Latest news with #Mori
Scoop
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Scoop
PAPA: Woven Wearable Art Returns To Auckland For One Day Only
Press Release – Kahui St David's Free to the public, PAPA Papatnuku | Whakapapa brings the rich traditions of Mori weaving and cultural expression to life through fashion, music, and performance, transforming Khui St Davids into a vibrant runway. Auckland, New Zealand – In celebration of Matariki, PAPA – Papatūānuku | Whakapapa returns next month to Auckland with a one-day-only event that showcases the finest in woven wearable art. What: PAPA – Papatūānuku | Whakapapa – Woven Wearable Arts Showcase When: Saturday 7 June 2025 | 1:00pm–3:00pm Where: Kāhui St David's, 70 Khyber Pass Road, Grafton, Auckland Tickets: Free entry – registration essential via Eventfinda Website: Free to the public, PAPA – Papatūānuku | Whakapapa brings the rich traditions of Māori weaving and cultural expression to life through fashion, music, and performance, transforming Kāhui St David's into a vibrant runway. Curated by Te Whaea Witika and Beronia Scott, who are part of Te Puāwai Raranga, a collective of contemporary and traditional Māori artists and weavers based in Ōrākei, Auckland, the showcase will feature a collection of pieces from across New Zealand, woven from harakeke, natural fibres, and upcycled materials such as plastic bottle caps, tivaevae, and fast fashion waste. Some pieces take up to a year to complete. These works of wearable art will be modelled by participants of all ages, from rangatahi (youth) to kaumātua (elders). This year's featured artists hail from across Aotearoa and include: Beronia Scott, Te Hemoata Henare, Ann Margaret Strickland, Takutai Watts, Rawinia Weeva, Rosina Chan, Alan Chan, Jennifer Pountney, Tūī Stewart, Waimirirangi Howell, Lisa Pahau, Marama Morehu Batiyaka, Kiri Wikiriwhi and Danny Horsford. Event highlights include: Kiri Wikiriwhi's 2024 People's Choice Award-winning piece, woven from recycled white box strapping using the traditional mautahi weave. Rosina Chan's intricately designed pihepihe, featuring a dragon motif within a tāniko band – celebrating her whakapapa and mastery as a kairaranga. Te Whaea Witika, lead weaver, says: 'Now in its second year, PAPA – Papatūānuku | Whakapapa is more than a fashion event – it's a celebration of community, culture, and creativity. It showcases the artistry of Māori weaving alongside live performance, music, and wearable expression. 'Through the works of wearable art that will be walked down the red carpet at Kāhui St David's, we hope to inspire future generations to weave, to care for the environment, and to continue the practice of using natural materials.' In addition to the stunning woven artworks, attendees can enjoy live performances from Te Whare Karioi, Maraea Mokaraka, music by DJ Jeremy Robb, and delicious kai served by Te Whānau Toi Tupu – a collective of weavers raising funds for a cultural exchange trip to Thailand. 'We're also inviting rangatahi from the local community, with students from nearby high schools gaining hands-on experience in the creative arts and proudly stepping onto the red carpet,' says Te Whaea Witika. 'Audiences will be part of the celebration too, through the People's Choice Award – voting for their favourite piece and helping to recognise the incredible talent of our artists.' Paul Baragwanath, Director of the Friends of St David's Trust, concludes: 'Hosting PAPA is a true privilege. This is a space for everyone – where cultural expression, performance, and beauty meet. 'It's a thrill to see these woven works of art come to life on the red carpet of the Great Hall of Kāhui St David's. We are inviting people of all cultural backgrounds to come and celebrate Matariki, music and wearable art.'
Scoop
11 hours ago
- General
- Scoop
Pacific Wardens Funding Will Improve Coordination
Article – RNZ Community leaders say a funding injection for Pacific wardens could pave the way for a national structure similar to the Mori wardens model. , RNZ Pacific Senior Journalist Community leaders say a funding injection for Pacific wardens could pave the way for a national structure similar to the Māori wardens model. Pacific wardens are volunteers who provide support at big community events and activities. They operate in different parts of the country, including Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland and Waikato. Among this year's budget announcements was NZ$1 million in funding for the Auckland Pacific Wardens Trust. The funding has been allocated over four years, with the trust due to receive $250,000 per year to co-ordinate the service in Auckland and Waikato. Long-serving Auckland councillor Alf Filipaina and Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti discussed the potential impacts of the funding at a community event on Wednesday in Māngere, Auckland. Filipaina said the funding would enable training for volunteers and would improve co-ordination between different groups of wardens across the city. 'It will really get them radios, communication… jackets, so when they are deployed anywhere around Tāmaki Makaurau, they know where they come from.' It would also help support wardens through petrol vouchers and phone cards, he said. In 2010, Filipaina was one of four community leaders who brought together different Pacific warden groups across Auckland into one co-ordinated service. Filipaina said this year's multi-year budget funding announcement was particularly significant for building capacity in the Pacific warden service. He believed there were between 100 and 120 Pacific wardens in Auckland currently. 'You could utilise this money to build that capacity, even a national Pacific wardens organisation,' Filipaina said. 'We're starting [with] this region [and] Waikato. I think there's [Pacific wardens] in Christchurch. But…we need to bring all those together, that's the key thing…and on a very similar model [to] the Māori Wwardens. 'Because why should we start looking at another model when their model works?' Māori wardens have been operating in communities across the country for more than 150 years. They have legal responsibilities under the Māori Community Development Act 1962, and work in a range of ways, including by providing emergency management, being present at big events, and supporting whānau in the justice system. Reti said he wanted to see Pacific wardens providing support across different types of community activities and events. 'My expectations are to have increased visibility of Pacific wardens in the community – not just at events, but generally in the community,' Reti said. 'I would like to think that that could go beyond that, from the one-off big events to day-to-day, weekend-to-weekend presence and visibility of the Pacific wardens, where they could be most utilised and most valued.'
Scoop
2 days ago
- General
- Scoop
Mānuka Charitable Trust Warns Global Buyers Of Misleading Australian Honey Claims
Press Release – Manuka Charitable Trust Capilano makes claims that, in the Trusts view, deliberately undermine the authenticity, cultural significance, and scientific uniqueness of honey derived from Mnuka located in Aotearoa New Zealand a native species of deep significance to Mori and found … The Mānuka Charitable Trust has expressed concerns regarding marketing by an Australian honey producer positioning its honey as equivalent to honey from the mānuka tree found in Aotearoa New Zealand. Capilano makes claims that, in the Trust's view, deliberately undermine the authenticity, cultural significance, and scientific uniqueness of honey derived from Mānuka located in Aotearoa New Zealand – a native species of deep significance to Māori and found only in Aotearoa. 'As the national Māori representative voice for the indigenous taonga species known as Mānuka, we are concerned that marketing materials misrepresent both the origin and the identity of authentic products derived from Mānuka and it is inappropriate and misleading,' said Victor Goldsmith, Chair at the Mānuka Charitable Trust. 'Mānuka is more than honey – it's an indigenous name, a unique New Zealand product, and part of Māori healing tradition,' added Kristen Kohere-Soutar of the Mānuka Charitable Trust. 'For genuine Mānuka honey, choose Aotearoa New Zealand-sourced. It ensures authenticity, supports indigenous rights, and upholds scientific integrity,' she added. The Trust believes using the term 'Mānuka' in Australian marketing is not only misleading – it is a form of cultural appropriation and a challenge to the principles of fair trade and informed consumer choice. 'Australian honeys have their own their authentic names, origin and attributes. The word mānuka does not exist in the vernacular of Australia's First Nations peoples, who have their own names for their distinct botanical honeys. The name mānuka is not Australia's to use,' she said. The Trust's position is supported by scientific evidence which confirms that Leptospermum scoparium is an outdated classification that does not accurately reflect the significant genetic divergence between Leptospermum scoparium found in New Zealand and the Leptospermum species found in Australia. The Mānuka Charitable Trust has been looking into the global protection offered by the geographical indication system used by France and Italy. Spokesperson Kristen Kohere-Soutar said the Trust wants to see the system adopted in New Zealand to protect the mana and value of its mānuka products. 'Anyone around the world producing honey, calling it mānuka honey that's not come from New Zealand – would be stopped by courts from being able to trade. That's the kind of protection that we need here.' MCT is a charitable trust established in 2020. It was formed as the guardian of the taonga, Mānuka and is representative of Māori from across Aotearoa.
Scoop
2 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
Democracy Denied: Te Pāti Māori Slam Govt For Silencing Māori And Tangata Tiriti On The Regulatory Standards Bill
Press Release – Te Pati Maori The system is broken-again. It couldnt handle the tidal wave of Mori opposition last year, and its collapsing under the same pressure now said Te Pti Mori co-leader Rawiri Waititi. Today, Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi slammed the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee's refusal to extend the public submission period for the Regulatory Standards Bill, calling it a deliberate act to silence whānau, hapū, iwi, and community voices. Waititi had urged the Committee to extend the submission period by four weeks, citing both procedural fairness and technical failures- after the submissions portal repeatedly crashed on day one, echoing the same systemic failures experienced during last year's Treaty Principles Bill. 'The system is broken-again. It couldn't handle the tidal wave of Māori opposition last year, and it's collapsing under the same pressure now' said Waititi. 'This is already one of the most unconstitutional bills ever put before this House. Rushing it through only adds insult to injury- it's not just bad law, it's a bad process.' This morning, Government members on the Committee voted down every attempt by Te Pāti Māori to extend the submission deadline or retain the standard six-month review process. They have instead locked in a shortened four-month timeframe and a hard deadline of 23 June 2025. 'Make no mistake- this is legislative sabotage. The Government is not only advancing the most dangerous bill in Aotearoa's parliamentary history, they're doing it with their foot on the gas and their hand over our mouths.' 'We are not surprised- we've seen this playbook before. But we are not powerless. We know how to mobilise. We know how to fight back.' Waititi issued a national call to action: 'There are still 25 days left. Flood the system. Overwhelm it with our voices. Let them choke on the very democracy they're trying to dismantle. 'Rally your whānau, your hapū, your iwi, your communities. Let's shut this bill down the way we shut down every other attempt to erase us. Submissions are our weapons- use them' concluded Waititi.
The Hindu
5 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Garage meets and sleepless flights: How Nippon Steel's negotiator stuck at U.S. merger
Snow lay thick in the Pittsburgh suburbs as Takahiro Mori, a bespectacled, 67-year-old executive from Japan's Nippon Steel, huddled in a cluttered garage with community leaders to reassure them he was not giving up on a bid to buy the town's steel mill. Just days before the early January meeting, U.S. President Joe Biden had blocked Nippon Steel's proposed $14.9 billion takeover of U.S. Steel, a move both companies said risked thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in investment. With Mr. Biden's incoming successor Donald Trump also voicing opposition to the planned purchase, the outlook was bleak. Fast forward five months and the persistence shown by the firm's chief negotiator seems set to pay off, with Mr. Trump now signalling he is prepared to support a deal. "It's been a long, hard battle," said Chris Kelly, the 70-year-old Mayor of West Mifflin who hosted Mr. Mori for the January meeting at his garage-cum-office on a suburban residential street near U.S. Steel's ageing Irvin plant. He said he has met Ms. Mori on several occasions since Nippon Steel's bid was first unveiled in late 2023, including at an American football game and a Pittsburgh restaurant just over a week ago when the Japanese executive flew in to give an update on the latest developments of the planned takeover. Nippon Steel declined to comment on the meetings. Mr. Mori, a 40-year company veteran, has been the public face of Nippon Steel's extensive efforts to convince local workers, officials and U.S. lawmakers of the economic merits of a merger plan that has had to weather a political firestorm. "I just have a strong desire to make this work somehow," a calm and smiling Mr. Mori, who serves as the company's vice chairman and executive vice president, told Reuters in an interview last week when asked about how he had personally endured the saga. China exports push Nippon Steel to seek growth in US, India after blocked deal Mr. Mori said he had made around 10 trips to the United States since the start of the year alone, visiting steel towns and Washington D.C., where lawmakers have been deliberating over any potential national security risks posed by the transaction. "On the plane to the destination, I can hardly sleep," he said, explaining that he had to read reams of documents, prepare for meetings during the flight, and work through the night to manage tasks back in Japan. There may still be twists ahead. While Mr. Trump has said he supports a "planned partnership" between the two companies, lingering questions remain about the scope of the deal and its costs for the Japanese firm. Japan firms must get used to reverse break-up fees after Nippon Steel's $565 million blow High stakes For Japan's top steelmaker, U.S. Steel is central to its global expansion strategy at a time when domestic demand is declining. A merger would create the world's third-largest steel producer by volume, after China's Baowu Steel Group and Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal, according to World Steel Association data. While Mr. Mori has had a hand in the firm's overseas expansion efforts in places like Brazil and India, the acquisition of a company centred in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania in an election year presented unique challenges. Nippon Steel stands firm on a U.S. Steel takeover and denies risks cited by Biden As soon as the agreement was announced in December 2023, the politically-influential United Steel workers union issued a statement condemning U.S. Steel for selling the storied American firm to a foreign-owned company. Within weeks, Mr. Biden had joined his election challenger Mr. Trump in saying he was against the deal, subjecting it to the first of two rounds of national security reviews by the secretive Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. Just before Mr. Trump signalled support on Friday (May 23, 2025), the union issued a statement alleging Nippon Steel was "a serial trade cheater" and that the sale would be "a disaster" for American steelworkers. In an interview with Reuters in December, union chief David McCall, said he was frustrated by what he said was the Japanese company's refusal to give assurances about their long-term commitment to the company and its workers. However, he described Mr. Mori, his opposite man in those talks, as "personable". What appears to have swung the deal back in Nippon Steel's favour with the transactional Mr. Trump is money. The firm has plans to invest $14 billion in U.S. Steel's operations, including up to $4 billion in a new steel mill, Reuters exclusively reported last week. But on the ground in Pittsburgh at least, the persistence and personal touch of Mr. Mori, who obtained a masters degree from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in 1992, has also left an impression on some of those he has met. "They've embraced everything about the city of Pittsburgh," said Mr. Kelly, the Mayor, recounting that Mr. Mori was yelling and waving a towel in support when the pair attended a match for the local Pittsburgh Steelers American football team last year.
