Manaaki NZ Scholars go on a journey through culture and heritage

Lunch together at Waipū Cove

Our Scholarships and Mentoring team recently organised an educational and memorable trip to Waitangi for our MFAT scholars. Team Leader, Leanne Kapoor reflects on the journey…

Through MFAT enrichment funding, Unitec was able to take ten Manaaki NZ scholars – four from Unitec and another six from Massey and AUT – to the Waitangi Treaty Grounds to learn more about and engage with Te Ao Māori in the beautiful ‘winterless north’.

The programme for the weekend was a simple one –

Arrive in Paihia on the Friday night
Spend Saturday at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, enjoying the guided tour, cultural show and museums
Ferry over to Russell for a little more history
Leave Paihia to come back to Auckland on the Sunday morning, stopping at Opua Kauri Forest Walk and Waipu Cove beach.

While all of this was happening, we invited the scholars to think about how they could be Tangata Tiriti.

Guliano was chosen as the group’s leader

Their reflections on that question were all different. One of our scholars, about to complete her Bachelor of Architectural Studies, shared that she couldn’t think of design as great if it didn’t include the whenua and people since coming to study at Unitec. An AUT scholar, just starting to write up his PhD proposal shared that the trip had expanded his awareness of how important indigenising knowledge and spaces was.

A wonderful reflection came from a Massey scholar, “I brought me, my culture, my faith, my smile and attitude and I can contribute all of that back to Aotearoa while I’m here”.

Enjoy the below images of the trip…