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Emily Court

P Kaha General Manager

Tipene Kawana KAIWHAKAIRO | MASTER CARVER

The carvings for the new wharenui at P˜kaha are from locally sourced and ancient totara logs that will last forever.

Traditional M°ori tools such as handheld patu are used to guide the chisels. Tipene Kawana works with fellow kaiwhakairo (carvers)

Carl Rongonui, Tamai Nicholson and Justin Kawana in a purposebuilt whare whakairo (carving workshop).

“The tekoteko has been installed at the centre of the wharenui and shows our ancestor Wh°tonga. We’re now working on the other carvings to be placed around the marae,” Tipene says.

Tipene was born and bred in Masterton. Two local kaum°tua, Mike and Manu, are his older brothers. Tipene’s feet directed him towards carving when he was only ten years old, doing his ÿ rst course with the renowned David Taylor. The desire to carve stayed with him, doing more courses and focusing on carving at the marae at M°koura College.

At an early age Tipene was already teaching other young people how to carve, and so is excited about the possibility of o˝ ering traditional M°ori carving courses to students at P˜kaha in the near future.

“I’ve carved for Hau Ariki marae in Martinborough and, more recently, restored the carvings on Te Amorangi at Whakaoriori marae (UCOL). I’d worked on the originals as an °konga (learner) decades before,” Tipene says.

As well as being known for his M°ori carving, Tipene is internationally famous for his traditional M°ori kites, but he’d rather talk about family than fame. “I’m lucky enough to have a lovely wife and ÿ ve children,” he says.

Tipene has been at P˜kaha for a couple of years now and says, “it’s an honour to carve these ancestors of ours and to know that people in the years to come will be able to embrace their heritage at the wharenui.”

Emily Court became General Manager at P˜kaha about ÿ ve years ago, and has since driven a renewed strategic plan, the rebranding of the environmental centre, and the implementation of the vision of Te Whare Taiao o Manukura.

“We’re enabling young people to learn about the environment through overnight and daytime sessions. We can keep costs low for students because our wonderful new centre will be ÿ nancially sustainable through its use for conferences, weddings, and events. And we’re working in a solid partnership with the original owners of our ngahere: Rangit°ne. The marae attached to the education centre is their space.”

Emily’s career has been in commerce, banking, and economic development, largely based in Christchurch and Auckland. For four years, she worked in the earthquake recovery domain including Christchurch’s rebuilding of its business sector and international education industry. Having moved to Wellington to take on a role for a couple of years at the Public Trust, she met the man who

Kelly Body POU MĀTAURANGA | EDUCATION DIRECTOR

was to become her life partner, based herself in rural Carterton on a 200-acre block, and took on the exciting and challenging GM role at P˜kaha.

As a charity, P˜kaha relies on donations and doesn’t make a proÿ t. Every cent is reinvested back into the ngahere, its wildlife, and the team of nearly 40 sta˝ who manage the centre’s conservation plan, predator management, professional environmental education, marketing, and tourism.

“An amazing team has gathered around me,” Emily says, “and made our next steps with Te Whare Taiao possible.”

Kelly Body, Pou M˜tauranga (Education Director) at P°kaha since 2021, comes to her role with qualiÿ cations in zoology, ecology, and science communications, as well as a tonne of experience and enthusiasm. Previous roles include four years of designing online science lessons for national and international schools and completing an internship with Zealandia’s education team.

“It is such a privilege to be working for P°kaha,” Kelly says. “The knowledge of the sta˝ here is second to none and everyone is so welcoming and willing to share that knowledge.”

Sponsorship from Farman Turkington Forestry enables P°kaha to run a car and go as far as Feilding and Wellington for outreach science lessons. P°kaha also has a “beautiful partnership” with REAP, enabling community workshops and school visits.

“The opening of Te Whare Taiao now enables us to o˝ er amazing on-site sessions,” Kelly says.

“Our core sessions o˝ er a broad introduction to local history, ˙ ora and fauna, conservation heroes, evolution, and threats.

Then there are Rangit˜ne-speciÿ c sessions and ‘teaching the teacher’ sessions. We also o˝ er customised sessions to align with secondary school unit standards.”

Nocturnal visits include discovering weta, lizards and invertebrates, and hearing nocturnal birds such as ruru (morepork). “Sometimes we even see them,” Kelly says in excitement. Dawn walks encompass the dawn chorus and the rising of the sun. Fresh water lessons include tuna (eels) and kˆura (freshwater crayÿ sh).

“We’re taking bookings for terms three and four this year,” Kelly says.

“Now’s the time to contact us.”

Lester Wolfreys

Programme Manager

Principal of the management consultancy company Focus Consulting, and with decades of experience behind him consulting in the public sector and with not-for-proÿ t organisations, Lester Wolfreys was the ÿ rst choice of the P˝kaha Board as Programme Manager for Te Whare Taiao o Manukura.

His successful feasibility study was followed by an equally impressive business case. Funds approved from the government’s Provincial Growth Fund and its successor K°noa provided cornerstone funding; to be met dollar for dollar by P˝kaha from other sources.

The opening of Te Whare Taiao o Manukura is “testament to the skills and commitment of all involved. We’ve experienced the highest in˙ ation in decades, price pressures, lack of supply of materials, and geo-tech and septic system issues that needed to be overcome,” Lester says.