Communities connect with Mātauranga Māori this Mental Health Awareness Week to strengthen wellbeing
4 Oct, 2018
MEDIA ADVISORY
From waka ama to māra kai and Māori movement, Māori workshops are being held this Mental Health Awareness Week to promote positive community wellbeing.
Hāpai Te Hauora and the Mental Health Foundation (MHF) have joined forces for Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW) to prioritise wellbeing.
MHAW runs from 8–14 October and encourages people to Let nature in, strengthen your wellbeing – Mā te taiao, kia whakapakari tōu oranga!
Events are being hosted across the week to encourage whānau, communities, kura and workplaces to uplift their wairua within our natural world.
“Our identity as Māori is intrinsically connected to the taiao, so Mental Health Awareness Week provides opportunity to reaffirm this,” Hāpai Te Hauora Pou Tikanga Rangi McLean says.
The community workshops include waka ama, mahi ngāo, māra kai, Māori movement and sharing stories about the wellbeing of whānau. Each event aligns with the Five Ways to Wellbeing – five simple actions that boost wellbeing.
“We should all be getting into the habit of healing through the land. Having a practice that gives you a continued purpose outside, in the soil, with your whānau like the maara kai is the beginner’s way of achieving that,” Kelly Francis of Whenua Warriors Trust says.
“We need to create a space for whānau to be with our whenua and seek the healing they need in a non-artificial way,” she says.
Several other events for Māori communities are also being held in Kaikohe, Tauranga, Kawakawa and Kaitaia throughout the week.
“We strongly feel that continuing to engage with and connect with Māoritanga, whakapapa and identity is an important way for all to maintain mental wellbeing. We hope these five workshops are useful ways to help our Māori communities reconnect with traditional practices, and enhance wellbeing along the way,” Hāpai Te Hauora chief operations manager Selah Hart says.
This year, MHAW has woven together the Five Ways to Wellbeing with the nights of the Maramataka, guided by Rereata Makiha who is renowned in Maramataka and astronomy.
“MHAW is an opportunity to be part of the revitalisation of Māori ancestral knowledge of creation traditions and the Maramataka. Strengthening the connection with our identity means building resilience to prevent mental health issues,” MHF chief executive Shaun Robinson says.
Both Hāpai Te Hauora and the Mental Health Foundation believe weaving the Maramataka into the campaign maximises connection with the natural world and boosts wellbeing.
“Māori creation traditions and whakapapa are core to New Zealand’s strong relationship with nature and knowing and understanding these relationships strengthens our identity as a nation,” MHF Māori development manager Ellen Norman says.
“Knowing the history of our maunga, and when and where to gather kaimoana and kai from the ngahere, increases a sense of connection, identity and belonging,” she says.
Ellen encourages people to take a closer look at the campaign’s new design, created by Auckland-based Māori design agency Fly, which includes a te reo Māori poster.
Key Māori elements prominently feature, including Ranginui, Papatūānuku, maunga, awa, whenua, kete, kaimoana, marae and hongi.
To learn more about Mental Health Awareness Week, visit www.mhaw.nz.
-ENDS-
For more information and details on the Hāpai events, contact:
Selah HartChief Operations ManagerHāpai Te Hauoramedia@hapai.co.nz(09) 520 4796021 0832 7944
For further comment from the Mental Health Foundation, contact: Rachael ClarkeSenior Communications and Marketing OfficerMental Health Foundation of New Zealand020 4138 6371Rachael.Clarke@mentalhealth.org.nz
4 Oct, 2018
MEDIA ADVISORY
From waka ama to māra kai and Māori movement, Māori workshops are being held this Mental Health Awareness Week to promote positive community wellbeing.
Hāpai Te Hauora and the Mental Health Foundation (MHF) have joined forces for Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW) to prioritise wellbeing.
MHAW runs from 8–14 October and encourages people to Let nature in, strengthen your wellbeing – Mā te taiao, kia whakapakari tōu oranga!
Events are being hosted across the week to encourage whānau, communities, kura and workplaces to uplift their wairua within our natural world.
“Our identity as Māori is intrinsically connected to the taiao, so Mental Health Awareness Week provides opportunity to reaffirm this,” Hāpai Te Hauora Pou Tikanga Rangi McLean says.
The community workshops include waka ama, mahi ngāo, māra kai, Māori movement and sharing stories about the wellbeing of whānau. Each event aligns with the Five Ways to Wellbeing – five simple actions that boost wellbeing.
“We should all be getting into the habit of healing through the land. Having a practice that gives you a continued purpose outside, in the soil, with your whānau like the maara kai is the beginner’s way of achieving that,” Kelly Francis of Whenua Warriors Trust says.
“We need to create a space for whānau to be with our whenua and seek the healing they need in a non-artificial way,” she says.
Several other events for Māori communities are also being held in Kaikohe, Tauranga, Kawakawa and Kaitaia throughout the week.
“We strongly feel that continuing to engage with and connect with Māoritanga, whakapapa and identity is an important way for all to maintain mental wellbeing. We hope these five workshops are useful ways to help our Māori communities reconnect with traditional practices, and enhance wellbeing along the way,” Hāpai Te Hauora chief operations manager Selah Hart says.
This year, MHAW has woven together the Five Ways to Wellbeing with the nights of the Maramataka, guided by Rereata Makiha who is renowned in Maramataka and astronomy.
“MHAW is an opportunity to be part of the revitalisation of Māori ancestral knowledge of creation traditions and the Maramataka. Strengthening the connection with our identity means building resilience to prevent mental health issues,” MHF chief executive Shaun Robinson says.
Both Hāpai Te Hauora and the Mental Health Foundation believe weaving the Maramataka into the campaign maximises connection with the natural world and boosts wellbeing.
“Māori creation traditions and whakapapa are core to New Zealand’s strong relationship with nature and knowing and understanding these relationships strengthens our identity as a nation,” MHF Māori development manager Ellen Norman says.
“Knowing the history of our maunga, and when and where to gather kaimoana and kai from the ngahere, increases a sense of connection, identity and belonging,” she says.
Ellen encourages people to take a closer look at the campaign’s new design, created by Auckland-based Māori design agency Fly, which includes a te reo Māori poster.
Key Māori elements prominently feature, including Ranginui, Papatūānuku, maunga, awa, whenua, kete, kaimoana, marae and hongi.
To learn more about Mental Health Awareness Week, visit www.mhaw.nz.
-ENDS-
For more information and details on the Hāpai events, contact:
Selah HartChief Operations ManagerHāpai Te Hauoramedia@hapai.co.nz(09) 520 4796021 0832 7944
For further comment from the Mental Health Foundation, contact: Rachael ClarkeSenior Communications and Marketing OfficerMental Health Foundation of New Zealand020 4138 6371Rachael.Clarke@mentalhealth.org.nz