E rere e te Hauwhenua, ki te Iho tū, ki te Iho Whenua, ki te Iho tangata nā Rongoueroa
Tēnā, ka whai tapuwae, tēnā ka whai taumata,
Tēnā, ka whai i te ia o te hau ki te kawe i ngā rongo kōrero o te wā ki tō tātou maunga nui e tū mai nei...Uea! uea te pou o te whare, kia tū tangatanga, he kapua whakairi ki runga ō Papatūānuku,
Te Kiri e te iwi ka tokia e te anu, e te iwi ee, nau mai e waha ki taku tua!

Welcome to this month's Te Hauwhenua, the monthly Pānui for Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa. We are pleased to announce that Te Atiawa Marae received funding to upgrade whare and infrastructure. Also in this edition, we have updates about uri and a recent Eel wānanga.

We have a number of kaupapa coming up over the next few weeks and further information about these are included below. For up-to-date information remember to check our website and 'Like' our Facebook page.

At Alert Level 1 we all need to be ready in case COVID-19 reappears in our community. 

Staying at home if you’re sick is especially important at Alert Level 1. The risk of COVID-19 being spread in the community is much greater when there are no restrictions on gatherings or going out. Keep up good handwashing practices, using soap and water for at least 20 seconds, and drying thoroughly. Cough and sneeze into your elbow. Keep surfaces clean.
We encourage you to continue tracking where you’ve been and who you’ve seen to help with contact tracing if required.

Important information
Official COVID-19 Website
Contact Tracing

Kia Ūtoka Tātou - Let's be resolute

Earlier this month the Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and Māori Development Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced hundreds of marae throughout the country will be upgraded through investments from the Provincial Growth Fund.

Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa, Marae, Te Puni Kōkiri and Clelands Construction collaborated to complete detailed applications in a short timeframe, leading to successful outcomes for all Te Atiawa marae. These marae include Mangaemiemi, Kairau, Owae, Muru Raupatu and Katere. Kohanga Moa marae also received funding and is included in this collaboration.

The Provincial Growth Fund post COVID-19 funding is to create jobs and put money into the pockets of local tradespeople and businesses. Te Kotahitanga and marae look forward to sharing progress updates over the coming weeks profiling each marae, the work to be completed and whānau, tradespeople and businesses participating in this kaupapa.

23 Taranaki marae will receive $7.4 million for upgrades while more than 300 jobs will be created. 351 marae all over the country will receive $96.5 million while more than 3100 local jobs will be created.

"I hope that my study enables me to be part of what is likely to be a big scale review of that legislation, that I can be a connector between government and my iwi."

Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa and Parininihi ki Waitotara Undergraduate Scholarship recipient Renee Hanrahan features in the latest edition of Whenua. Renee is the first recipient of this scholarship and the full article is available online.

Otaraua Hapū and NIWA hosted a wānanga last week to learn about Glass Eel (baby eel) monitoring and how we can build a co-monitoring programme for the Waitara Awa (River).

• The total numbers of Glass Eels coming into the awa over a five hour period;
• What time of night get the highest numbers of glass eels;
• What percentage of our total catch are longfins and shortfins;
• The size, weight and body condition of the longfin and shortfin glass eels.
• Learn about the information contained in the ear bone (called an otolith) and what it can tell us about the mysterious marine life of our tuna.

Te Waikapoata Tamati is not only encouraging Māori to go to the dentist, she's inspiring other rangatahi to get into the profession too.

Watch the full interview online.

Teenager Kingston Taylor-Voyle teed off alongside some of New Zealand’s top golfers in the Taranaki Open last week. 

Read more the full article online.

Matariki Tu Rākau: living memorials

Matariki Tu Rākau is part of the One Billion Trees Programme. It is to help people plant living memorials that honour members of their communities who have:

• made practical change through their efforts
• brought distinction to New Zealand through their work
• enhanced New Zealand's reputation in their area or activity.

As at September 2020, the Matariki Tu Rākau Programme has supported the planting of more than 80 living memorials nationwide. More than 500,000 trees have been planted at 250 planting events since the programme started in 2018.

Applications for memorial plantings in 2021 are open now and more details are available online.