Jeremy Tātere Macleod departs role with Ngāti Kahungunu

Jeremy Tātere McLeod has left his role with Ngati Kahungunu, but he will still work with them in a different capacity with his consultancy firm. Photo / Paul Taylor

Just over 13 years after Ngāti Kahungunu took a chance on a 23-year-old to spearhead their language revitalisation campaign, Jeremy Tātere Macleod is stepping back so it can be taken in a new direction.

Macleod says Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated’s Māori language revitalisation strategy has evolved so much since he was appointed director of te reo, tikanga and mātauranga in August 2010, that it was time for change.

“The environment in the world has changed and I think the language is in a much stronger position,” Macleod said.

“I think the time has come to refresh and review the tribe’s language strategy because we have achieved over 80 per cent of what we set out to do in 2013.”

Recently, Macleod was a prominent face in the protests during Julian Batchelor’s visit to Hawke’s Bay in July this year.

When asked if Batchelor and the discourse around his Stop Co-Governance Tour was a sign that “champions” of the Māori perspective were needed more than ever, he said there were “many more supporters than dissenters” for the language and culture.

“I believe that the majority of New Zealanders support the language and cultural revitalisation plight, and that is evident through a lot of members of society wanting to learn the language, wanting to utilise the language in their homes and wanting to improve their cultural proficiency,” he said.

He said he was shifting his focus to his consultancy firm Kauwaka Limited, which contributes to the language and cultural revitalisation endeavours within Ngāti Kahungunu.

“I know that my relationship with Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated will continue, albeit through a different vehicle.”

He said he was open to mentoring anyone who may eventually take on his former role, but he understood that the iwi would potentially review and refresh the strategy before looking at the future of that position.

“I have been fostered by fantastic mentors, many of whom are no longer here with us. I was afforded the opportunity by Meka Whaitiri, who was CEO in 2010 when she trusted a 23-year-old packhouse operations manager with the task of sitting at the helm of the tribe’s Māori language revitalisation strategy.”

He said his biggest highlight was creating and mentoring rangatahi leadership programmes like Te Tira Hou, Te Pae Tata and Te Pōkaitara, and he said participants had become language and cultural champions within their marae, hapū and across Aotearoa.

In his role, he reviewed the Ngāti Kahungunu Māori language strategy which became “Kahungunu, kia eke!”

He established the Te Reo ki Tua National Māori Language Revitalisation Symposium and Ngā Tohu Reo o Ngāti Kahungunu, or the Ngāti Kahungunu Māori Language Awards.

He also developed several cultural and educational programmes.

James Pocock joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2021 and writes breaking news and features, with a focus on environment, local government and post-cyclone issues in the region. He has a keen interest in finding the bigger picture in research and making it more accessible to audiences. He lives in Napier. james.pocock@nzme.co.nz