Hekenukumai Busby’s mokopuna to share her knowledge of waka with rangatahi

Jolene Busby wants to teach youth about the traditional Māori knowledge associated with waka. Photo / Te Ao Māori News

A mokopuna of the Māori navigator and traditional waka builder, Hekenukumai Busby, is following in his footsteps and setting up her own waka school called Moata. Jolene Busby (Ngāpuhi) wants to teach youth about the traditional Māori knowledge associated with waka.

The name Moata is her salute to the first waka she worked on as a 3-year-old. Now she’s teaching the art of waka building and navigation to children, something her grandfather was famous for in his lifetime.

She says she is sharing her vast knowledge with children, some as young as 3, so it’s retained.

“One of the teachings that my grandfathers gave on both taha māmā and pāpā was that you teach our kids and teach them young. Don’t wait to teach them till it’s too late. Hence why we have got a 3-year-old running around. I was that 3-year-old once upon a time.”

“I want it to be accessible with no barriers for our rangatahi. I don’t want our children to travel so far to get the mātauranga of waka. I want waka to be accessible, right there at their fingertips.”

Education is Busby’s main aim with practical exercises to build knowledge. She lists them: “Where the trees come from, how we cut the trees down, the karakia. From the karakia to the building. The building to the different carvings that go on the waka. Into the water. The teaching around water safety.”

“Next month we will be building sailing canoes here, just little waka taurua and then we will be doing dugouts and then eventually larger waka.”