Reconnection key for kaitiakitanga

Whanganui-based Novena McGuckin has been working alongside landowners for more than 20 years. There’s one particular group of owners that she has been working with for about a decade.

“I’ve told them I don’t want to come back, meeting after meeting, hearing them talk about self-governance – they’ve got the pūtea, they’ve got the knowledge, they’ve got the capability to do that. I want to see them do that before I retire. It’s on my bucket list.”

Both Novena and the owners are happy that the application is now with the Māori Land Court to appoint the owners as responsible trustees.

While it’s become easier to engage owners over the last decade, there are still significant challenges, says Novena.

Many owners are living far from their whenua, including across the Tasman. Some don’t have the resources to travel to attend meetings or can’t take time off work to attend online. Many owners are older people and struggle with technology.

There are also historical legacies to contend with – including the mamae of past whenua confiscation and ongoing fragmentation.

“Some of the parents didn’t want their children to go through the hardships and upsets, they didn’t want them to experience that,” says Novena.

The exponential number of owners of whenua Māori is also an issue. “They say it’s only worth a blade of grass, why would I come to a meeting?”

Despite the barriers, Novena says you have to keep trying to reconnect owners with their land.

“It’s about our values – it’s really important in terms of kaitiakitanga, it’s forming that relationship with our owners, it’s about mana whenua, it’s about the mana of the people.”

Te Tumu Paeroa hold more than 300 meetings of owners every year, giving owners information about the land, their whenua trust’s financial position, and facilitating discussion about future opportunities.

“I love going out to owners’ meetings,” says Novena. “I get excited when they bring their whānau along, so that they can succeed, and they can learn.”

Bringing younger generations in early is important, says Novena, and thinking ahead to succession and preparing them for those roles through resources like Te Tumu Paeroa’s governance training Tū Tiaki.

“If we engage early with owners, with one generation, I encourage them to bring their whānau, their children along, so they can hear what’s going on.”

The motivation for engaging with Te Tumu Paeroa for many owners is about working toward self-governance, and for others about hanging on to the land because it’s where they’re from, says Novena.

“They say that’s their connection, that’s their whakapapa, it’s about mana whenua for them. Our whānau came from this land, our tupuna had this whenua.”

Pictured above: Mātanga Tuarā Kawea Novena McGuckin