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Oranga Tamariki apologises for legal doc containing 'erroneous' info,

A mother says Oranga Tamariki has made a series of “absolutely huge” mistakes in an affidavit that has been filed with the Family Court in a child custody case.But despite acknowledging the sworn document contains “erroneous” information, the state entity charged with protecting the most vulnerable children in Aotearoa has done nothing to fix it.“They’re dealing with the lives of people – and especially children – who are already really vulnerable. They have the power to rob fami...

Ngāti Pikiao mourns the loss

Ngapera Bella Pēti was regarded as a pillar of Ngāti Pikiao Koeke and Te Pukenga Koeke o Te Arawa.She was the "crack up" aunty at every kaupapa, a fantastic cook and a mother of many, including the world-famous Māori kai gatherer, qualified chef and television presenter, Peter Pēti.Peter Pēti says his inspiration and determination to become a Kai gatherer, qualified chef and TV presenter, came from his mother Ngapera.Link to article: Ngāti Pikiao mourns the loss of beloved kuia | Te A...

Tūwharetoa opens its first five affordable homes

An iwi-led housing initiative in Tūrangi has opened its first five affordable rental homes designed to help reduce the effects of the housing crisis on its people.Read this story in te reo Māori and English here. / Pānuitia tēnei i te reo Māori me te reo Pākehā ki konei.On Wednesday, a Tūwharetoa Settlement Trust subsidiary, He Iwi Kāinga, opened five of 14 new homes planned for a strip of land between Te Iwiheke Pl and Maria Pl.Tūwharetoa Settlement Trust chairperson Rakeipoho Taiaroa...

I Can’t Live Without Her:

KEY POINTSThe death of a spouse affects people differently, but many experience negative health effects.Men and women are affected differently by the death of a spouse.Man have a higher likelihood of dying themselves after the death of their spouse than women do.Link to article: I Can’t Live Without Her: When Grieving Men Die | Psychology Today...

Three Waters reform:

Hawke’s Bay mayors have had a local council equivalent of winning the Ranfurly Shield as the Government scrapped its mega-entities Three Waters plan.The region was the source of the original plan, which stemmed from inquiries into the Havelock North water crisis seven years ago. The plan announced in 2020 proposed that control of drinking, waste and stormwater management by 67 councils would be taken over by four new regional entities by July next year.Local Government Minister Kieran McAnulty...

Three Waters reset

Tainui chair Tuku Morgan says iwi around Aotearoa will be jumping for joy with the changes to the Government’s contentious Three Waters reforms.Morgan, who was last year appointed to lead the northern Three Waters Iwi body, said they had last week met Ministers Kieran McAnulty, Willie Jackson, Kiritapu Allan and Kelvin Davis and had three bottom lines that they would not budge on.The iwi leaders make up the Water Forum and Morgan said their concerns were warmly received by the ministerial dele...

Call centre startup wants to employ

A contact centre startup is on a mission to help 100 single Māori māmā by offering flexible, home-based work.Rohario Rangihaeata​, owner of majority Māori-owned contact centre business Wairua Pai, said her aim was to lift mothers, their households and whānau.“It’s about giving back to our community, being of service, and inspiring leadership within whānau through employment,” she said.Wairua Pai is a joint venture between Waha – the Māori Creative Agency and contact centre techn...

The mood in Te Pūkenga

A good employer wouldn’t go on the radio and tell his workers that up to a thousand job cuts were on the way, you would think.Te Pūkenga, the entity Chief Executive Peter Winder heads up, includes around 8,000 staff from the 16 former polytechnics who provide vocational education and training.A little over a week ago, Winder told Kathryn Ryan—not his workers directly, but through a radio interview—that Te Pūkenga is part of “a fundamental shift in the way that people engage in tertiary...

Libraries branching out

New research shows that libraries are “more than just books”, according to a libraries advisor from Local Government New Zealand.Marion Read presented the findings of the research to Tararua District Council’s Community Development and Wellbeing committee last week.The research was conducted by consultancy Frank Advice and included an overview of literature, surveys and case studies.Tararua District has four libraries: Dannevirke, Pahiatua, Woodville and Eketahuna.Link to article: Lib...

How has Govt got into such a mess

f passed, the Therapeutic Products Bill would create a regime administered by an “independent registrar”, who is also a Ministry of Health employee. There is no guaranteed role for Māori in its operation, let alone in key decisionsOpinion: The Therapeutic Products Bill before Parliament’s health select committee is a total can of worms. The Government has really messed it up by deciding, for no obvious reason, to reject the advice of Te Aka Whai Ora (the new Māori Health A...

University launches emergency scholarship

Students are struggling so much with rising costs that one university has launched an emergency scholarship.Another has warned that the pressure is causing serious mental health problems such as depression and anxiety.Student leaders say it is has never been so tough to be a student.Here's education correspondent John Gerritsen.Link to Morning Report: University launches emergency scholarship for struggling students | RNZ...

Te Pukenga survey reveals

A newly released survey of staff at Te Pukenga finds one in three staff do not believe they have a future with the new mega polytech, and the vast majority would not recommend working there to family or friends.The survey was conducted in October and November last year and responded to by over four thousand three hundred staff, or 50 per cent.The results show only 12% of those surveyed said they understood how the changes will impact on them and the work they do. Staff reported feeling anxiety a...

Collecting Māori census data

A leading Māori demographer says Statistics New Zealand needs to adopt a wider whānau approach to improve collection of census data from and about Māori and Pacific populations.Professor Tahu Kukutai from Waikato University’s Te Ngira Institute for Population Research says Stats NZ learned a lot from the troubled 2018 Census, where responses fell to 83 per cent.The 2023 census is tracking even worse as it operates in a low trust environment with a lot of disinformation in the community.As o...

Youth plan pitched for Hamilton

Amidst frustration about youngsters doing ram raids and robberies, Hamilton’s council is considering a wider youth action plan.This would be on top of a recent $1m from the Government for crime prevention, for which a project list is nearly complete.City councillors, some wary of forking out extra money on a plan, have agreed to have a working group look at how existing youth organisations could work closer with the council.A gap analysis will also see what new youth sector initiatives are nee...

Lifting the veil:

In the old days of medical education, little thought was given to the emotional and spiritual weight of dissecting a human body. First-year medical student Ronan Payinda explains how that’s changed – and not just for those holding the scalpel.Before I first cut into a dead body, it was as if there had been a curtain blocking me from a clear view of mortality. It was a veil that spared me from thinking about what the people I had known in life would look like in death.For a couple of years be...

'Much harder being a student in 2023':

Universities and students' associations warn rising living costs are hitting students especially hard this year.One university is fundraising for a new emergency scholarship and another university staffer said the financial pressure is causing serious mental health problems.Student leaders said students were struggling to afford food, rent and other bills and studying had become harder than ever.AUT's director of student services, Joanna Scarbrough, told RNZ financial problems were the main caus...

Seventeen-year-old to have bariatric surgery

Mele Raass is counting down to life-changing bariatric surgery.The 17 year-old Ōtara resident is one of a group of 20 young people chosen to undergo the surgery as part of a project targeting adolescent obesity. To qualify, patients have to be under 18 years of age and have a body mass index (BMI) of over 35.It will see half her stomach removed to prevent developing diabetes - and end a lifelong weight battle.It's part of a programme from Diabetes Foundation Aotearoa (DFA), which has partnered ...

'Nanaia bore the brunt':

The Prime Minister told The Hui presenter Julian Wilcox other voices from the Government should have been in the conversation about the controversial legislation."I think if I reflect critically on that period, we probably left Nanaia Mahuta out on her own defending the Three Waters reform program and the co-governance debate by herself for longer than we should have," Hipkins said."I actually think Nanaia bore the brunt of that [debate]. It was very unfair. It became very personalised to her."H...

The Hui - Monday, April 10, 2023

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As a doctor,

Over the last 50 years, Māori and Pasifika students with their eyes on a career in medicine have had the chance of getting a hand from MAPAS at the University of Auckland’s School of Medicine.MAPAS is the Māori and Pacific Admissions Scheme which was set up to help ensure that New Zealand’s doctors would, bit by bit, get to the point where they’re reflecting the ethnic mix of the country’s population.Here, Chloe Fergusson-Tibble tells how MAPAS has helped her along the way.Link to arti...

Artificial intelligence has potential for harm that 'boggles the mind'

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New platform helping schools address student well-being, bullying

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Online platform helping schools tackle mental health going global

Komodo Wellbeing was developed in Christchurch by Jack Wood and Chris Bacon in 2018. It’s now available in more than 100 schools in 16 countries, including Singapore, Kuwait, Dubi, Australia, South Korea and Japan.The platform gives students are given a series of questions to answer, including how happy they are, if they’ve been bullied, feel safe at school, and whether life at home is enjoyable.The information is then sent through to the teacher, who can see a breakdown of how well individu...

Hamilton hapū lodges formal request

Hamilton hapū have lodged a formal proposal to change the name of a carpark in the centre of the city.The Sonning carpark is just across the Waikato river from Hamilton CBD and is built on the site of Opoia Pā.The hapū would like to see the site revert to its original name.The Hamilton City Council have been keen to develop high-rise housing on the site, but last year Ngāti Wairere filed a Waitangi Tribunal claim in opposition to any proposed development.Link to article: Hamilton hapū ...

The Vatican has rejected the Doctrine of Discovery, will King Charles III follow suit?

Link to pictorial representation: The Vatican has rejected the Doctrine of Discovery, will King Charles III follow suit? (msn.com)...