New faces join kaitiakitanga team

Former grant recipients bring their skills home to help continue driving the Incorporation’s kaitiakitanga strategic focus forward.

Dion Luke (Ngāruahine) has taken on the role of Kaitiakitanga Project Coordinator and Oriana Van Nistlerooy (Ngāti Ruanui) is the Kaitiakitanga Strategy Intern.

The Kaitiakitanga Strategy is an operational framework that aims to reconnect Taranaki Māori people with the land and the resources it holds while ensuring PKW is an environmentally sustainable business with Māori tikanga at its heart.

“It’s great to have the experience, qualifications and skills Dion and Oriana bring with them on the team as we continue to implement the projects laid down in the strategy,” says Mitchell Ritai, General Manager Shareholder Engagement at PKW. “These roles have been created as a result of the commitment PKW has to its role as kaitiaki of our whenua for future generations.”

Dion was the 2018 Mate ki Tawhiti Carr Scholar and has just completed five years of university study gaining a BSc in Environment and Society and a Masters in Planning from Lincoln University.

One of his first priorities is progressing the work being done to provide access to wāhi tapu situated on PKW whenua and investigating ways of enabling mahinga kai, or cultural harvesting.

He is also investigating the work local environmental groups are involved in, with a view to creating mutually beneficial partnerships.

“There is a lot of expectation and challenge associated with this role,” says Dion. “So it has been exciting to join this very committed team and get to work. The Kaitiakitanga Strategy encompasses so many important elements that making sure we maintain a balanced and coherent approach is going to be key.

“There are so many factors at play when it comes to caring for our whenua, the promised new legislation from the Government around the management of fresh water being a good example, so I am going to be very busy!”

Oriana, also a former PKW grant recipient, has been focusing on the mātauranga Māori elements of the water monitoring project, which will complement the Stream Health Monitoring and Assessment Kit (SHMAK) science-based investigations which have already begun. She joined PKW for the 10-week summer internship after completing her

Postgraduate Diploma in Environmental Science.

“Cultural research like this is a new approach for me as my degree was very much from the Western science side of things,” she said. “It has been an amazing experience hearing the kōrero from iwi explaining what a healthy environment looks like to them. It has also been important to understand what animals and plants are regarded as taonga and held in high value by Taranaki Māori.”

The response to Oriana’s work has been over-whelmingly positive, with many people wanting to get involved.

“Dion and Oriana have already had a positive impact on the mahi being done in this area in the short time they have been with us,” says Mitchell. “It is particularly gratifying that these two former grant recipients have come home to give us the benefit of the skills they have learned. We are looking forward to seeing the progress they make going forward.”