Ko Mutumutu, ko Mukukai arā ko rāua tahi ngā kaitiaki e aratakitia nei tātou ki a ngā wai puna, ki a ngā wai tai o Toa Rangatira.
Ko tēnei whakaaturanga, he kaupapa whakapīrara atu i ngā ahurea tuakiri nō tuawhakarere. i ngā ahuatanga manaaki a Ngāti Toa Rangatira. He iwi tiaki whenua, he iwi tiaki taonga. Mai i Rangituhi maunga ki Raukawa Moana, tae noa atu ki te Tau Ihu o te waka ā Māui.
Ko te whinga matua o tātou, kia hoki wawe mai te puna o te ora, te mauri whakaora i te tangata, arā, ko Te Awarua o Porirua. He tomokanga nunui, he puna ora roroa huri awhio nei i te Upoko o te Ika. Kia pēnei anō te ahua i ngā ahuatanga o ukiuki. Kāti ake he oranga wai, he oranga tangata!
Koia pū ēnei ngā kaupapa nui whakaharahara e whakaaturia ana ki tēnei whakaaturanga. Ko ngā kōrero tuku iho, ko ngā tikanga manaaki o tuawhakarere, o naianei hoki. Arā hoki ko ngā mate āpiti a te whakatū tāone, te pēhi tikanga, te panoni whakaaro, ngā piki me ngā heke o te pākihi hou. Ko te manako ia, kia whakaohooho ā tātou wairua tiaki kia whakarauora ai ēnei taonga kāmehameha.
Led by Mutumutu and Mukukai, kaitiaki of fresh and saltwater for Ngāti Toa, this exhibition aims to share the cultural values, knowledge and enduring relationship of Ngāti Toa, as kaitiaki mana whenua, to the interconnected water sources of this region. A focus is the urgent return to full health of the once teeming ecosystem of Te Awarua o Porirua, the largest estuary in the lower North Island, and all waterways that must continue to sustain life and wellbeing. The protection and care of these taonga is explored through narratives past and present to illustrate the effects of urbanisation and degradation. Current activities and cultural practice to restore the ecosystem of Porirua’s harbour, Te Awarua o Porirua – integral to the identity of Ngāti Toa and the heart of the community – is also examined.
Developed in partnership with Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira.
He whakaaturanga tēnei e whakahaere ngātahi ki Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira.
Image: Maungaroa Punga a Kupe, anchor stone, 700-900AD. Collection of Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand and Ngāti Toa Rangatira ME015920
