game of rugby. Since then its grown...
New kapa haka to debut at Tuhoe festival
A new kapa haka, formed to reconnect young people living in urban centres to their roots in Ruatoki, will perform at Tuhoe's Te Ahurei festival this...